Between 485 & 705 SQ/FT Factory 59

[rpenterics]

The first 4 months of a weekend project are always the hardest for me

 

[bdbecker]

Looks like great progress! What did you decide on for power?

I'm sticking with the Ryobi 18v plan for now. Minimal investment up front that still allows me to upgrade to a solar panel and larger battery later on if needed. Wife made a good point in saying that it if is dark or raining, it's not likely that we'll be out there. Most of the time opening the doors will provide enough light, the powered lighting will mostly be for me wrestling out the snowblower.

 

[captain14]

Are you restricted to a certain height if you fall below the permit process?

 

[bdbecker]

Are you restricted to a certain height if you fall below the permit process?

Yes. The closest I get to the max height (due to the yard elevation varying slightly) is 4" under the max. Most of the roof line is 6"+ below the max height.

 

[burger]

Figured this guy belonged here

 

[bdbecker]

The roof is done!

This was the part of the project that I was least interested in. I do not like heights. I do not like working on my knees. I do not like climbing ladders with 70 pounds of shingles on my shoulder. I do not like watching my tape measure slowly roll off the roof when I missed hooking it on my belt. I do not like green eggs and ham. Wait… wrong story.

The weather was perfect for this project. Temps were around 70F, a light breeze, and sunny skies made for enjoyable work outside. The installation went off without a hitch and I’m glad to have this part of the project completed. While I’ve helped with roofs before, this was the first time I’ve ever done a roofing project solo. I took my time, read the manufacturer's instructions, checked the internet a few times when I had a question, and I am happy with the result. The shingles are the same brand/color we had installed on the house last summer, so it all ties together nicely.

As much as I was trying to avoid the expense because I don’t know when I’ll ever need it again, I did end up buying a roofing nailer – a Metabo HPT NV45AB2, currently on sale for $259 (and the 11% Menards rebate). Nice little unit. Besides the time savings, it likely saved a lot of wear and tear on my fingers.

The only real issue I had during the weekend was that I kept having issues with the nails not driving fully into the decking when using the nailer, requiring me to tap in probably half the nails with a hammer. Then I got to thinking, I wonder what the regulator is set at? Sure enough, I’d dialed the regulator down to 70psi for running my air stapler, which is the bottom limit for the nailer to function. Once I cranked it up to 90psi (middle of the recommended range), it ran like a champ. It only took me about a quarter of the shingles to fix the issue. Some saying about needing to be 20% smarter than your tools came to mind. It’s good to be humbled every now and then.

I’m really looking forward to working on the siding this weekend and hopefully getting the shed dried in.

 

[gearhead1960]

It's great when a project gets completed with no major hitches.....

 

[Finallygotit]

Good job on the roof! And I hear ya on not liking to work on my knees. Probably why I hate irrigation. There always seems to be something that goes to ****.

 

[madison069]

Good job on the roof! And I hear ya on not liking to work on my knees. Probably why I hate irrigation. There always seems to be something that goes to ****.

I think it's just a thing of getting old. I keep knee pads and a couch cushion around the garage to put down before I get on my knees to work on projects.

 

[bdbecker]

I think it's just a thing of getting old. I keep knee pads and a couch cushion around the garage to put down before I get on my knees to work on projects.

My old neighbor (who works in the trades) pointed out to me one time why, when you see a couch on the curb for disposal, the seat cushions are always missing. It's because roofers grab them.

I've tried using knee pads a few times in the past but found them incredibly annoying. If I was doing something like flooring every day, I could certainly see using them. When I'm on ground level, I just rely on my Slavic heritage and squat.

 

[madison069]

My old neighbor (who works in the trades) pointed out to me one time why, when you see a couch on the curb for disposal, the seat cushions are always missing. It's because roofers grab them.

I've tried using knee pads a few times in the past but found them incredibly annoying. If I was doing something like flooring every day, I could certainly see using them. When I'm on ground level, I just rely on my Slavic heritage and squat.

Yea that foam in the cushion really sticks to the roof and it's free!

I used to think that too about the knee pads but as I watch my elder get older and have the same complaint of knee killing them, I decided I need to be careful with the pair I have now. my right knee bugs me now so it's only going to get worst.

 

[burger]

The roof is done!

