Realistic material costs for a relatively small shed?

[AceofSpad3s]

Been thinking about putting a shed up for a while, got a small niche behind the garage where I could remove a fencing panel and put a smallish shed (6ft max width, probably 8 foot long) which wouldn't take up much space but would let me funnel some of the unnecessary stuff in the garage into. Or there's another spot I could put something maybe a little bigger.
Looking around, I've seen the classic cheap metal sheds that are $300 and look pretty hokey and probably cave after a slight bit of snow. Been thinking about just stick building one, but looking around I'm somewhat surprised at the costs. HD selling just a kit for $1100, some websites saying like $800 for materials.

I haven't gone real in depth thinking or planning it out since it's just a thought, but these numbers seem pretty high, not planing on building a palace for the outdoor furniture and lawn tools. It's behind a garage so it doesn't need to be something visually stunning for curb appeal or anything, but I don't want to put effort into making a piece of junk either.
Do these costs sound about right, could anyone that build any sheds in the past few years chime in?

 

[jdewitt]

I built an 8'x12' open shed with 3 walls, shed roof with rafters & composition shingles, 4 4x4 posts, girts and t111 siding, and gravel floor about 6 years ago. All told, it about about $700 in materials.

Are you going to have a floor and frame it on top?

So the answer is it really depends, but you're probably looking at about $1k in materials depending on what you want to do.

 

[Bretny]

You should pick a size shed then figure out materials. Anything else is just spitballing.

Those HD wood shed kits are complete junk. Are you capable of building a shed your self? If so i suggest you do it your self.

 

[AceofSpad3s]

I built an 8'x12' open shed with 3 walls, shed roof with rafters & composition shingles, 4 4x4 posts, girts and t111 siding, and gravel floor about 6 years ago. All told, it about about $700 in materials.

Are you going to have a floor and frame it on top?

So the answer is it really depends, but you're probably looking at about $1k in materials depending on what you want to do.

Floor with a frame on top. I imagine a lot of the cost is coming from the roofing and siding,

You should pick a size shed then figure out materials. Anything else is just spitballing.

Those HD wood shed kits are complete junk. Are you capable of building a shed your self? If so i suggest you do it your self.

Building it isn't a problem, I wasn't planing on a kit, I was just using that as a rough idea of what cost would be. Note that even that $1183 "kit" from HD in reality is just a pile of materials on a pallet.
6x8 is what I would want to do, the bones of the structure I could get an idea of fairly easily, but stuff like siding, roofing, etc isn't what I have much experience with, and seems to be a large part of the cost of the structure. I don't see myself at this location for a particularly long time, which is partially why I was considering the metal ones, obviously not the greatest but I don't plan on being here more than 5 more years max. Of course would prefer a wooden structure for durability, but $800 is kinda steep for what at the end of the day is holding some lawn furniture and basic outdoor tools.

 

[Homerr]

Somehow for me I end up spending 1:1 on new tools in addition to the materials.

 

[Bretny]

Get a metal one then. I had a god awfuly old metal one when i moved into my place. Lasted unknown ammount of snow. I took it down to build a 13x19ft 2 story. I still have the pannels and used it on a firewood shed.

Have you thought about a plastic one? They would be alot easier to take down and setup when you move.

 

[Bretny]

Somehow for me I end up spending 1:1 on new tools in addition to the materials.

So you got a new shed and new tools for the price of a shed kit? I would say you won on that.

 

[jdewitt]

(6ft max width, probably 8 foot long)

Floor with a frame on top.

Ok, so start figuring your costs from the ground up.

• Cinder blocks for foundation
• Gravel to help level/seat cinder blocks
• pressure treat 2x6 for the floor substructure
• galvanized nails for pt wood
• plywood/sheathing floor
• 2x4 for framed walls
• 2x4 and plywood scraps for simple trusses
• nails for framing & trusses
• t111 for siding
• small galv nails for siding
• 1x4 to trim corners on top of siding
• caulking, primer, and paint for siding
• plywood/sheathing on roof
• felt underlayment on roof
• shingles for roof
• roofing nails
• drip edge for roof
• hurricane ties
• hinges & latch for door
• door made from 2x4 & t111
• some tubes of construction adhesive (optional)

What did I miss? Figure your amounts, check prices and add it up.

