Shed buying

[Cuppa]

Wondering if anyone might have any experience and/or wisdom to share with me regarding choosing a shed from the commercial shed manufacturers.

We are looking at getting a shed built soon, & I’ve spent the past couple of days trawling around the 5 local franchises trying to get quotes that I can compare. Not an easy task I might add. I wanted to compare apples with apples but seem to have ended up with apples & pears.

The shed will be a significant spend for us. After much thought (& size reduction) we have decided on one with a 12 metre span & 15 metres long, with a wall height of 3.8 metres, ( approx 5metres high at roof ridgeline) on a slab.

I’ve been to Ranbuild, Totalspan, Eureka, Shedboss & Fair Dinkum. Am still waiting for the quotes from two of them.

I won’t be erecting the shed myself, so it comes down to whether I use a company which is also a registered builder (Ranbuild & Totalspan) & pay for the privilege of them doing the whole thing, with one point of contact if there are any problems, or to become an owner/builder & engage concretors & builders myself. So far with the 3 quotes I’ve had there is a variation in total price of around $10k, but I don’t feel 100% confident that if I go the owner/builder route that there won’t be additional costs, to say nothing of hassle & aggro if any problem arises & the different people involved all point the finger at someone else.

Then there is the quality issue. There seems to be slight variations among them, but none that seem to be game changers. The only different one, who use RHS uprights instead of C section is Eureka, but there there are possible issues with their steel quality. All say they use Bluescope steel, but it seems there is Bluescope & Bluescope, with some being Australian produced & an inferior version from China.

Most offer a 15 year warranty I think, Totalspan 25 years. What precisely that means is anybody’s guess though.

So ..... who built your shed, are you happy with it, were you happy with the process, & do you have any pearls of wisdom for me?

[Family4x4]

Have you asked the MPA (stenghth) of the slab?

[TPC]

A few years ago I got a shed, veranda and carport supplied by Basic Steel Supplies.
I did not want the hassle of arranging the builder so let them arrange the building of it all but this was probably a mistake as the contractor they used was a bit rough.
I was happy enough with the quality but there were several things in the installation that I know I would have done better.
If you go with the registered builders make sure they are doing it themselves and not contracting some dodgy back yarders.

[Cuppa]

Have you asked the MPA (stenghth) of the slab?

I think one place might have mentioned 25MPA but I’m not sure, my head was spinning with facts & figures by the time I got home today.

Any suggestions as to what MPA is appropriate?

Several vehicles will be parked in half the shed, but nothing heavier than around the 5 tonnes. Quite possibly less. Our bus is the heaviest & goes just under 5 tonnes, but it will hopefully be sold before the shed is built. If we eventually get sick of the Tvan that we plan to acquire, we may eventually get another motorhome, but it is unlikely to be any heavier than the bus.

The other half of the shed will be filled with an ‘unnofficial’ granny flat I intend to build myself.

Another thing with the concrete - one place said they prefer to not build until at least 3 weeks after the slab is poured. All the rest said a week. Any concreters here with recommendations?

[NP99]

Maybe work in reverse and contact a local builder. They may have erected some sheds and be aware of any concerns.

[Cuppa]

A few years ago I got a shed, veranda and carport supplied by Basic Steel Supplies.
I did not want the hassle of arranging the builder so let them arrange the building of it all but this was probably a mistake as the contractor they used was a bit rough.
I was happy enough with the quality but there were several things in the installation that I know I would have done better.
If you go with the registered builders make sure they are doing it themselves and not contracting some dodgy back yarders.

Yes, I’ve heard a few stories about ‘cowboy’ subcontractors.
Not just the subcontractors either....... one company today asked me if I would want plastic lining laid under the slab! My response was to question whether any reasonable concretor would lay a slab for a storage shed without one.

[NP99]

Do they use solid concrete or the half half with styrofoam?

[jack]

Hi Cuppa,

When the daughter and son in law built their shed, they designed it themselves and then went to Ranbuild. They worked out what was required and were very good to deal with. Think it was Yvonne but not sure, Ranbuild supplied all the materials and three of us put it up over a few days. Easily as big if not bigger than what you're planning and had a raised mid section, I'll try and find a picture later. Had the slab poured on a sloped area, I could possibly get you a few names if needed.
They would happily deal with Ranbuild again and if you're not in a rush a couple of people could build it. I did mine myself but it was only a quarter the size.
Send me a PM and I can give you a call if you like, I've got a few contacts.

Cheers
Jack

[dads tractor]

Cuppa most people do the slab first ,I ? this way of doing it .My thoughts are to erect the shed on the foundations and then do the slab last and use plastic between the side panels and the slab ,this gives a good seal between the iron panels and the cement to stop egress of critters and when sealed dirt and water causing a rust problem . Then you have a hose able shed floor and drains in the bays very handy when welding ,grinding and working under your fleet.

[megatexture]

I'm not a concreter but have done some slabs/ pathways myself and use cement on a daily basis but..
If your going to park cars on the slab I'd be going minimum 100-125mm and 25 mpa, the cost difference between 20-25 when purchasing is nothing.
the plastic on the floor will delay the cement going off too fast and I would recommend it but soaking the ground can be effective also.
Once the concrete is dry enough to hose safely soak it and cover it with plastic to cure it slowly even keeping it moist for 7 days as rapid drying of the slab will get you some nice spider cracking.
Oh and cut expansion joints in don't let them use dummy joints they just collect more crap and don't work.

Most stand alone garages/ sheds you would lay the slab to the same dimensions of the frame so the wall sheets can hang 20-30 mm down over the slab so you can hose the floor anyway. If you weren't going to hose but wanted to stop rodents getting in under the sheets you can get foam packing to the shape of the roofing/ wall sheets to put between the sheets and the slab.

I've built a kit single shed with extra work shop space(total span) and a double carport
( http://www.coroofs.com.au )
both with 2.5m clearance underneath and both kits were easy to put up with 2 people, yours being slightly higher may require 3 but wouldn't be hard. Both had simple to follow instructions.

For the carport we went with coroof just for the pressed tile roof to match the house but they weren't cheap from memory but good to deal with. The slab on this carport was 100mm and 25mpa with if memory serves me footings 500x300 where the support post were.