Building plans for a small shed

Need some extra storage for bicycles, garbage bins, patio furniture etc?  These building plans for a small shed have you covered!

I’m SO PROUD of this build!

Really, if I could keep it for myself (if I had a need and the space), I totally would – my bike shed/small shed is SO BEAUTIFUL!

What makes me even more proud is that I used recycled wood from my parent’s old fence.  Saved a good chunk of pressure treated from landfill and cut the building costs down to almost nothing.

This started because I felt my BF needed a bike shed, and I thought it would make great blog content because there aren’t very many free building plans for a small shed available online.  Coincidentally, and during a shortage of pressure treated wood, my parents were tearing down and replacing their 30+ year old fence.

Serendipitous!

 

And a LOT of extra labour.

I’m sharing my building plans for a bike shed here – but I can only give a cut list for the frame itself.  Because the cladding was all old wood in various widths, I can’t provide you with standard measurements for the outside. (but that’s the easy part anyways).

*This post contains affiliate links to items I used in the building of this shed.  For full Amazon affiliate disclosure, please see sidebar or bottom of the page.

Cut list:

Bottom

• (2) 2″ x 4″ cut to 76″ long
• (2) 2″ x 4″ cut to 23″ long
• (1) 2″ x 4″ cut to 72″ long
• (~13) deck boards cut to 26″ long

Front/Back

• (2) 2″ x 4″ cut to 52″ long
• (2) 2″ X 4″ cut to 55″ long
• (3) 2″ x 4″ cut to 68″ long
• (~14) 5 1/2″ wide fence boards cut to 56″ long
• (~ 12 ) 5 1/2″ wide fence boards cut to 60″ long

Sides

• (2) 2″ x 4″ cut to 52″ long
• (2) 2″ x 4″ cut to 55″ long
• (4) 2″ x 4″ cut to 16″ long

Roof 

• (5) 2″ x 4″ cut to 23″ – make first cut at 7° angle, put in place and then draw a line for your second cut/angle
• 1/2″ or 5/8″ chip board cut to 79″ long by 28″.  I used small sections of chipboard to avoid buying a full 4′ x 8′ sheet, and since it will be covered with roofing, it will still be well protected from leaks.
• Ondura or other roofing – enough to cover 28″ by 79″ chip board.

Doors. (please confirm sizes with your build before starting)

• (4) 1 1/2″ x 3/4″ boards cut to 51″ long
• (6) 1 1/2″ x 3/4″ boards cut to 27 3/4″ long
• fence boards and scrap pieces to fill (will depend on the widths of your wood)

 

Building plans for a small shed / Building plans for a bike shed / Building plans for a garbage shed

Line up your 23″ boards at either end of your 76″ boards, check for square and screw into place with 3″ construction screws.

If you plan on putting your decking length-wise (long side) then run your centre section perpendicular to it; so you’d use a couple of 23″ boards in the middle instead of the long 72″ board.  (I made a mistake in my build – so do as I say, not as I do)

I thought I had enough boards to run the length of the base, but found out after the base was built that I didn’t have enough.

Pre-drill holes and attach your decking using 2″ deck screws and use paint stir sticks as spacers between the boards (for drainage).

One board will have to be ripped down slightly to fit.

These building plans for a small shed are somewhat modular, in that I made 3 separate frames for the sides and back so you could dismantle it fairly easily and  then reassemble it once you have it in place.

The back frame is made up of the 52″ side boards and (2) 68″ cross boards.  I attached these using pocket holes and 2 ½” pocket screws.

On the bottom board, I pre-drilled pocket holes every 6″ so that the frame can later be attached to the decking on the bike shed.  As always, check for square.

The front section is made up of (2) 55″ boards and a single 68″ cross beam.  This is so that you don’t have a lower lip on your small shed to lift bikes/ bins/etc over.

The side sections are made up of (1) 52″ board, (1) 55″ board and (2) 16″ boards.

You can drill pocket holes in the bottom 16″ boards if you wish, but I attached my sides using regular 2 ½” deck screws through the sides and into the front and back frames.

These building plans for a small shed were not calculated by a proper cabinet maker, or roofing expert, so I’m sure my rise over run isn’t entirely accurate.

As it is, my roof trusses (5) run from inside the front frame, to the inside edge of the back frame.  To do this, I cut a 7° angle on one end of my 2″ x 4″ boards, then tucked it into the frame (as much as possible) and drew a corresponding line to where it would line up with the frame on the back.

Because this is Canada, and the snow can accumulate, I decided to use 5 roof trusses to my bike shed for extra strength.  These were attached using 2 ½” deck screws from the front and back of the frame into each board.  I placed one at the centre point, one at either end and then the remaining boards at centre points between the two.

I used a compact/small circular saw to cut the front frame to line up with the angle of the roof truss.

This next section of building plans for a small shed are to be done after you have your shed base in place.  Once the cladding is attached, the unit is no longer modular (without removing all of the boards).

Attach your fence boards, cut to ~56″ long by pre-drilling and then attaching to the back frame using 1 ½” deck screws.  (I planed down recycled fence wood to ½” thick to remove mold etc and to make each board lie flush).  You may need longer screws if your boards are thicker.

I left a ¼” gap between the bottom of each board and the ground to make moving the bike shed easier.

