My old tin shed (needs some fixing)

[T.A.P.O.R.]

Hi,

I've lurked for a few years, usually finding helpful/relevant posts.
Now I need to ask a few questions.

A few months ago, I upgraded my work area, from a 1.2m square spot between a fire escape & a wall.
To a 5.6m square corrugated iron shed.

The stud walls sit on the ground outside the slab, and there seems to be a bit of rot in the lower section of the studs (10 to 20 cm), and pretty much the whole bottom plate of two walls as well.

The plates sit directly on the earth and had been unite wet for some time (recently cleared all of the detritus trapping water at the back).

The shed feels pretty solid. But it's obvious that there will be problems down the track.

My question is, can I replace the rotten areas with new material?
if so, what would be the best way of going about it?

Once the repairs are complete, I intend to insulate and replace the garage door with a stud wall.
Making it a place where I can make some sawdust & play guitar without annoying the neighbours.

[orraloon]

To answer your question is the rotten bits can be replaced. Pics would give a better idea of how to do it but the general method is to support the weight of the roof with builders props or timber while you take out the frames and replace them. The wet ground problem will still be there however so use treated timber for the bottom plates and do some thing about drainage. An even better fix but a lot more work is rebuild the shed with the plates on the slab and the tin overhanging. You will loose some inside space.
Regards
John

[T.A.P.O.R.]

Thanks for that, seems like I was going down the right path.
I was planning on fixing the original timber and then building on the slab itself as well.

I've added a few photos showing the worst affected areas.
The timber is soft on the outer layers, but firms up at less than 10mm in the spots I've poked.
Is the stuff which appears to be leeching from the ground, a cause for concern?

Ideally I'd like to sink as little money into is as possible ($3k tops), as we'd like to eventually have a brick workshop built ($$$).

East Wall
http://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-gw...0/IMGP1024.JPG
http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-RG...0/IMGP1025.JPG
http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-iF...0/IMGP1026.JPG
North Wall
http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-v-...0/IMGP1028.JPG
Some rust spots that need attention.
http://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-bg...0/IMGP1031.JPG

The south wall is elevated on a low concrete wall, and has the easiest access. My problem will be the north wall, as it's built right on the boundary and I think may form the south wall of my neighbour's shed.
There is no west wall, as that's where the garage door is. I'll be walling that up as there's no way a modern car will ever get down the drive way.
http://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-27...0/IMGP9400.jpg

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[orraloon]

Hi TAPOR,
The photos have given me a better view. Looks like the upright frames are sunk in the ground not sitting on the plate. If that is the case and the uprights are reasonably sound then just replace the bottom frame with treated wood. It looks like it should be easy to scoop out that rotten bit next to the post to get an idea of how the posts are anchored. My guess is they are set in cement so do an exploration of a post footing first to get an idea. As you intend to replace it with a new shed I would only do what is needed to last that long. It looks like it has stood for some time so if the posts are sound it will last a few more years. The better you can keep water away from the base the better things will be also. It may be an idea to talk with the owner of the adjoining shed before you start.
Regards
John.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

Thanks John,

I'll do some digging over the weekend & report what I find.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

I poked about a whole lot more, with my $2 shop chisel.
There's only one point of concern, but it looks easily remedied.
The structure will probably stand for at least another 15 years if I left it alone.

The last weekend got to a whopping 23c.
In the shed it was enough to make me sweat profusely.
So the I'll definitely be putting in foil insulation on the north wall and ceiling.

Planning on starting in November, with the bulk to be completed over my summer break from work.

[vk4]

I know the situation with the heat, I live in QLD and my workshop is a 3Mt x 3Mt garden shed with no insulation, and we are still in spring with daily temps in the high 20's early 30's,.

jeff
vk4

[T.A.P.O.R.]

I know the situation with the heat, I live in QLD and my workshop is a 3Mt x 3Mt garden shed with no insulation, and we are still in spring with daily temps in the high 20's early 30's,.

jeff
vk4

Yikes, full sunlight all day?!
I'd melt.

Do you find 3x3 enough space to work in?
I'm trying to decide how to divide the shed between workshop and music room.

3 x 5.6 for the workshop.
2.6 x 5.6 for the studio.