$800 is kinda steep for what at the end of the day is holding some lawn furniture and basic outdoor tools.

I don't forsee the materials being any less than $800 for what I described above.

So you got a new shed and new tools for the price of a shed kit? I would say you won on that.

That's my philosophy.

 

[AceofSpad3s]

Get a metal one then. I had a god awfuly old metal one when i moved into my place. Lasted unknown ammount of snow. I took it down to build a 13x19ft 2 story. I still have the pannels and used it on a firewood shed.

Have you thought about a plastic one? They would be alot easier to take down and setup when you move.

I had the impression the metal ones were pretty flimsy from what I read about the arrow ones I was looking at. I thought about the plastic ones but a shed is more of a stop gap solution that probably wouldn't be very important to bring with if we moved. Ideally any new house would have either a 2 car garage or a decently large lot that could support the construction or a large shed or a pole barn.

 

[mike93lx]

The cheap HD kits are junk... I have one.

A lot will depend on the level of finish you are looking for. Lots of PVC trim will drive the cost, as will windows and doors

To save money, try a place like Habitat for Humanity Restore. They'll have windows, doors, some hardware, shelving, etc

I would budget $1k and try for less.

 

[kazlx]

I built a fancy 8x14 and spent about $2000. That was regular stud spacing, french doors, windows, pergo flooring and drywalled inside and regular roof and lap siding. However, I did just extend a concrete pad that was existing after demolishing the old shed. I just bargain shopped for everything. Places like the Habitat stores are great places to look. Plus, if you build in stages and space out the costs, even if you spend more than you wanted originally, you get exactly what you wanted and it's not the full cash outlay at one time like buying a kit, which tend to be completely crappy anyway.

 

[jd_1138]

I think it will be like $800 to $1000 in materials, but think of how much space you'll gain in the garage for working on the cars and projects. That's the biggest value for years and years to come. I wouldn't fart around with a metal or plastic junk/kit shed. They are **** usually. Also the wooden shed kits are kinda junky (most).

A real shed that's built like a small house is best, and you can build a lot of shelving inside to swallow up a lot of junk and get it out of your main garage.

 

[ItsNemo]

My last two sheds (8x10 and 6x12) were around $2200 and $3500 respectively...but both were over built (2x4 on 16 center walls/roof with 1/2" plywood sheeting) and did vinyl siding which tacked on a fair bit of money. If I had gone the cheap route, I could have probably done the first one for $1500 and second one for $2500.

 

[Kenstone1]

I had the impression the metal ones were pretty flimsy from what I read about the arrow ones I was looking at. I thought about the plastic ones but a shed is more of a stop gap solution that probably wouldn't be very important to bring with if we moved. Ideally any new house would have either a 2 car garage or a decently large lot that could support the construction or a large shed or a pole barn.

All your "yah-but" responses to posts so far sound like you are all hung-up on the money, not willing to do a detailed material/cost analysis, and just pulling numbers out of the sky.

Building a piece of **** with cheap materials, without plans would take the average diy'er way longer than you would think, and would never get completely finished like paint and trim.

And when you try to sell your house in five years, the realtor will be asking you to tear it down.

Maybe one of those conduit framed/vinyl tarp "carports" would fit your budget here.
Buy/build it, puts some (free) pallets in it to keep your stuff off the ground...done.

https://www.homedepot.com/b/Search/...d/Ntt-carport?Ntx=mode+matchpartialmax&NCNI-5

 

[mmb617]

The price of materials has gotten ridiculous lately. 10 years or so ago you could build a decent 6x8 shed for a couple hundred, but no more. I'd think $800 would be about the bottom price.