Your small shed likely won’t have as many boards as mine does – again, I was using what I had in attempting to make this entirely out of recycled wood.  Because of that, I (unfortunately) can’t tell you exactly how many fence boards you’ll need for the sides and back but can only guesstimate at approximately 14 at 56″ for the back and another 12 boards at 60″ for the sides.  This is assuming your fence boards are 5 ½” wide.

Pre-drill and attach your side boards, at full length, using 1 ½” deck screws, leaving ¼” between the ground and the bottom of the boards.

I was getting low on planed-down-fence-boards at this point, so ended up having to rip down 4″x 4″ posts to ½” thicknesses for the remainder of the shed. lol.  Still using recycled wood, but a LOT more labour intensive than just buying new fence boards.  You may need to rip down one board so that your siding lines up flush with the front of your small shed frame.

Once the siding is securely attached to your bike shed, draw a line from the top of the front frame to the bottom of the back frame, and then cut with a compact/small circular saw.  (I have a cutie, small circular saw because big circular saws intimidate me lol)

You’ll be left with a perfectly smooth, even angle.

These building plans for a bike shed are working out okay right?  She’s looking pretty good already!

Place your 28″ x 79″ chipboard over top of your roof trusses leaving an overhang of 1″ on the front and back of the small shed and 2″ on either side.

Attach to the frame and roof trusses using 2 ½” deck screws.

Note: the board will not sit completely flush with the front of your bike shed.  This small gap is fine as it will be covered by roofing and the tiny space also provides a bit of ventilation.

You can shingle your roof or add corrugated plastic if you want, but I’ve had experience with the Ondura roofing (a composite material I used on my dog house), so I decided to use it again for my small shed.  Easy-to-cut, just make it slightly larger than your chip board roof and attaching using roofing screws (with washers).  I purchased the corrugated foam strips to go with the panels to keep as much moisture out as possible.

Next up in our building plans for a small shed (and the best part if you ask me); are the gorgeous chevron doors!!

I measured my overall opening in the front of the garbage shed, divided the width by two (2 doors) and then subtracted an 1/8″ from all sides to give me a snug, but not too tight fit.

I tried to attach my cross sections to the long sides of my doors using pocket holes and 1″ pocket hole screws, but it was a weak attachment, so I decided to glue and nail the door frames together and then clamp until dry.  It’s VERY important to always check for square.

Attach the centre board so that it’s centre is dead centre in the middle of the frame.  Your chevron boards will be attaching to it, so you’ll need it to be perfect.

Mark a line at the dead-centre point so you know where to line up your boards.

Cut your fence boards with a 45° angle on one end and then use your speed square (angle side) to line it up perfectly on your door frame.

I used exterior wood glue and a brad nailer to attach each board at the centre line, and left a small overhang on the outside which we’ll cut off later. 

A hammer and finishing nails will work just as well along with the glue.

I attached the lower section of boards in the same way, butting them up against the upper boards as tightly as possible.

This took a lot of back and forth to the mitre saw, but was a great way to use up smaller bits of wood that, again, might have ended up in the landfill.

Once all of the boards are securely attached, with exterior wood glue AND nails, use your circular saw to cut them down to the exact size of the frame.

Fit your first shed door to the frame by using playing cards (~4) to give you a 1/8″ gap on all sides.

Use 6″ gate hinges to attach to the 2″x 4″ frame. 

Double check the opening for the second door before cutting your chevron boards down to size.

I had to do a bit of sanding at this point because the centre of my garbage shed (frame) was slightly lower than the outer edges.  A few minutes with 60 grit on my random orbit sander and everything was perfect.

I attached two small 1 ½” by 1″ x ¾” blocks to act as door stops just inside the shed door (you might notice in the photos below).

 

Then added handles and two bolts to keep it shut tight.

You can certainly skip this step, but because my wood had so many variations in colour, I decided to add a semi-transparent waterproofing stain and sealer to even it out a bit.

One coat didn’t show much difference…

but three coats of “pewter” and I think it’s absolutely spectacular!  (I was able to do 3 coats with ½ a gallon)

These building plans for a bike shed will help you make a unit that is 62″ tall at it’s highest (including corrugated roofing), 77″ wide and 29 ½” deep (26″ depth inside) – so for a bike shed / garbage shed / small shed it has a pretty small footprint – but it can hold a fair amount:

five, possibly 6 large yard bags at their fullest,

two adult-sized bikes and gear,

a stack of possibly 6 patio chairs and several short-handled tools (our large rake wouldn’t fit),

three large garbage bins (121 litres) – I’m not sure about the super-over-sized square bins?  Height-wise it would be fine, but depth wise, I’m not sure if they are narrower than 26″?

It also easily hides a tired Mom with two chairs, a book and a cup of tea, from her children.

 

 

Seriously, have you ever seen a more gorgeous hideout bike shed?!

ALL. RECYCLED. WOOD!

I’m feeling pretty great about this because:

1. I love a scrap wood challenge
2. I’m so pleased to have been able to keep some unnecessary items out of landfill
3. while labour-intensive, the overall cost for this build was about $150 out of my pocket
4. it is SO BEAUTIFUL!

And it sold within 12 hours of being listed, which means other people found it pretty irresistible too.

Have a great one!

 

 

Linked to:  Between Naps on the Porch