Shed Questions - 4ftX4ft?

[Grabs39]

Afternoon all,

I'll pick up the keys for the allotment site on Thursday (yay!) and have been furiously planning.

I need to build a shed. My plan is to make it 1200mmX1200mm for two reasons - 1 the plot is relatively small - 11ft X 70ft. 2 I plan to use reclaimed wood for the walls so I can just take apart some pallets to clad the shed in, so 1200mm avoids needing to cut or stagger the boards.

Is 4ft x 4ft likely to be too small? I can't see myself keeping much there - just a spade, fork and hoe, pots and seed trays and so on (the secretary tells me there are a lot of break ins) and it will be just big enough to stand in when it rains. I have a 6ftX6ft Keter shed at home, and a garage so any equipment that's not used often will be kept there as it is now.

Other than it looking a bit scruffy (though paint will help) are there any downsides to just building a frame out of 38x63 CLS and slapping some old wood on the outside? I've looked at some sheds in the DIY stores and they seem to be incredibly flimsy so mine would be far sturdier and a fraction of the cost.

Lastly it needs to be 6 inches off the ground, apparently to help prevent rats. I have some new bricks I have managed to acquire. I was thinking of putting down some concrete flagstones, then building six 2-brick "legs", then putting 2 pallets on top as the base of the shed. I'm concerned it would just blow off the legs?

Thanks in advance.

[Plot70]

The brick will need to go a foot down as well to get them below rat burrowing depth. The same applies to water barrels too.

[ameno]

If he's laying a base of concrete flags then putting the bricks on top of that, surely that would stop any burrowing? The rats might still be able to simply climb up, though.

As for the shed blowing off the legs, that sounds very likely. I think you would probably want to bolt the base of the shed to the bricks, ideally with long bolts which go all the way through both bricks (I assume you'll be mortaring the bricks in place?). Or maybe some sort of strong metal brackets the height of the bricks, so that you can bolt one end to the floor of the shed, and the other to the concrete slabs underneath?

Regarding size, if you're not planning on keeping much there then I would think 4'x4' would be more than enough.
My "shed" at my allotment is basically just a cubicle - about 80cm x 80cm, with shelves on two of the wall, and hooks on the third wall and the back of the door. I keep quite a bit in there, too. No pots, but I do have a spade, a fork, a hoe, two rakes, a trowel, secateurs, shears, a sharpening file, gloves, poultry manure, liquid feed, two watering cans. a kneeling mat, half a bag of sheep's wool, a large amount of scaffold netting and insect mesh, some fleece, some rope, twine, soil pegs, a spray bottle, quite a lot of cardboard, and two 2 foot sections of plastic cloche. And I still have space to take shelter inside if it rains (although admittedly I can't move inside, only stand there).

[Grabs39]

Thanks both. I’m aware that this won’t stop rats. I’ve seen them climb up a 6ft pole to get to my bird feeders so I know if they want to get somewhere, they will. And they’ll just nest in the compost anyway. But the rule is 6ins up so that’s what I have to do.

In terms of anchoring it to the mortar - can I just press the anchor in when it’s wet, or should I wait for it to dry, then drill and use a plug? I’ve never laid bricks before so wet cement is new to me!

[Nicos]

Congratulations on your new allotment!
Exciting times ahead!

Urm…down to basics…..if there will be any females/ children working the plot with you, then it’s always a good idea to have room on the floor for a bucket to use as a toilet. That way you won’t suddenly find you need to cut your plot visit short.
Make sure you have room for a folding chair so you can sit inside and have a warming brew if it starts raining.
Personally I’d go for a 5or6x4 and a window so people can see inside that nothing is worth breaking in for ( if that’s how you feel about them)
Its still annoying though if someone pinches your things…. I’ve known peeps dig a trench, wrap their tools in a cloth and plastic bag then cover them over with plastic sheeting and bits of rubbish/ pallet laid on top.

We have rats in our chicken coop / outhouse and they chew their way in through the concrete floor. I’d be more concerned about your shed blowing over or being pinched than rats!…Just don’t leave anything edible in there.

[Plot70]

I keep chicken food in ammunition boxes to stop rats nicking it.
We just make stacks of bricks without cement.
I have seen brick footings fall down into rat burrows causing the structure to tilt. It is worth the effort going a bit deeper.
I found some bait that works very well for rats but not mice for some reason. There is no CE marking on it.

[rary]

If you have access to palettes I would go for one and a half pallets long by one pallet wide, I think one pallet square is a bit small, as for base support, I would use three sections double pallets high making sure that it's solid wood blocks and not compressed blocks, I would also drive metal securing pins in at each corner using angle iron or metal pipe, I would have an overlap on the roof to keep the water off the sides, which would also mean two roof trusses, again these can be made out of pallet straps, I am thinking of four straps per truss being nailed together with staggered joints, I would also recommend making the top of your walls two straps thick which makes for easier securing of the roof

[Stan79]

Might be worth putting a sheet of something - even if it's just weed membrane, plastic, etc between the CLS and the pallet timber. You're unlikely to get a watertight join between lengths of pallets so some sort of liner would help keep water and drafts out. 4x4 would be fine. It's what I had next to my veg plot for a couple of years - perfect size to shelter in with tools hanging on the walls. A folding chair is a good suggestion.

As has been mentioned by the Secretary, it's likely to get broken into unfortunately. Some people don't bother locking their sheds as it saves repairing damage, locks, etc. Cheap, rusty tools off eBay are better stored on the plot. New birthday present spades, etc and knives/secateurs should stay at home.

As you say, i'd be concerned it would blow over so securing it to the base is a must.