I still remember buying OSB for $3 a sheet.

 

[Stuart in MN]

Even if you don't have them in your area, Menards has a materials cost estimator for garages on their website. You can enter sizes smaller than a typical garage - I just checked and was able go down to 10' x 12', so it can approximate a shed. It does ask for a zip code and a store you would be shopping at, if you have trouble just plug in a Minneapolis zip code and fake it. Prices may not be the same as your area but at least it should get you in the ballpark.

 

[Cougar67]

One of my sons was going to build a shed for a dog park as his Eagle Scout project. He found a wood shed he liked at Home Depot but priced it out using real 2x4's and buying the materials separately. For instance, we can get T-111 siding for $20 a sheet locally from a builder's outlet. His price for a big shed was about half what the kits cost. He ended up doing a different project and made Eagle over a year ago. Here's the PDF of the assembly of a 6' x 8" and you can probably use it to plan yours. PDF warning:

https://images.homedepot-static.com/catalog/pdfImages/49/49ffcc9d-3a80-4e64-a1c0-0958fa4b66aa.pdf

 

[unknownroad]

Have you taken a look around/inside some of the plastic sheds? Right now our local HD has several set up in the parking lot; not sure where you are but it's probably worth your time to swing by a few big box stores and see if you can find some to check out in person.

Lifetime and Suncast manufacture most of their sheds in the U.S., they're surprisingly sturdy, and particularly since you're looking for something that's not too expensive and doesn't need to last for 40 years they could be just what you're looking for.

I built a 8x14 wooden shed from a kit last year, and an 8x15 resin this year... I spent less time building the resin shed than I spent just PAINTING the wooden one, and it was probably a grand cheaper to boot by the time you factor in paint, roofing materials, and some better hardware for the wooden shed. If you're just looking for another place to stash your excess ****, and you put any sort of value on your time, they're really worth a look.

 

[DFB]

Ya I agree the current pricing of of materials is out of site. Don't underestimate. There are plenty of ways to cheat things 2ft oc 2x3 framing. 1/2" roofing and or decking.

Just look at all responses here about the HD **** shacks

I built an 8 x12 years ago from scratch 16" oc. 2 x 4 walls with stepped blocking, T1-11 siding, PT subfloor framing and 3/4 ply decking, built 2x4 trusses, 5/8 roof sheathing, shingles, tarpaper, 1x 4 fascia and gable trim out, no gable lookout overhangs to save money, (both sheet goods and framing) single door large enough for riding mower, sliding 3 ft window, window door trim 1x 3, dressed out with furring strip shutters, and window box from 1-11 scraps

Was like $900 then and I was on tight budget, all my T 1-11 was deal as the pallet got hit and one corners on all the pieces were broke, Trimmed them back all 6 inches,

All done remotely no power, with hammer and nails, handsaw for trimout. Big rips and opening were marked onsite and cut offsite and transported back.

Just about 30 years its been now...solid and straight as the day is long still :thumbsup

 

[AceofSpad3s]

Have you taken a look around/inside some of the plastic sheds? Right now our local HD has several set up in the parking lot; not sure where you are but it's probably worth your time to swing by a few big box stores and see if you can find some to check out in person.

Lifetime and Suncast manufacture most of their sheds in the U.S., they're surprisingly sturdy, and particularly since you're looking for something that's not too expensive and doesn't need to last for 40 years they could be just what you're looking for.

I looked at some instore but all they had out was the $900+ models which gave me the impression they were more expensive then outright building one.
Now that you mention Suncast, I didn't see any of those in store, but looking online I see some 7x7 ones for low $600's, which is what I was around how much I was looking to spend originally.

