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How to build a garden shed

© Eriki Filipe

A garden shed may be used for storing tools and other miscellaneous items, but for gardeners, the shed not only serve as decorative art, it is also part of the garden decor.  The garden shed can be built within a few days of start up. With a few hand tools, the builder can manage easily throughout the project. Only a few basic skills such as layout, framing, door and window installation and shingling the roof are required. However, one should seek help when the walls and the roof are ready to be assembled.
The six feet square by six feet high garden shed is built in stages  It has a door and a window:

• The skid and the floor.
• The walls and the sheathing.
• The roof trusses, sheathing and gable vents.
• Shingles.
• Install door and window.
• Install shelves.
• Install siding of choice.
• Add decorative art to the gable ends.
• Paint to preference.

I start the project by cutting three six foot long  4" x 4" pieces for the skid.  The 2" x 6" floor joists are cut to size and nailed to the header joist. Orient strand boards (OSB) are nailed at right angles to the floor joist and then the framework is flipped over and placed on the 4" x 4" skids and nailed. (The skids are nailed at right angles to the joist)  On the main floor, I install 5/8" tongue and groove OSB sheathing and nail where necessary.

With a 6' x 6' square floor, I am now ready to cut the 12 six foot long wall plates and  the 28 wall studs to size.  Double top plates are  used on the walls. For the first wall, I layout and mark the door and window openings on to the top and  the bottom plates with 16" on centre spacing. (Frame door and window opening to preference)  I use the floor as the base for nailing the wall studs framework.  One side of the wall is lined with 7/16" OSB sheathing nailed at right angles to the wall studs.  The OSB sheathing extends about 6 5/8" past the bottom plate to compensate for the floor joist and flooring thickness and 1-1/2" past the top plate to receive the double top plate. On the second wall, (opposite first wall) I layout the stud spacing on the wall plates and then the studs are nailed to them. These two walls serve as the outside main walls.

The remaining walls are the inside ones, but the wall plates are shorter by the thickness of the two outside walls.  Once the two inside walls are framed, I nail on the OSB sheathing, but I allow about 4" overhang

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