Flooring for shed

RatLabGuy

RatLabGuy

You look like a monkey and smell like one too
Joined
May 18, 2005
Location
Churchville, MD
Just picked up a DIY metal shed kit (10x10).
Need to do a flooring/based to set it on. It's just for a mower, tools etc, nothing fancy or super heavy.

Any tips on a good and simple way to do the flooring/base? I was thinking of using treated 2x4s to make a frame, then run "joists" 16 on center, and cover it w/ OSB except the outer edges which would be treated decking, and building up on that.
I know a lot of times people put pedestals on the corners like footers. f the ground is reasonably flat/level, is there any real hard in just dropping the wood frame right on the ground?

In the long run, i anticipate building a garage where this thing is going so I don't see this as a 10 year investment or anything.
 
If you put the 2x4 directly on the ground, it will rot out much faster than you think. I would try to raise it up a few inches, at least.

I would make 4x4 runners and place them about 1.5 - 2 feet in from the outside edge. I would also double up on the perimeter if using 2x4's.
 
Go buy some 8x16x4" bricks from Lowes.
 
I'm no expert, didn't think OSB would be the best choice for a floor where it might see some water pooling. Maybe the OSB can be painted/sealed? I probably over did it on my shed with thick plywood, sanded on one side, on treated 2x6 box frame on PT'd 4x4 runners on cement block piers. I saved the OSB for the roof.
 
^^^yup. OSB is ok for floors, but it needs to be off the ground, preferably with a layer of plastic on the ground under it.
 
Maybe I wasn't clear on the OSB, I meant I'd use that as the floor on the inside of the shed (yes w/ plastic under it as a vapor barrier) and maybe either normal decking or the new poly fake-wood decking around the perimeter where it's under the walls and exposed.
If PT boards really will rot quickly right on the ground, then I guess I'll make posts etc.
It's just hard to get motivated to do a big fancy platform for a kit I only paid $200 for.
 
Why not take landscape timbers or 4x4s that are rated for ground contact and cheap, use those under the walls etc, where potential rot is concerned.

Rip them in half or thirds for better fit.

Concrete blocks are cheap at $1.38 or so each, throw some solid 4" ones down and build off that.
 
I built a 12 x 12 metal shed, which by the way came with about 60 pounds of screws! have fun with that!

I did as said before and used 4x4's ans 2x4's suspended on cinder blocks.

I also painted the floor before building the shed on it, but that's not necessary.
 
RenegadeT said:
I'm no expert, didn't think OSB would be the best choice for a floor where it might see some water pooling. Maybe the OSB can be painted/sealed? I probably over did it on my shed with thick plywood, sanded on one side, on treated 2x6 box frame on PT'd 4x4 runners on cement block piers. I saved the OSB for the roof.
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This

2x6 floor joists 16" on center on top of 4x4's is standard for a shed floor system. Get 'ground contact' rated pressure treated wood.
 
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Is it one of the Arrow brand kits that you get from Lowes/Home Depot? If so, they have a metal "frame" that makes floor joists. Just lay 3/4" plywood on top and it's done. I bought one from Lowes, but I cheaped out and used 1/2" and it's pretty bouncy.
 
ManglerYJ said:
Is it one of the Arrow brand kits that you get from Lowes/Home Depot? If so, they have a metal "frame" that makes floor joists. Just lay 3/4" plywood on top and it's done. I bought one from Lowes, but I cheaped out and used 1/2" and it's pretty bouncy.
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yes, thats exactly it, I think it came from Sears but I'm sure its the same.
The "flooring kit" is extra, I don't have it, but as far as I can tell, it goes on the inside (?), not a platform for the sides to stand on. which means not only do oyu lose height (it's only 6'8" in the center), but also there' nothing solid to set the sides on to guarantee it will be square when you put it together
 
Since this will be temporarily, I'd probably frame the outer edge with 4x4s and level the inside with gravel. Then if you needed you could lay some ply or something on top of that. You'd have a nice solid surface with no actual ground contact, and when you build your next building, you already have some gravel for the slab base.
 
I biult a arrow about 1 year ago I biult a nice platform under it used pressure treated wood and put it on blocks but used osb on the floor and it was a mistake get treated plywood osb was to thin I hope you have alot of patients putting one of those together sucks lol I also used fiber roofing tar all around my base due to the fact that the roof dose not have enough overhang to keep water off of the wood good luck
 
just get some of the concrete blocks that have the cut outs in them on all 4 corners and run 2x6 floor joists and put a plywood deck down. That's how my shed is built and I use mine to store similar items. It works just fine and isn't bouncy at all.
 