This was the part of the project that I was least interested in. I do not like heights. I do not like working on my knees. I do not like climbing ladders with 70 pounds of shingles on my shoulder. I do not like watching my tape measure slowly roll off the roof when I missed hooking it on my belt. I do not like green eggs and ham. Wait… wrong story.

The weather was perfect for this project. Temps were around 70F, a light breeze, and sunny skies made for enjoyable work outside. The installation went off without a hitch and I’m glad to have this part of the project completed. While I’ve helped with roofs before, this was the first time I’ve ever done a roofing project solo. I took my time, read the manufacturer's instructions, checked the internet a few times when I had a question, and I am happy with the result. The shingles are the same brand/color we had installed on the house last summer, so it all ties together nicely.

As much as I was trying to avoid the expense because I don’t know when I’ll ever need it again, I did end up buying a roofing nailer – a Metabo HPT NV45AB2, currently on sale for $259 (and the 11% Menards rebate). Nice little unit. Besides the time savings, it likely saved a lot of wear and tear on my fingers.

The only real issue I had during the weekend was that I kept having issues with the nails not driving fully into the decking when using the nailer, requiring me to tap in probably half the nails with a hammer. Then I got to thinking, I wonder what the regulator is set at? Sure enough, I’d dialed the regulator down to 70psi for running my air stapler, which is the bottom limit for the nailer to function. Once I cranked it up to 90psi (middle of the recommended range), it ran like a champ. It only took me about a quarter of the shingles to fix the issue. Some saying about needing to be 20% smarter than your tools came to mind. It’s good to be humbled every now and then.

I’m really looking forward to working on the siding this weekend and hopefully getting the shed dried in.

Roof looks great. If you ever want to come out to Pennsylvania I have a few things that could use a new roof..

 

[captain14]

A friend of mine that did some roofing always made it his policy to take 3 tape measures, 3 razor knife’s and 3 hammers up with him.

Figured he’d save time going down to get 3 tools at once.

 

[bdbecker]

Roof looks great. If you ever want to come out to Pennsylvania I have a few things that could use a new roof..

You'll have to get in line... I hadn't even finished installing the shingles and had two neighbors ask me about the process.

The first is Ranger Rick (I may have mentioned him already in this thread under a different nickname). He "casually" commented about how he needs to get a new roof on his shed, but it's too small of a job for a roofing company to even give him a quote. He's the guy who has assumed the role of a HOA compliance official for the neighborhood, even though we don't have a HOA. On one hand, I want to help the guy because he's not physically capable of doing the roof himself. On the other hand, about half of the interactions I have with him involve some sort of critique of my house and activities disguised as friendly conversation.

I did look at his shed when I was walking by to get Smasher from school - it's small and would likely be an afternoon project, so I might end up doing it for him if I have time. I need to be careful though, he's already figured out that I'm halfway handy and I've helped him fix a few things already. I don't want to turn into his on-call repairman. His son (who is nearing retirement age himself) lives less than a mile away, but from what I can tell, has no DIY aptitude at all because he still stops by to have his Dad help him fix things (most recently, replacing a handle on a snow shovel).

The other is a guy who asked about the roof lives up the street. They also own the house directly across from me (his Wife is the realtor who handled the sale of our house). The house across the street was their primary residence for a long time, but they moved up the block when their kids moved out and have been renting the original house for several years (VRBO). They decided to put it on the market this year, and as a result, he no longer has a second garage to store items in and wants to build a shed as well. I'll absolutely give him a hand if he asks. He seems like a solid guy and someone I could see being friends with. He also is a DIY type and has two sons in their 20's who can do the heavy lifting.

A friend of mine that did some roofing always made it his policy to take 3 tape measures, 3 razor knife’s and 3 hammers up with him.

Figured he’d save time going down to get 3 tools at once.

I'll have to remember that trick. I dropped my pencil when I was taking measurements for the roof decking. Sis saved the day and grabbed a pen and paper from inside the house and wrote down the measurements for me.

 

[burger]

Haha, Ranger Rick sounds like a real treat. With guys like that I often wonder if they’re self-aware and if they realize their “helpful suggestions” are received as criticisms. I’ve seen you do nothing but improve both of your houses in that neighborhood, so if he’s going to complain about you of all neighbors, I wouldn’t have much time for that.

 

[bdbecker]

Haha, Ranger Rick sounds like a real treat. With guys like that I often wonder if they’re self-aware and if they realize their “helpful suggestions” are received as criticisms. I’ve seen you do nothing but improve both of your houses in that neighborhood, so if he’s going to complain about you of all neighbors, I wouldn’t have much time for that.

