Need help choosing a storage shed

[guang]

Hi everyone, I'm in Dallas and thinking about adding an 8×10 ft shed to my backyard for my bike, gardening tools, and other stuff.

I did some research and realized wood and resin sheds are expensive. My budget is $700, so I'll stick with metal. Honestly, after seeing all the options, I don't know which one to choose.

Arrow metal shed is cheap and works fine for basic storage. Some say the panels are thin and the quality can be a bit hit or miss. Duramax metal shed feels more solid and rust-resistant with the thicker steel, but assembling it can be a bit of a pain. Garvee metal shed has vents and lockable doors, but I haven't really seen much about how it holds up over time.

Has anyone used these sheds before? Or do you have a metal shed you'd recommend? Resin would be better if it fits within my budget. Really appreciate any help!

 

[ozyborn]

I had an old 10x10 Arrow shed for 12 plus years. Where I am we worry about snow loads. So I put in the kit to strengthen the roof. Placed in on a gravel pad as a floor. Ground anchors in the corners for windy days. Eventually I gave it away when I upgraded to a 10x12 gambrel barn.

 

[BurtEggley]

Look for a used one if you can near you that you can pay a flatbed to haul to you.

 

[mikedodge]

I went the cheap metal route. Made a wood base for it and added some 2x4 supports inside to help it survive snow. No issues and at least where you are you should be able to avoid that.

 

[Colin Len]

Resin and metal both work but I've hated every one I've ever had. Obviously budget is a consideration but if you can swing it, IMO, a sturdy wood shed will give you less headaches. We've got a metal shed right now and the doors are just a constant nightmare to open and close. Maybe it wasn't the highest quality but it also wasn't cheap when we got it. Whereas the big wood shed I had built cost me way more but it's going to last way longer and gives me no headaches whatsoever.

 

[Bert_]

I built this shed several years ago. Lot of used material. Purchased materials was $175

 

[zendriver]

It wasn't an arrow, but s similar metal shed the metal was so thin, I could have probably put my fist through it (back in the day).

Is security a need?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Building it will be cheaper.

 

[thammel]

Build it if you can. I have a 12x16 shed and even though it holds everything, I wouldn't mind if it were larger.

Tom

 

[BurtEggley]

Gotta get stuff up off the ground to prevent damage by moisture. Keeping it dry from rain and snow helps a lot but if it is still sitting on the ground it will not be as protected as having some kind of thermal and moisture barrier. Maybe a thick plastic liner on the ground sloped to shed water, and then some pallets etc will help. 30 years ago I made the decision to pour a pad and put a shed on it. The siding on that shed finally had to be replaced this year but everything in it has been very dry. The floor sits on pressure treated wood, then thick marine grade plywood on that. New sheds here have aluminum for the base instead of pressure treated wood. That is even drier because the aluminum does not absorb water from the ground and transmit it to the siding, which is what slowly happened to mine over a period of 30 years. For the record, 30 years may seem like a long time to someone 40 ish, but reality is that it goes by so damned fast it it incredible. One day the shed is new and the next it seems one is replacing worn siding.

 

[finn]

My FIL had an Arrow, and I hated it. Every time I went inside, I hit my head. I later had a similar one at a property I bought. Same reaction.

I have uilt three wooden sheds over the years. The first had a mono pitch roof,, and was 4’x6’, just barely big enough to fit the lawnmower, shovel, and rake. I mixed and poured a concrete slab for that one, and used T111 siding painted to match the house. It cozied up against the house and was very inconspicous

The next two were actually one 8’x10’ plus an addition of 10’x12’. I used a cheap set of commercially available plans from Menards. Made 2’x4’ trusses, 3/4” pt plywood floors, a home made double door and a steel man door with a window, and a window on one side. It’s been there for probably 25 years and still going strong.

 

[Mike65]

We bought an IIRC 10' x 10' shed from Home Depot & they delivered it to us & assembled it on site. We use it for our ZTR lawn tractor, weed eater, leaf blower, chain saw & various other garden tools. It came as bare wood, so I painted it to match the garage/shop & built an access ramp.

 

[SweetD]

^ Nice shed, but I'm sure it was a bit more than $700!

OP, are you handy? Can you build your own simple shed? If so you can likely find a decent amount of building materials on c-list or f-book marketplace for cheap or free.

$700 doesn't go real far these days for new and decent quality unfortunately.

 

[driftpin]

After I bought my first home in So. FL, I built an Arrow metal shed, 10' x 9'. I used Simpson 4x4 metal brackets and PT 4x4 wood for the beams to carry the PT two-by floor joists. The floor was sheathed in 3/4" plywood treated w/multiple coats of Woodlife. The Simpson brackets were a U-saddle, 4x4, w/a galvanized steel pipe stem, extending down. They were encased in 12" x 12" concrete forms I dug, which extended about 15" above grade.