 

[mike93lx]

A big downside to the plastic sheds is door and interior height. At 6'4", i am sick of hitting my head on the opening of my crappy shed and have more than once nearly fired up my chainsaw to fix it. I would already own a plastic one if i could find the right size with an 78+" door

 

[bczygan]

Been thinking about putting a shed up for a while, got a small niche behind the garage where I could remove a fencing panel and put a smallish shed (6ft max width, probably 8 foot long) which wouldn't take up much space but would let me funnel some of the unnecessary stuff in the garage into. Or there's another spot I could put something maybe a little bigger.
Looking around, I've seen the classic cheap metal sheds that are $300 and look pretty hokey and probably cave after a slight bit of snow. Been thinking about just stick building one, but looking around I'm somewhat surprised at the costs. HD selling just a kit for $1100, some websites saying like $800 for materials.

I haven't gone real in depth thinking or planning it out since it's just a thought, but these numbers seem pretty high, not planing on building a palace for the outdoor furniture and lawn tools. It's behind a garage so it doesn't need to be something visually stunning for curb appeal or anything, but I don't want to put effort into making a piece of junk either.
Do these costs sound about right, could anyone that build any sheds in the past few years chime in?

5 years?

Where are you located?

Are you allowed a shed where you plan on locating it?

Do you need permits?

How big of a shed?

What exactly will be stored?

Bill (Shed expert)

 

[AceofSpad3s]

5 years?

Where are you located?

Are you allowed a shed where you plan on locating it?

Do you need permits?

How big of a shed?

What exactly will be stored?

Bill (Shed expert)

I sure hope not 5 years, ideally I'd be out of here tomorrow but the housing market is pretty stiff. Could get a very good price for the house with the market the way it is, but unfortunately that works both ways. Finding something with a larger garage or room for a fair sized building without 15 people with more money then sense also showing up is tough. Never know how things work out, so might be a week,a month, might be years.

1.New England
2.Yes, I have spot between the back of the garage and my fence where i could put a small shed (only visible side would be the entrance) that would use some unused room in the yard.
3.No
4. 6'x8', cannot be wider than 6 feet, other dimensions are less critical but 8 feet seems the logical choice due to the size of materials, height wise, doesn't need to be very tall so if I have to duck my head a bit it's not the end of the world
5.Non critical items, would like to be able to store the patio furniture elsewhere besides the garage in the winter as well as manual yard tools/wheelbarrow that take up space in the garage. Just a basic dry space to keep non-essential items out of the garage.

 

[Grant F]

I second most of the advise already given by other members but here are my $.02

As with everything costs may also depend on where you live.

I built an 8x10 kit about 13-14 years ago (so prices probably are way different now). At the time I was living in Western NY and there was a great shed place just up the street. They did fully built sheds, on site builds, and sold kits of their sheds. It was framed floor, 2x4 16"OC, steel French doors, 1 window, vinyl siding w pre-bent metal trim, architectural shingles and ridge vent. A nice shed. I recall the kit being around or just under $1,200 delivered. At the time, I started pricing materials at HD to build a similar shed and stopped adding when I was way over the price of the kit and still had more to go. Plus the kit was all precut and ready to assemble.

As one member posted about time to build - It took my dad, brother and I (all pretty experienced in building stuff) a pretty solid 2 days to get it put up with the shingles on. It took me a couple more days by myself to get the siding and trim all finished.

The one thing I decided after that shed was that I would probably build every other shed on a slab. I am not a fan of a sheds entry being elevated much above ground level.

I moved to S. Western PA not quite 9 years ago. One of my first things was to build a shed at my new house. I again went with an 8x10 (which is too small now). When looking for this shed I was amazed that getting even close to the quality of the shed I had built before, local prices were around or more than $2,000. If I recall, the crappy HD shed kits were $1,200-1,300 at the time. I ended up finding a really nice looking Vinyl shed through Lowes. (Unfortunately it does not appear that shed company exists anymore. ) It is an 8x10 and I recall it being around $1,100. The doors are high enough that I don't hit my head (as one member mentioned) I am 6'2". I poured a slab myself (additional $200-300) and have generally been pretty happy with it. It is not cheap looking and has not blown away or caved in, going on about 7-8 years now. My only complaint on this one is that the doors did not seal real well and I had to so I had to do some extra work to improve that.