At first, I thought it was just a lack of self-awareness like you mentioned, but the dandelion comment I got a few weeks ago ("...it's crazy how fast dandelions spread when you ignore them for a season...") made it seem like he had been stewing on the fact that I hadn't kept up with the dandelions in my front yard for awhile. Wife was furious, I just laughed it off. I just told him that I'd already picked up a bottle of 2-4-D to spot treat them, but was waiting for the right window of time between mows and rain to apply it (which I did several days later).

He doesn't have any hobbies and he's lonely. If the only thing you have on your schedule for the day is to sit in a chair in front of your house and watch the world go by, yeah, could see getting worked up over how the new guy on the block doesn't take care of things like the previous owner did. He's been retired for close to 20 years and has not had kids in the house for probably 40 years - he's likely forgotten what it's like to be busy.

In some ways, I kind of feel for the guy. At the same time, it's not my responsibility to entertain him. If you are just going to sit in a chair and stare at the world, you could just as easily pick up a book or crossword puzzle and engage your mind, or start an inexpensive, low impact hobby like whittling or drawing. I'll keep being cordial, but I'm not going to engage in gossip or be a punching bag either.

 

[bdbecker]

Wife absconded with the kids to Minnesota to spend time with her mom for the weekend, so that left me, Maggie the doodle, and Mr. Whiskers the cat to work on the shed. Maggie complained that she was only certified in excavation, not general construction, while Mr. Whiskers was moaning about how I didn’t provide the proper PPE for him… whatever… kids these days will find any excuse not to work. Despite working alone, I managed to get siding on three of the walls.

I’m using pre-primed 5/8” LP Smartside T1-11 panels. The initial plan was to use plywood T1-11 panels, but after looking at the pile of Pringles chips I’d have to sort through on a previous material run, I decided that it was worth the extra money to go with LP’s product. I also wasn’t a fan of the “rustic” rough finish on the plywood panels either. It just made sense to spend a little extra and not have to waste a bunch of time trying to make the plywood panels lay nice, with the bonus of having the panels ready for paint. The LP panels can also be used as a structural sheeting if nailed using 6” spacing, which has stiffened up the shed significantly. I’m pleased with my decision.

I could have finished the last wall on Sunday but instead decided to focus on getting the house in shape so that when Wife got home, she could just relax and enjoy Mother’s Day afternoon. I got all the dishes washed, the laundry caught up, the house tidied up, along with making a run to the store to get stuff for dinner so she wouldn’t have to cook. Her reaction when she walked into the house was all I needed to know that the time was well spent. We ended up spending the afternoon on the back patio as a family while I grilled steaks (on charcoal, her favorite method for steaks) for dinner. It was a needed break for myself as well… the last few weekends have been non-stop work.

It’s getting close though… finish the siding, paint, install doors, install trim, build a ramp… I can see the end!

 

[Finallygotit]

Question, do you have any plans for the water run-off behind the shed?

 

[bdbecker]

Question, do you have any plans for the water run-off behind the shed?

Yep... gutter with downspout/extension that runs towards the blue ladder in that pic to keep it from pooling at the support posts.

 

[burger]

I've been interested in the LP Smartside panels. After working with the material, what are your impressions? Easy to work with? Does it seem durable? Do you have to use special nails? How do you finish the nails? 6" spacing sounds like a ton of nails! Did you use your new roofing nailer? OK, I think that's enough questions for one reply! Looking good though! Eating that elephant one bite at a time!

 

[bdbecker]

I've been interested in the LP Smartside panels. After working with the material, what are your impressions? Easy to work with? Does it seem durable? Do you have to use special nails? How do you finish the nails? 6" spacing sounds like a ton of nails! Did you use your new roofing nailer? OK, I think that's enough questions for one reply! Looking good though! Eating that elephant one bite at a time!

It appears to be the same base material used in their other siding products - essentially a very dense OSB type material. It cuts nice with a high tooth plywood blade. No tear out or chips. Any cut edges need to be painted, but that's to be expected with any other siding product. Additionally, you need to leave a 1/8" expansion gap between panels, but that is easy to do because there is a reference line embedded in the finish where the panels overlap.