[orraloon]

Heat in the shed is a problem for me too. I get some shade and of course in winter I need a fan heater but with the sun on it sometimes it is not possable to be in there. Mine is a 3x4 garden shed and with the low head room fitting batts to the roof will be squeesing the space a bit. I fitted a whirley vent to the roof and that helps a lot. My other trick when I am working in there is a fan at a window drawing in outside air. This also blows any dust out the door or roof vent.
Regards
John

[rwbuild]

Get some metal roof tile batten or small top hat section, screw to existing roof and then fix custom orb over that, dont close off the ends, it allows the heat to escape as well as stopping condensation in winter

[BobL]

Heat in the shed is a problem for me too. I get some shade and of course in winter I need a fan heater but with the sun on it sometimes it is not possable to be in there. Mine is a 3x4 garden shed and with the low head room fitting batts to the roof will be squeesing the space a bit. I fitted a whirley vent to the roof and that helps a lot. My other trick when I am working in there is a fan at a window drawing in outside air. This also blows any dust out the door or roof vent.
Regards
John

A whirlybird is an effective device for heat removal even when there is no wind blowing as it removes the couple of 10's of cm of heated air immediately underneath the roof and reduces re-radiation of heat from the roof back into the bulk of the shed air. However, it is an ineffective way to remove dust from a shed as their ventilation rate is too slow. To match the air flow of a 1HP DC (which is also too slow) 4 - 6 standard whirlys would be needed with the wind speed of 12 km/hour. To match an acceptable flow 10-14 standard whirlys would be needed on a 24 sqm shed. A fan placed at a window blowing air out/in may not be effective even if there is a sufficient size opening on the opposite wall. What happens is the air just does circles around the edge of the fan blades It's always more efficient to push air through a duct or restricted opening so the air cannot do its circular thing back into the area being sucked on.

[banjoping]

Get some metal roof tile batten or small top hat section, screw to existing roof and then fix custom orb over that, dont close off the ends, it allows the heat to escape as well as stopping condensation in winter

This is similar to what they do in caravan parks, creating a ceiling above the internal roof to keep some of the direct radiant heat off the main roof.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

The last few weeks saw the shed under siege.
Every spare space was taken up with doors from the kitchen cupboards, which were being painted.
The good news is, the kitchen doesn't need replacing for a few more years, the bad news....

Remember where I said that the rot only seemed superficial?

Turns out that was just on the upper few centimeters of the base plates.
Underneath was pretty much soil.

To make matters worse, now that I've cleared the floor on the north wall, it's plainly evident that the slab has sagged in the middle and caused the north east corner of the structure to lift up on top of the slab.

I've spoken with my neighbour about his property and he's told me that the back end of the yard is prone to pooling.
Indeed in one section where the rot was bad, there was sediment caked over the plate.
The shed still feels solid enough for a few more years, and the structure aside from the base plates is in pretty decent shape.

So I could conceptually work in there for a while yet, but there would be no place for my guitars & other music detritus.

I'm not sure which way to go.
Option 1 (affordable):

• Jack up the structure
• Install a yellowtonuge floor
• insulate & plaster the waslls & ceiling

Option 2 (preferred):

• Knock the thing down and get a brick structure built on a new slab.

Anyone have an idea on what an 8m x 3m brick structure with one door & two windows would cost?
The site has easy access & the council has a pretty relaxed building code.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

I decided to go ahead with digging out the rot and raising a concrete wall on the north and west.
Progress has been slow, but not difficult.
last night I started on the concrete and should be done tomorrow night, Thursday at the latest.
After that, I'll install the insulation.

I had a crane deliver the materials on saturday and the neighbours were wondering what was going on.
if I chip away at it every evening after work and a few hours each weeken, I anticipate finishing the big stuff by Xmas. Details like power and painting will take a bit longer.

My bench will be 3.6m long, with a yellow tongue top and backing board.
it was the cheapest & simplest solution that was also big.

The sliding doors will be made from 17mm form ply, which seemed oddly lighter than the 10mm plaster sheets.

Will report back with pics later on.

[T.A.P.O.R.]

I've achieved a bit more than the photos show, extra wall studs & ceiling beams (for the plasterboard).
The sarking took about an hour to install and works really well. I've not decided whether the east wall will get it as that side of the building barely gets any sun, due to the fence next to it.

Have loads to do.
Dividing wall, work bench, earthwool, plaster board, new doors, windows, etc....
Think I can do it by xmas?