Finally, about 2 years ago, I needed some extra storage and wanted a quick and easy build. I built a 3ish'x7' Suncast shed (I think it is the Cascade model) up against my house. Again, the particular shed I got, I thing is fairly good looking. Definitely more plastic looking than my 8x10 but not terrible looking. Again I poured a slab. At the time, they kept going on and off sale at Walmart and I waited for it to go on sale. I got it for $399 delivered. Once the slab was in, I built it alone in a couple hours. The doors seal up nicely and it has held up fine. I am happy with it (again other than I need more space - but that was all that fit there). It can get pretty windy where I am and we have had 60 mph winds.

Good luck!

 

[bczygan]

I sure hope not 5 years, ideally I'd be out of here tomorrow but the housing market is pretty stiff. Could get a very good price for the house with the market the way it is, but unfortunately that works both ways. Finding something with a larger garage or room for a fair sized building without 15 people with more money then sense also showing up is tough. Never know how things work out, so might be a week,a month, might be years.

1.New England
2.Yes, I have spot between the back of the garage and my fence where i could put a small shed (only visible side would be the entrance) that would use some unused room in the yard.
3.No
4. 6'x8', cannot be wider than 6 feet, other dimensions are less critical but 8 feet seems the logical choice due to the size of materials, height wise, doesn't need to be very tall so if I have to duck my head a bit it's not the end of the world
5.Non critical items, would like to be able to store the patio furniture elsewhere besides the garage in the winter as well as manual yard tools/wheelbarrow that take up space in the garage. Just a basic dry space to keep non-essential items out of the garage.

As long as you meet all the zoning ordinances, such as minimum distance from the house, maximum lot coverage and setbacks, I'd say go ahead and just buy some materials and go to town.

If it was me, and time might be limited, I would do something temporary. Something I could take with me, like a trailer, either enclosed, or with a heavy duty tarp on it could be a solution. Or a roof structure with things tarped under it. Or one of those temporary garages. A cheap shed could be built by putting HD Visqueen on the ground to keep out the rising damp and framing with 2x4's at 2' on center. Use thin T-1-11 for wall sheathing and OSB and roll roofing for the roof. Door from plywood. Paint or stain.

Or just a HD tarp on top and Visqueen under.

Bill

 

[DFB]

You could build a shed roof design approx 6' w x8' d storage building at 2' centers. Would take around 30 or so 2 x4's and a min. of 7 pieces of 4 x 8 sheet goods for rear end wall, sides and door framing.

4 more 2x's for roof beam support with minimum of 1 and a 1/2 cut full length piece of sheet goods for roof decking. The deck maybe 8 pieces of a PT 2 x framing and 1 1/2" or 2 more pieces of sheet good depending on layout perp or parallel. 12 footers may yield you your 6 ft dimensions for a little less than cutting down 8' though will leave you blocking material if u need it to fill in solid at the eves.

Cheat back the overall wall framing dimensions by enough to allow standard size sheet goods to overhang both the thickness of the siding and outside trim board enough on the sides, and for a decent overhang front and back

Roofing material... felt paper, shingles, drip edge.

Framing nails, siding nails, 1x stock for eave fascia boards and corner trim out. Scrap for door stops.

You could use metal roofing instead of shingling.


Sounds like a great scavenger project for acquiring material on the cheap

 

[strutaeng]

I'd say at least $600-800 for materials by the time you are done, not including floor/slab. As a side note, lumber in my area seems sort of low compared to last year. Maybe not in New England. Ours spiked from Harvey last year.

Can you do a "pole shed" and gravel floor. This is for like lawn mower and garden chairs, right? (4) 6x6 P.T. posts, 2x4 girts and whatever cheap siding, decking and roofing you can find and you are in business. You can even leave it open if you wanted.