One thing worth noting - the LP panels weight 9lbs more than the equivalent T1-11 plywood panels, and 5lbs more than regular 5/8" OSB sheeting, so there does seem to be more material in the mix.

Durability remains to be seen, but LP offers a 5/50 year warranty on the product if installed according to their specs - 5 year full replacement cost, 50 year warranty on the product itself. Not being a pro, I'd never be able to cash in on that warranty, but it does give me a little piece of mind that it is out there.

No special nails. They spec a minimum of 0.113 shank hot-dip galvanized with a minimum of 1.5" embedment in the studs for structural use, 0.092 otherwise. I'm using 2-3/8" long nails, 0.113 shank galvanized nails through the 21 degree Maktita cordless nailer to install them. That gives me an extra 1/4" of embedment over the minimum on 5/8" panels. I was only going to do the 6-6 spacing on the corner pieces, but forgot on the second and third panels, so I just figured I'd continue on the rest of the panels. I'll still have nails left over when the project is done, so I might as well use them. The only downside is that I'm constantly reloading the nailer.

Nails get painted over. They don't call for sealing unless over-driven. I've got a few of those on the first panel from when I was dialing in the depth on the nailer, so I'll treat those accordingly. Looking at some sheds outside the big box stores, it appears to be the common practice to just paint them anyway, so I'm not over thinking it.

 

[burger]

It appears to be the same base material used in their other siding products - essentially a very dense OSB type material. It cuts nice with a high tooth plywood blade. No tear out or chips. Any cut edges need to be painted, but that's to be expected with any other siding product. Additionally, you need to leave a 1/8" expansion gap between panels, but that is easy to do because there is a reference line embedded in the finish where the panels overlap.

One thing worth noting - the LP panels weight 9lbs more than the equivalent T1-11 plywood panels, and 5lbs more than regular 5/8" OSB sheeting, so there does seem to be more material in the mix.

Durability remains to be seen, but LP offers a 5/50 year warranty on the product if installed according to their specs - 5 year full replacement cost, 50 year warranty on the product itself. Not being a pro, I'd never be able to cash in on that warranty, but it does give me a little piece of mind that it is out there.

No special nails. They spec a minimum of 0.113 shank hot-dip galvanized with a minimum of 1.5" embedment in the studs for structural use, 0.092 otherwise. I'm using 2-3/8" long nails, 0.113 shank galvanized nails through the 21 degree Maktita cordless nailer to install them. That gives me an extra 1/4" of embedment over the minimum on 5/8" panels. I was only going to do the 6-6 spacing on the corner pieces, but forgot on the second and third panels, so I just figured I'd continue on the rest of the panels. I'll still have nails left over when the project is done, so I might as well use them. The only downside is that I'm constantly reloading the nailer.

Nails get painted over. They don't call for sealing unless over-driven. I've got a few of those on the first panel from when I was dialing in the depth on the nailer, so I'll treat those accordingly. Looking at some sheds outside the big box stores, it appears to be the common practice to just paint them anyway, so I'm not over thinking it.

Thanks for the lengthy reply! I did Hardie Siding on my garage and there were a lot of places where the nails were exposed. Covered them with exterior spackle and dang did that take a long time. I've been planning a shed build and Smartside is something I'm looking at. This feedback makes me think it's a good choice.

 

[bdbecker]

Thanks for the lengthy reply!...

Lol... I did a bunch of research because I wanted to make sure I was doing things right, so all that information was top of mind. In a few weeks, it'll likely be gone and replaced with something else.

 

[bdbecker]

I’m pretty happy to be at this point of the build. The siding is installed and painted (two coats), the polycarbonate ‘windows’ are installed, and the doors are in place. It was a family effort. Wife and Smasher painted while I worked on getting the rest of the siding and windows installed, which saved me a ton of time. Wife also helped with the door installs.

A couple of funny stories/proud Dad moments to share from this weekend’s activities…

Smasher was stoked to be able to help with the roll up door as well, handing me hardware and tools when needed. He even brought out his toolbox – one of those mini drawer boxes that everyone is selling these days. My Dad got each of the kids the US General version for Christmas. As I’m working on bolting together the roll-up door frame, he says “Dad, look… this is my secret stash!” as he lifts up the lid of his toolbox and reveals his candy hiding spot. He had a couple packs of TicTacs and bubble gum in there, along with some Pokémon cards and other nick-nacks. I couldn’t help but smile. Six years old and he’s already figured out that every ‘working guy’ needs to have a candy drawer.

