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Workshop build

Looking to replace my shed in the next few months once avian flu has passed (currently being used to house our chicken flock) and it seems like a good opportunity to build a workshop. Looking for recommendations, initial thoughts are:

1. Electrical power - enough to run lights and potentially a heater, only to be used to extend working time in the winter months. Fed up working on my bike outside and running out daylight/getting rained on!

2. Tall enough to stand in

3. Permanent bike repair stand

4. Secure. Ground anchors?

5. Enough room to work easily on MTB and road bikes, with an eMTB on the horizon

6. Plenty of tool storage

7. Storage space for 4 bikes, 2 of which will be used regularly, the other two being seasonal use only and so can be hung with pedals/bars removed if needed for space. Possibly needing space for an e-trike too.

It would be easy enough to get planning permission for a high gable shed i think as it backs on to a converted garage with what must be a 12 foot gable at least. However, it will be up against the boundary though so keeping it below 2.5m will be easier. Also up against a hedge with a garden pond outside and north facing so I'm a bit concerned about condensation for the metal shed option. 

Budget - hmm, £5k perhaps? Looking for it to last ten years and happy to do annual maintenance on felt roof/painting it, etc. I have one eye on getting Cytech trained and setting up as a mechanic in semi-retirement as there's no LBS within ten miles now.

If you're new please join in and if you have questions pop them below and the forum regulars will answer as best we can.

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14 comments

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Sprocketman | 3 years ago
1 like

I bought my shed from TUIN, a Dutch firm producing solid sheds from real timber.  Definitely not the matchboard stuff at B&Q etc.

 

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kil0ran replied to Sprocketman | 3 years ago
2 likes

I noticed them when I was looking at the log cabin build option. Look very sturdy.
Naturally I'll be using Quickstep flooring and Soudal glue 😊

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HoarseMann | 3 years ago
1 like

A bit more DIY, but Colin Furze has a good shed build tutorial video:

https://youtu.be/LP67MAoihZk

It would need some windows though if using it for more than storage.

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Stratman | 3 years ago
1 like

I fitted Pragmasis Torc ground anchors in my concrete floored block and stone shed (following a break in where the thieves had broken the body of a 5 lever mortise lock). Their website is worth a look, they also sell mighty chains and locks to go with them.

I also now have two paired mortise locks, which makes it much harder to lever the door as both would need doing together.

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Tom_77 | 3 years ago
2 likes

Ground anchors - the motorcycle parking at my local train station has this style of ground anchor. When it's been concreted in, it sits flush with the ground and looks like a very neat solution.

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ktache replied to Tom_77 | 3 years ago
0 likes

I have never seen a ground anchor that that put it's loop under the concrete, looks proper effective and only to be installed during construction.

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don simon fbpe | 3 years ago
1 like

As far as heating goes, these babies are awesome.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Diesel-Air-Heater-12V-5KW-Air-Diesel-Petrol-P...

 

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Rod Marton | 3 years ago
1 like

Firstly, get as big a shed as you can. 3m x 4m will be very tight - my bike shed is a little smaller than yours, and contains seven bikes, one tandem and various bike bits, bike tools and bike paraphenalia. There is no way I could do any bike maintainance in there.

On construction, mine is a log cabin type shed and this is very sturdy. It just sits on its foundations and certainly isn't going anywhere. The shed itself was faily easy to build, but the most difficult (and critical) part was to get the foundations right. These need to be flat and solid. Because mine had to go on a sloping site, I had to build a sort of raised deck to put it on. This works, but wasn't an easy job.

It is possible to supply power to the shed, but unless you have a convenient wall to run the cables along they will have to go overhead or underground. Neither is particularly easy, and there are regulations on both. I would get professional advice here.

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Philh68 | 3 years ago
1 like

If you haven't seen them, have a look at Robin Clevett and the SkillBuilder channel on YT, there was a recent series on a garden room which might provide some ideas for you. 3x4m isn't a lot of room considering what you want to put in there and do with it. Just storing 4-5 bikes can take up a decent amount of space - I used Steadyracks because they hang bikes vertically and swivel to minimise room intrusion, but you still need clear space to be able to put bikes in them. Trikes especially take a lot of floor space and it's not always practical to hang them as mine shows.

If you plan to hang the bikes vertically then  consider eave height. A lot of kit sheds are designed to have a gable height under 2.5m but the eave height may only be 1.9m, which does not give much leeway and if you want to stagger the hanging height to store bikes closer together without handlebar interference you might not be able to. A skillion roof so you can maximise wall height to hang bikes on one wall without exceeding the overall 2.5m height might be best.

I would stick to a timber frame building simply because even using a kit it's quite simple to add extra supports where you want them. Insulation is easier too as metal sheds have all kinds of thermal bridging to deal with.

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Sriracha | 3 years ago
2 likes

Think about some serious thermal insulation, including the floor and ceiling, and decent ventilation. Very easy to build a summer sweat-box where you freeze in winter!

If you need to trim the hedge will you need to be stood on the shed roof? And will you need something to prevent the hedge frondles from rubbing through the edge of the roofing felt.

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kil0ran | 3 years ago
0 likes

Available space is around 3m x 4m, no hard standing there at present - existing shed is on a gravel base which would be replaced.

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TheBillder replied to kil0ran | 3 years ago
4 likes

At only 3 x 4m, I'd go for plenty of height if possible, to allow you to store things above head height. Otherwise 3 x 4 with shelves etc soon becomes pretty small - you'll end up having to take a bike you're working on outside to turn it round.

If your domestic politics are anything like mine, the shed soon becomes the place that anything not in current use by your other half goes. Once you have a roof rack, step ladder, mower, other garden tools, bike rack, a chair you're supposed to have mended and some wood for the fire pit in there, it's pretty full. I expect my clothes will be exiled next.

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Oberon replied to kil0ran | 3 years ago
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Well worth giving some consideration to the concrete base, especially if this will be the workshop floor. With the right liquid admixture, you can get a much better finish, more hard wearing. Can't remember the name of the product I used previously, but it was cheap and widely available. Raw concrete doesn't make a great floor finish: brittle, dusty, etc.

Or another possibility is an epoxy finish to the concrete base. A bit messy to pour, but you can get great results. No need to worry about oil or grease!

For security, I would prefer a steel or block shed to wood. But even then, the door will be the weak point. Ground anchors are good, but if they can be worked on out of sight in the shed, they may be less effective. Maybe plan for some security lighting around the shed door, to build layers of security rather than relying on just locking things down.

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kil0ran replied to Oberon | 3 years ago
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Thinking outside the box a little I reckon we can turn the shed 90 degrees which will give space for something around 4m wide and 6m long so all good.

For planning regs, that would put the highest point of the structure more than 2 metres from from the boundary, does that potentially mean I can have 2.5m eaves height? What about a pent/skillion roof sloping towards the boundary so the highest part is then 4m from the boundary?

Currently pretty sold on the log cabin approach, not least because that's what my neighbour has and it only took the two of us a day to assemble. More expensive but if we're staying put then it makes sense and will add value to the house if we do move.

For the base we'll definitely get that professionally done as the site is very uneven

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