Baker said:
just get some of the concrete blocks that have the cut outs in them on all 4 corners and run 2x6 floor joists and put a plywood deck down. That's how my shed is built and I use mine to store similar items. It works just fine and isn't bouncy at all.
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My biggest hindrance on this is height, I really didn't want to have to make a big-ass ramp to drive the mower up in, b/c that affects how far behind the driveway I set it etc and is something else to have to run the trimmer around..
Blocks + 2x6 with be probably 8+ inches off the ground. Has anyone else found this to be an issue? What is a good slope for a mower? 15 degrees?
 
RatLabGuy said:
yes, thats exactly it, I think it came from Sears but I'm sure its the same.
The "flooring kit" is extra, I don't have it, but as far as I can tell, it goes on the inside (?), not a platform for the sides to stand on. which means not only do oyu lose height (it's only 6'8" in the center), but also there' nothing solid to set the sides on to guarantee it will be square when you put it together
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Mine wasn't advertised to include the "floor kit" but it was included anyway in mine. All it is comprised of is some bent steel "trusses" (and I use that term really loosely) that the floor deck gets screwed to with drywall screws. There was never any hope for mine to ever be square because shortly after unboxing it on the driveway, my dumb-ass step-daughter runs over it with her car. Unless you are building it on perfectly level concrete, count on about half the holes lining up. Charge up the batteries in your cordless drill and get yourself a nut driver bit that is the right size for the nuts that come with it. If I recall, it's 7/32"

If you are taller than 5'2, expect to hit your head every time you step foot in it. It's a good shed to store kid's stuff in (bikes, ride on toys, etc), but sucks for what I intended building a shed in my driveway for (my tool box).


If I had it to do all over again, I'd have built a wood shed. Yes, it would have been smaller inside because of the framing, but it would have been worth it in the long run.
 
You don't want any wood anywhere near contact with the ground -- even "ground contact" rated is shit. Will probably be mulch in ten years.
 
RatLabGuy said:
My biggest hindrance on this is height, I really didn't want to have to make a big-ass ramp to drive the mower up in, b/c that affects how far behind the driveway I set it etc and is something else to have to run the trimmer around..
Blocks + 2x6 with be probably 8+ inches off the ground. Has anyone else found this to be an issue? What is a good slope for a mower? 15 degrees?
Click to expand...

The ramp into the shed at my old house was too steep. My riding mower used to drag the mowing deck pretty good when coming in and out. I don't know how many degrees the ramp was, but it is definitely something to consider.

Dig holes to lower the pre-cast blocks the other guy is talking about? Then have the 2x6 floor system just 1-2" above the ground?
 
drkelly said:
Dig holes to lower the pre-cast blocks the other guy is talking about? Then have the 2x6 floor system just 1-2" above the ground?
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2x6 + plywood = 6" right there, I was assuming them pushing in pretty good w/ only 8".
Some quick dirty math says at 15 deg slope, I'd need about 30" of ramp.

Come on, what I REALLY need is a bunch of guys to provide good justification... to show my wife... for why I need to bail on this and just build a 24x36 2 story garage now instead of later...
 
The angle of the ramp isn't as big of a deal as the break over at the top.
 
RatLabGuy said:
2x6 + plywood = 6" right there, I was assuming them pushing in pretty good w/ only 8".
Some quick dirty math says at 15 deg slope, I'd need about 30" of ramp.

Come on, what I REALLY need is a bunch of guys to provide good justification... to show my wife... for why I need to bail on this and just build a 24x36 2 story garage now instead of later...
Click to expand...


I could simply send you pictures of the finished product you are about to unbox that is sitting on my driveway. Word of warning also, for some reason the corners are HUGE targets for dog urine. Dog urine causes them to rust. One corner has rusted so badly that there is no "corner" left and I have patched it with some stainless corner brackets that I had laying around from my previous job. When the rest of the building rusts away, I will remove the stainless corners and get scrap value for them. They are the entire value of my building at this point.

By the way, I bought the building less than 4 years ago.
 
shawn said:
The angle of the ramp isn't as big of a deal as the break over at the top.
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thats what I was worried about, the 15 degree break-over. Or 165 degrees depending on your orientation.
(yes Dr. Math, it's the same angle at the top and bottom)
 
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