Why such an above-grade build? The house was built in 1926, and houses/lots on either side were far-above the grade of my humble lot. In heavy rainstorms (So. FL, remember) my neighbors' runoff would pool onto my lot. Not every time, but when we had multiple inches of precipitation. One of my priorities after occupancy was raising the grade of my lot. The lot was a small one, < 7K sq. ft. but it took a couple hundred cu yards to raise it enough to stop the occasional flooding. Fortunately, I had a friend who owned a heavy-equipment crane service and he brought over his Ford combination FEL/backhoe to spread/grade the lot. I got free fill from properties being built in the community, and it was clean fill, not old concrete slabs or footers.

Back to the Arrow shed, the fill I brought in raised the area of the backyard shed's location by probably 18". That made it much easier to bring things in/out of the shed, like a lawnmower or a motorcycle. The two sliding front doors operated on metal track and the sliders were simple hard-plastic brackets. Giving the track/door sliders a shot of lubricant every few months made the doors operate much more easily.

The Arrow kit came in a large flat cardboard box, it was simple to assemble, and it lasted an amazingly long period of time. How-long? After 27 years, the shed was destroyed during Hurricane Wilma. I bought another Arrow that was slightly-smaller (10' x 8') and that was able to serve my needs until I bought a 10' x 20' premanufactured Hardy-Board steel-roofed shed I placed on a poured concrete slab. That should last me until I leave this world. The shed was built by a GA company, Lark Sheds, and was sited with a crane lifting it onto the slab I had poured for it. The shed is rated by the State of FL to withstand 180 mph wind gusts, and it has a 100 amp 120/240 1 Ph electrical service w/a buried run from the house, all work permitted.

getting some needed storage

I don't have the time, or the ability on my own to get some quick storage, by making my own. The zoning restrictions are keeping me from making something myself. I'm going with a pre-fab 10' X 20' steel-framed, 3/4" plywood-sheathed, Hardieplank-covered gable ended building with a roll-up door...

www.garagejournal.com

getting some needed storage

I don't have the time, or the ability on my own to get some quick storage, by making my own. The zoning restrictions are keeping me from making something myself. I'm going with a pre-fab 10' X 20' steel-framed, 3/4" plywood-sheathed, Hardieplank-covered gable ended building with a roll-up door...

www.garagejournal.com

 

[kwb]

I get budgets are real, and there are restrictions on time and talent.

A shed is a perfect place to pick up some skills if you don't have them.
You can probably DIY a 8x10 for less than $700 in materials. You also can spend past that in a heartbeat. If you have $700 now, at some point you will have another $700.

Maybe the right thing for you is to start with just a roof. 4 holes, some anchors and concrete, 4x4's and 2x4's, and a few sheets of metal roofing, or plywood and a few bundles of shingles. That should be well under $700.

Couple months later and couple hundred bucks attach a platform to the posts - Voila! you have a floor.

Couple months later and a couple hundred bucks - add some walls.

Rinse and repeat to install a door and you have a fully enclosed shed.

The thing about projects like this I have found is the materials are actually pretty reasonable when you realize that the money you are spending is often not much different than what you would spend on a weekend if you weren't doing the project. It ***** to hit the box store for $2-300 Friday night or Saturday morning but tally up the receipts for a weekend of running around. You will be surprised.

 

[kwb]

I will add since this is GJ. You do have to be careful because it starts getting easy to justify tools doing this.
.... if I am building a building I will need a framing nailer, that needs a hose and a compressor, since I have a hose and compressor I should get the roofing nailer while I am at it. I don't trust cutting the right angles with a circular saw, I better get a miter saw. Painting *****, I will get an airless to make it easier (it really doesn't make it much easier, but I do have an airless now).

Dammit, now I have all this stuff I need another/bigger shed to store all of the tools. I should probably get another toolbox as well...

It really can be done with a hammer box of nails, a circular saw, and a paint brush.

 

[Prospecter]

I've also seen an 8x12 made completely out of free pallets, except for nails, hinges, latch, and roofing shingles. Time consuming, but if you have more time than money it might be worth it. Would also cost a lot less than $700.

 

[Bunsen Honeydew]

Metal shed opinion: I had an arrow shed for a good while. I grew to hate it, because the doors were the first thing to bend and become difficult. The walls dented very easily. Most aggravating was banging my head on the low ceiling and the even lower door opening.
It did hold up, if you didn't mind not being able to secure it, and the constant head injury.

 

[Bert_]

My opinion, if it's just for lawn/garden type stuff, a floor is a waste of time/money. With a wood floor you get stuff that wants to live under it.