You have to be below the frost-line, so perhaps not an option in your area. 42"+/-?

I've got a neighbor that built a shed with OSB and never even bothered to put siding over it, LOL.

 

[b-boy]

I had a plastic Rubbermaid Big Max shed for almost 20 years. I moved it from my old house a few years back as well.

It was well built, and had a nice floor.

It held up pretty well until we got a few days of hurricane force gales a few months ago. The wind pretty much blew it apart. It, and it's contents, were blowing all over the neighborhood.

 

[PoorOwner]

What do you guys think of this 6x8 "kit"

https://www.costco.com/Garden-6'-x-8'-Wood-Storage-Shed.product.100466695.html

I think I saw it for have $100 off form time to time.

Reason it cost a little more, it includes the Galv roof, which means I don't have to buy shingles (I don't know how to do roofing), but I am not sure is good or not.

 

[hasco]

The cheap HD kits are junk... I have one.

A lot will depend on the level of finish you are looking for. Lots of PVC trim will drive the cost, as will windows and doors

To save money, try a place like Habitat for Humanity Restore. They'll have windows, doors, some hardware, shelving, etc

I would budget $1k and try for less.

Today is 30% off day at Restore !

 

[mike93lx]

What do you guys think of this 6x8 "kit"

https://www.costco.com/Garden-6'-x-8'-Wood-Storage-Shed.product.100466695.html

I think I saw it for have $100 off form time to time.

Reason it cost a little more, it includes the Galv roof, which means I don't have to buy shingles (I don't know how to do roofing), but I am not sure is good or not.

6' sidewalls and galv roofing would be a pass for me, but might work for you.

I am 100% certain you could build it cheaper, but there is a value to having every part needed delivered at once. What's more important, saving money or time?

 

[PoorOwner]

6' sidewalls and galv roofing would be a pass for me, but might work for you.

I am 100% certain you could build it cheaper, but there is a value to having every part needed delivered at once. What's more important, saving money or time?

That kind of shed is meant for urban areas, under 8 feet in most cities they will let you place it along the property line without setback. Renting a trailer, buying siding, plywood etc kind of bothers me.

I posted it because the OP said he wanted a 6x8, and that shed looked nice. I would be interested in one for "overflow". Not sure how much can you store because it is like a small closet? You can line the sides with shelves and there is space to walk in. so basically about 2 shelf full of stuff and a push mower in the middle

I also see costco has the plastic shed for $799 seasonally, I think it is 8 x 7.5. It's actually more durable than wood because they don't rot or leak.

 

[LOW1]

Menards and many other places (including local lumber yards) will have a cut list and plan for whatever type shed you want and can give you an accurate cost at current prices. They may even be online

 

[LOW1]

https://www.menards.com/main/e-YardBuilding.html

 

[jdewitt]

A big downside to the plastic sheds is door and interior height. At 6'4", i am sick of hitting my head on the opening of my crappy shed and have more than once nearly fired up my chainsaw to fix it. I would already own a plastic one if i could find the right size with an 78+" door

Does it have a floor? If not, build a little stub wall from cinder blocks, gravel floor and put the shed on top. And figure out a way to hold it down.

 

[mike93lx]

Does it have a floor? If not, build a little stub wall from cinder blocks, gravel floor and put the shed on top. And figure out a way to hold it down.

The floor is structural in a plastic shed... Its what holds the walls together

 

[PFSard]

I had a plastic Rubbermaid Big Max shed for almost 20 years. I moved it from my old house a few years back as well.

It was well built, and had a nice floor.

It held up pretty well until we got a few days of hurricane force gales a few months ago. The wind pretty much blew it apart. It, and it's contents, were blowing all over the neighborhood.

Are you located in an area of extreme heat (like we have in Arizona)? A shed may be in the near-term future for me. Wood in this area takes a beating from the UV and heat. I had never considered a "plastic" shed, but ...