How to Build a Brick Shed

A Step by Step Guide on How to Build a Brick Shed

Any home would greatly benefit from having a storage shed in their yard. It can be used to house a variety of belongings such as your tools, garden equipment, your barbecue, firewood and even your bicycle and other stuff. And if you want extreme durability and strength, a shed that will last a lifetime, then forget the traditional wooden storage shed, a brick shed is what you need.

Here is a step by step guide on a brick shed with an average size of about five feet by eight feet.

Step 1. Check out your location. Make sure that you have sufficient space for your storage shed, allowing extra space around it and about a couple of feet away from your fence. Steer clear of trees that may act as a hindrance to your roof, or have falling branches and fruits that can damage it. Also, you need to check with your local planning and zoning commission about your plans and the dimensions of your brick shed.

Step 2. Be sure to clean the area where you plan to build your brick shed. Clear it of any debris, roots, rocks and weeds. Also make sure that there are no pipes, cables, wires running underneath. Draw an outline of the dimensions of your brick shed, you can do this by using paint in a can, spraying the outline on the soil.

Step 3. After clearing up the soil, dig inside your outline with a depth of about eight inches. For the base, transfer inside sand, about two inches will do. Compact the soil and make sure that it is leveled. Using a post digger, dig six holes, three on each side of your outline, about 4 inches deep. You will use this for the posts where you will attach your roof later on. Place the posts inside and pour cement to hold them in.

Step 4. You can now pour in your cement for your foundation; it should be about six inches deep and make sure to level it. Leave to completely dry. When completely dry, lay out your bricks. Lay the bricks around the base and when you are finished on all four sides, lay down some mortar and place the next layer. Make sure that the second layer of brick is centered on the top of where two bricks on the lower layer meet. This is so that your brick wall will be stable. Continue until you have reached the desired height. Make sure that the bricks are tightly packed so that water could not seep in. Don?t forget to leave an opening for your door and windows.

Step 5. Leave a gap of about three to four inches for ventilation for the frame of the roof. Connect your lumber from one side of the post to the other. Make a six inch overhang for each lumber. Level your frame. If you want a slanting roof, make one side about three to four inches higher. You can now ad your roof. You can use shingles, aluminum or plastic, depending on your choice.

A Steel Shed? Definitely!

Building a new structure in your property is no joke. It can be quite costly and if you?re building it yourself, time consuming. So if you have found that you really need one for whatever reason, then you would most likely want one that would last a long time and won?t require too much maintenance. 

Using steel is a no-brainer. They have been the first choice for many homes, garages, buildings, and different other structures designed for strength and for durability. So if steel is good enough for a skyscraper, then what more for a shed?

Steel as a building material is not as expensive as one would think. Considering that they offer less maintenance needs, they pay for themselves in the long run. Think about it, steel buildings and homes have been used to house human beings, so would'n?t it be sensible that it too would be safe not only in storing your belongings, but even animals? This means that steel can also be used for farm sheds or loafing sheds. And when housing livestock, you can be sure that the structure will take a beating.

While steel may seem to be difficult to work with as compared to wood, there are now may steel shed kits available that are virtually easy to erect and put together. Steel is also very versatile, it can be molded easily to form any shape and can be very useful for customized shed constructions. Technically, steel is the perfect material for building projects. 

Chemically, steel is made from iron and carbon, Iron is soft and is easily cut, carbon makes the steel hard, making it more durable and strong. Different combinations of the two elements allow manufacturers to make different types of steel, and this allows them to make structures for a steel shed.

As your shed design grows in size, then you would certainly want stronger steel, you can check out their grade. But for other parts of the shed, you wouldn?t need steel that are as strong, for example, for the structure or frame, you will need stronger steel, especially the rafters for roof support, but for the walls and the roof itself, sheet metal would suffice, or even corrugated steel sheets.

Aside from the reputation steel has of good strength, steel is also highly desired as a building material because it requires minimal maintenance and there is virtually no infestation of bugs like termites or even carpenter bees. Also, steel is not known as a habitat for fungi such as mildew and mold. So once you build your steel shed, there?s really no need to look after it so much.

If you live in an area where harsh winter storms occur frequently, you will find that steel is indeed a wise investment. They can take a lot of load and will not easily collapse, make sure though that your plans are well designed as steel can get quite heavy, you will need strong support especially in your foundation.