The little shed I posted above is just a dirt floor. I built a larger shed last year that got gravel. Both are perfect for their purpose.

 

[kwb]

Yes things want to live under a platform, but better under it than gnawing on things that you are trying to preserve. I have seen plenty of dirt floor sheds that end up with rodents living there.

 

[mikedodge]

Mine dents easily but door works well and it keeps the weather off things. I think I paid a bit over $200 for the shed itself on sale at Lowes and then spent a bit on buying the plywood and 2X6s for the floor and other materials. It's not very level where it is and I wanted it raised a bit to keep it higher then the damp ground from melting snow.

 

[IcarusLSC]

A tree just leaned on our 20yr+ old 8x10 cedar shed (that has seen better days anyways!) So now I need to replace it (and get rid of this tree!)

Anyone know of a place/website with decent DIY plans to build another 8x10+ wood shed? I don't need cedar this time, but do want wood. I just want a basic unit I can stand in, with one decent sized or a double door, and a window. 16-24" on-center framing is fine I'm sure. Will be for a couple snow blowers and couple lawn mowers and yard tools...

Any ideas please? Thanks!

 

[vavet]

do you know how after a long hard project is complete, you stand back and look at it and feel that warm fuzzy satisfaction? You won’t get that after putting up a metal shed.
its time consuming,
its confusing at time
its hard work.
the satisfaction doesn’t come afterwards.
i was warned not to buy one, but I did. I put it up, needed some help from my gf at the time and my dad when we got to the roof.
I wished I had not. Buy or build a wood one Unless time to Get something standing is of the utmost importance.

 

[LeonardY]

I bought this. A friend in Australia recommended it. It was on sale at the time I payed $300.

https://www.wayfair.com/storage-organization/pdp/absco-premier-metal-10-w-x-5-d-metal-galvanized-steel-weather-resistant-storage-shed-xcq10000.html?piid=92301378

I poured a concrete slab underneath it.

I have to be honest. I didn't expect it to be as nice as it is. It's an Australian company. There were some hitches in the assembly but I think that was due to me not examining the pieces.

I originally found the shed at HD. I bought it and it took forever to come in. Then some one hit the pallet with the forklift and damaged one end. I told them I wouldn't accept it and they ordered another. For some reason I look the shed up again and Wayfair popped up. Same exact shed for $400 less and it would be here in a week. Canceled HD. I'm shocked that Wayfair has so many options at reasonable prices. Shipping was free.

 

[duneslider]

I needed a small shed and my plan was to get something to just get me by until I was ready to build a bigger nicer one. I went with an Arrow and regret it. It is rickety, short, and I am always worried it will blow away. It's fine I guess for the job its doing but I wish I would have just spent a little more and built my own. It's mostly a result of my poor planning and rushing, I should have just waited one more season and done it right.

 

[C.L S2000]

I needed a small shed and my plan was to get something to just get me by until I was ready to build a bigger nicer one. I went with an Arrow and regret it. It is rickety, short, and I am always worried it will blow away. It's fine I guess for the job its doing but I wish I would have just spent a little more and built my own. It's mostly a result of my poor planning and rushing, I should have just waited one more season and done it right.

Yea, i know what you mean by it being rickety. I bought one too and every time i weed wack around it, im afraid to hit it with the weed wacker string because its that flimsy. But if you are worried about it getting blown away, i put one of these attic storage shelves in it to help hunker it down and takes up more stuff off the floor for me.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Arrow-Steel-Stainless-Galvanized-Steel-Storage-Shed-Attic-Frame-Kit/3169593?user=shopping&feed=yes&srsltid=AfmBOoqZaHuRKmv2HBb1XeqiHtlptD8O-g1zTjf6WePA7-vZ4uIZqx3WUx8

 

[duneslider]

Yea, i know what you mean by it being rickety. I bought one too and every time i weed wack around it, im afraid to hit it with the weed wacker string because its that flimsy. But if you are worried about it getting blown away, i put one of these attic storage shelves in it to help hunker it down and takes up more stuff off the floor for me.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Arrow-Steel-Stainless-Galvanized-Steel-Storage-Shed-Attic-Frame-Kit/3169593?user=shopping&feed=yes&srsltid=AfmBOoqZaHuRKmv2HBb1XeqiHtlptD8O-g1zTjf6WePA7-vZ4uIZqx3WUx8

By blow away, I mean more like it blows apart and ends up in pieces in the neighbors yard. It is pretty sturdy I guess but it doesn't sound like it when the wind blows hard it just sounds like its going to come apart. The neighbor behind me has one that is like 18 years old and still looks great, I guess I just like wood sheds better.

 

[MovingAlong]

Well @guang , guessing you've made some decisions by now.

What are you thinking about doing?