Building a shed????????

[Nirodac Yar]

My local lumber yard did say the good stuff with the arsenic has be outlawed. He also mentioned that they upped the copper content to make up for the loss of the arsenic. The copper when it gets wet, now reacts with the zinc in the hangers and causes corrosion which affects the iron in the hanger and eventually hanger failure. The wood probably has a lesser life span because it has less bug killer built in. He further stated that the new hangers have an extra heavy coating of zinc, so the iron inside will be further protected, and should last longer. He also suggested using stainless screws to hold the deck planks. Boy an I glad I built my deck two years ago. I don't know how many pounds of epoxy coated screws I went through, but I would have needed a second mortgage if they were stainless. This years project is a storage shed. This thread has given me lots of good idea's. I'll be going with the concrete footings.

[Ron Truitt]

I have twice built one of a pretty large size from plans I drew up myself, but I have a bit of experience in framing. At any rate you can do it.

You can save money but also very important is: it can be of a higher quality. If you can find a source of good used lumber you could save even more.

If you will be leaving it when you move you won't need to worry about moving it. But if you want to build it to be moved you could give some thought to how to build it so that it could be placed on a flatbed truck. A friend of mine built one out of used framing lumber and siding and had it loaded on a truck with a forklift and moved it to is new place.

At any rate best of luck. You'll have some fun and get a better shed to boot.

RonT

[captmikey]

Mike...

One of the reasons the "good stuff" was outlawed a few years ago was that the arsenic actually rubs off on contact with human skin. Many abitious dads and grandpops were building jungle gyms, swings, and tree houses out of it and the EPA got involved because of all the medical problems that arose. I believe a Children's safety group was also involved, and there was a big article in Time or Newsweek exposing the hazards. It actually made me worry because there are plenty of decks out there that have kids playing on them. It was pointed out in the article that homeowners should seal their decks on a regular basis to keep the arsenic in the wood and not on bare feet or kids hands and knees.

All that being said, many towns have adopted a change in building codes that _requires_ the sill plate on all new construction to be PT. It's kind of ironic because while the sill plate isn't tasty to a termite, he can walk 2" and go right for the box plate/rim joist which is regular kiln-dried lumber.

Mike

[Owen Lawrence]

You built the same shed twice? Maybe you should refine your plans to make it a little sturdier next time.

(Sorry, couldn't resist. :) )

- Owen -

[Prometheus]

That depends on who you are, and how quickly you can pick things up. Lots of guys can build a good shed the first time out, and lots of folks can't do it after twenty tries. Take it nice and slow, and make sure to measure constantly, and it should be pretty easy.

That depends on how much your time is worth, and how long it takes you to do it. In most cases, yes- but sometimes it's worth the extra price to buy pre-fab if you've got too many other irons in the fire. The other option is to find someone who puts them up in their spare time- I put up 3 or 4 sheds and/or garages every summer, and my going rate is $15 an hour. It takes about 20 hours for one guy to get the framing, roof and sheathing on for a decent sized one-car garage, and about 12 hours for a shed that is about the size you're describing. Depending on where you're located, that may be cheaper than buying one pre-made.

We've got some Amish in the area that really like building entire houses without foundations to avoid taxes. So yes, it's possible. Whether it's desirable or not is another question altogether, and one I'm not prepared to comment on.

What the heck do you need plans for? Buy a book on general framing (or get one from the library), and get to work. It's not like you're going to be laying out several rooms in something that small.

Aut inveniam viam aut faciam