Wooden shed with concrete base

[Hedges]

Hi everyone,

First of all, id like to say hello new to the site today, been reading in the background for some time now!

Im hoping someone can help me, im looking to purchase a shed soon however im unsure how best to place it on my concrete base.
The shed im looking to buy doesnt come with a wooden base, the reason being as its designed specifically for a motorbike, i will be storing my bike along with all my other gardning equipment so a wood base isnt required.
My concern is how best to preserve the wood that will be touching the concrete base and how best to prevent water flowing in????

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Hedges

[Guest]

Hi everyone,

First of all, id like to say hello new to the site today, been reading in the background for some time now!

Im hoping someone can help me, im looking to purchase a shed soon however im unsure how best to place it on my concrete base.
The shed im looking to buy doesnt come with a wooden base, the reason being as its designed specifically for a motorbike, i will be storing my bike along with all my other gardning equipment so a wood base isnt required.
My concern is how best to preserve the wood that will be touching the concrete base and how best to prevent water flowing in????

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Hedges

Hi and welcome to the vine

I would try and help but I am confused (doesn't take much). The shed you are getting doesn't have a wooden base and isn't an option but you would like to know how to preserve the wood???

So would it be a hut with no floor? If so creocote or other treatment for the wood. You can get paint for putting on posts before going in the ground. As for keeping water out a polythene or mineral felt skirt but it would be a bit experimental and I have no idea how well it would work. If the hut is bolted to the concrete you could always try bathroom sealant, however being outside it may only have a 1 to 2 year life span. Hopefully you will get some better ideas soon

[Aberdeenplotter]

In your situation, I would set the shed onto concrete blocks and screw it down onto them using frame fasteners or similar. To deal with ground water, it might be an idea to dig out a trench around the shed and fill with gravel and also extend the gravel beyond the shed so that any water running that way is led elsewhere. Essential to have decent guttering which will prevent roof water running down and into the shed. Just make sure the spouts discharge so that any water is led away from the shed. Hope that helps

[Bigmallly]

Hello Hedges & welcome to the vine, what I would and have done so in the past is put the shed on some wooden batons fastened to the floor, coat the shed & batons with creosote or similar, access some roofing felt & cut into 12" wide strips. Attach the strips of felt onto the bottom of the shed to act as a skirt, this hopefully will divert water away. You could also silicone the top of the felt for added proofing.

[Hedges]

Many thanks for the response!

Here's a pic of the shed im looking at, hopefully this gives you an idea of the issue im facing...


I think the idea of using felt on the base could well work

[Potstubsdustbins]

Following on from BM's post.

I would first lay strips of roofing felt on the concrete bed so that it went under the wood work to a length of 6" outside and a couple or three inches inside Stick this down with bituminous felt adhesive this will form a base seal.

Next I would go with BM's idea of strips of roofing felt attached to the outside at low level allowing enough drop to give a 3" welt out on to the base felt. The top and bottom joints I would again seal with felt adhesive. Done properly this should give you a good seal.

For the doors I would again fix roofing felt at low level with enough drop to form a skirt when the doors are closed, not perfect but a good start.

[Hedges]

Following on from BM's post.

I would first lay strips of roofing felt on the concrete bed so that it went under the wood work to a length of 6" outside and a couple or three inches inside Stick this down with bituminous felt adhesive this will form a base seal.

Next I would go with BM's idea of strips of roofing felt attached to the outside at low level allowing enough drop to give a 3" welt out on to the base felt. The top and bottom joints I would again seal with felt adhesive. Done properly this should give you a good seal.

For the doors I would again fix roofing felt at low level with enough drop to form a skirt when the doors are closed, not perfect but a good start.

Thank you Potstubsdustbins,
Just to check that i understand this right, i need to lay felt directly onto my concrete base where the shed will sit- then felt the base wood work of the shed, is this right?
Sorry, as you can tell im new to all this DIY garden stuff
Do you have any pics of your previous work?

Thanks again!

[jonny the plant pot]

Your shed is already treated so just bolt it straight down with anchor bolts then just seal with brown silicone inside and out job done.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Felt direct on to concrete sealed with bituminous adhesive between the concrete and felt. Flet to lower part of the outside hanging down enough to form a welt that can be sealed to the felt sticking out from the base of the shed.

Sorry no pics I am a heating engineers not a felt layer but this is what my friend recommended when I asked him, he makes and erects wooden sheds.

[Stan79]

Build the base up clear of the surrounding ground and ever so slightly narrower than external dimension of the shed base? This would mean, you won't have water running into the shed across the surface and any water running down the sides will drip off the bottom of the shed and shouldn't pool on top of the concrete base...

[Nicos]

Hi there and welcome to the Vine!

Quick question...
Do you have guttering on the lower right hand side?
I have visions of water pouring off the roof, hitting the fence and bouncing back onto the shed wall panel...and tracking underneath and into the shed!
Is there a slight fall to the concrete base towards the back or the side fence?