Sis, completely unprompted, made sandwiches for the whole family on Monday so Wife didn’t have to stop painting. She also kept the laundry going (after Wife showed her how to change the load) all weekend while we were working, along with making sure the clean dishes were put away. I made sure to tell her that, while she wasn’t helping on the shed, she was helping the family in a big way by taking care of all those other things that needed to be done, and that I was very proud of her for stepping up like she did.

As far as the shed work goes, almost everything went off without a hitch. The polycarbonate panels went in great. I made sure to allow for expansion/contraction, along with predrilling oversized holes for the screws, and taking care not to overtighten them. The upper triangle siding pieces (not sure of the technical term) ended up not being a big issue at all, after several rounds of careful measurements, they dropped right in place. The roll-up door instructions were garbage, but I eventually figured it out and it works well. While I’m not a big fan of the white paint, painting it a different color seems like a recipe for disappointment when it starts chipping or flaking in a few years. I could have ordered a black door, but the lead time was something like six weeks and it would have cost quite a bit more. White it is.

The last piece of the puzzle (at least for this past weekend) was installing the man-door. Of course, I would have transposed some of my measurements when I sized the rough opening. I was about a quarter of an inch short on my height, and 1.5” too wide. Resolving those issues was just a matter of shaving a little off the top of the door frame using my track saw and cutting some spacers out of ¾” plywood to make up the difference on the sides of the door. Once that was done, it went in without too much work. Tooting my own horn a little, I’ve been pretty happy with my past self on how square, level, and plumb the door openings were (even if one of them was the wrong size). Heck, I’ve been pretty happy with how all the framing ended up, especially being a first timer on an endeavor like this.

Next up are the finishing touches. Fascia, soffits, trim, ramp, lights, storage solutions… one piece at a time.

 

[burger]

You can probably relate to this.. I'm a week away from finishing a two month project, in just seven months!

 

[bdbecker]

You can probably relate to this.. I'm a week away from finishing a two month project, in just seven months!

If anything, nobody can say we aren't confident in our abilities and optimistic about our productivity! It feels good to finally have the finish line in sight though.

I was actually going to start off the post with a joke about how, after only 7 months into a 8-10 day project, I'm happy to announce that after (something like) 16 days of work, I'm only 6-8 days away from finishing the shed. But sarcasm doesn't always translate well into text, and I didn't want to give off the impression that I was complaining.

This is turning out to be a 'Type 2' fun project. As much as it's stressed me out, beat me up, and kept me up at night trying to work through the next problem to solve, I'm glad I took this project on. The only thing I would do differently would be to start construction in the spring, instead of late fall.

 

[captain14]

How much light do you get thru the polycarbonate windows?


Shed looks pretty good. I’m sure it was a good learning experience.

Are you building ramps for each door for the lawn equipment?

 

[bdbecker]

How much light do you get thru the polycarbonate windows?...

Less than I expected, but still plenty to see without needing additional lights. One of the reasons for the 'oversized' overhangs was to keep the windows in the shadow throughout the day, which will minimize the amount of heat gain in the shed during the summer.

...Are you building ramps for each door for the lawn equipment?

Just for the roll-up door so I can get the mower and snowblower in/out easily. The next phase of the project is to put four raised garden boxes area in front of the shed, surrounded by a trap rock. I'll build the boxes like I did at the last house (pic below). That will make the step into the shed (through the man door) a little more natural.

We are planning on doing some concrete work around the house first though.

 

[burger]

I'm all about Type 2 Fun!

I think I said this when you first posted those pictures- the raised beds and trellises look great!

 

[nicholam77]

While I’m not a big fan of the white paint, painting it a different color seems like a recipe for disappointment when it starts chipping or flaking in a few years. I could have ordered a black door, but the lead time was something like six weeks and it would have cost quite a bit more. White it is.

I like the white!

Tooting my own horn a little, I’ve been pretty happy with my past self on how square, level, and plumb the door openings were (even if one of them was the wrong size). Heck, I’ve been pretty happy with how all the framing ended up, especially being a first timer on an endeavor like this.

The shed is turning out fantastic, Brad! You've done a great job with the building details, and I like all the aesthetic choices, too. The raised beds and trap rock plan will really set it off!