Hopefully someone can suggest a solution.

I'm trying to replace rotten wood on a 6 by 4 wooden shed similar but not
exactly the same as this one:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Timber-Sheds...ed/invt/543343

The sides are easy enough to replace - there's only one side that has
rotted. Cost of replacing the side is about £25.

But the floor (again one side) has also rotted. This is more tricky. You
can't simply buy a replacement floor. My diy skills are not good and I'm
stumped. How to replace the rotten floor of a wooden shed (only the end 1/5
is rotten). I think that cutting out the rotten wood and adding good wood to
the existing good wood may be the answer but I'm probably talking ****.

Also the support floor to roof beams have rotted at the bottom but again
only on one side and only the last 6 inches or so of the beams.

The price of a new (but very basic shed) is £125. The cost of repairing the
existing one is about £60 I think (maybe a bit more depending on the cost of
repairing the floor). My skills are also very poor indeed.

Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the one
for £60 to £70?

On Apr 2, 11:53 pm, "Gareth" wrote:
I'm trying to replace rotten wood on a 6 by 4 wooden shed similar but not
exactly the same as this one:
Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the one
for £60 to £70?

The easiest thing would be to buy a new shed from a company that will,
for a fee, put it up for you. But the bad news is that getting the
shed might not be the end of your worries.

The problem with a replacement shed is that it will come flat packed
and you'll still need to put it up. It also sounds like the base for
the existing shed isn't great. Either its not giving enough air under
it for the wood to dry out or its directly on the ground and subject
to year round damp.

Putting a small shed up, for my experience, isn't to difficult but its
far better as a 2 man job. Do you have anyone who could give you a
hand? I've not had any experience of replacing the floor of a shed
but if you are buying a new shed of a similar size that would give you
a new floor. But by this time you'd be pulling the old shed to bits
and probably be better just using the new shed. Maybe keep some of
the old shed for spares if you have storage and it looks similar.

If you do get a shed its worth getting the base sorted with a slight
slope to prevent water gathering. Dry set slabs should be fine and
there are a number of internet guides to laying paving. Its largely
going to be hidden by the shed on top of it so even if you DIY isn't
great any mistakes won't be very visible though you'd perhaps risk the
shed being wobbly.

My previous shed was on a base of paving slabs with a gentle run off
for each end slabs but with the middle slabs perfectly flat. I didn't
take into account how strong the wind was in the area I built the shed
and storms would result in a big pool of water on the flat center
slabs that took days to dry. While it only led to a puddle every now
and again it still led to part of the floor rotting. It was a cheaper
shed and I suspect more expensive ones would have better protection
for the wood.

Fod

Gareth wrote:

The sides are easy enough to replace - there's only one side that has
rotted. Cost of replacing the side is about £25.
But the floor (again one side) has also rotted. This is more tricky. You
can't simply buy a replacement floor. My diy skills are not good and I'm
stumped. How to replace the rotten floor of a wooden shed (only the end
1/5 is rotten). I think that cutting out the rotten wood and adding good
wood to the existing good wood may be the answer but I'm probably
talking ****.

Also the support floor to roof beams have rotted at the bottom but again
only on one side and only the last 6 inches or so of the beams.


This all sounds familiar - I did just this last week with a shed... the
roof had gone, and so had half the floor, and the back corner affecting
two sides.

The price of a new (but very basic shed) is £125. The cost of repairing
the existing one is about £60 I think (maybe a bit more depending on the
cost of repairing the floor). My skills are also very poor indeed.

Well its a close run thing cost wise. However you will be able to repair
the shed to a much higher standard of construction than you can buy a
new one for.

Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the
one for £60 to £70?

The way I did my one was:

Strip the roof off (that needed replacing on mine anyway)
unbolt the sides from each other and unscrew the sides from the floor
(screws were shagged in most cases, so used a mattock to "unscrew" them
;-).
Now all the bits come apart.

Using the existing rotten floor as a template I cut some sheets of 19mm
WBP ply to match (12x8 shed in my case). Then slid new 2x2" cross
bearers (4x2" ripped down the middle) under the sheets and screwed
through the sheets to fix them. Now move the new floor aside, and take
up the existing floor. In my shed the floor was made from T&G planks
that were actually very close to the shiplap used on the outside. So I
striped off as many planks as I could that were not rotten to reuse
fixing the walls. The original bearers were also reclaimed where ok to
fix some uprights in the shed.

I reused the main under bearers - just gave em a coat of wood preserver.
Where they had originally be laid on bits of old pallet, I chopped up
half a dozen dense concrete blocks to various thicknesses to make level
pad stones for then. Set them out level and placed the new floor with
cross bearers on it. Then re-fixed the side panels having first chopped
off the rotten ends with a circular saw. I then used the reclaimed
batten to make new uprights where needed, and nailed the reclaimed floor
boards on to replace the rotten shiplap.

In my case it needed a new roof, so I upgraded the joists from the
skimpy 1 1/4" square stuff they originally used to 4x2" tanalised (pent
roof rather than apex on mine) - taking care to keep the shed square as
I went. Finally cut in some sheets of 1/2" OSB for a new roof.

Then used a F-off big blowotrch and some torch on felt to give it one
undercoat and one top coat.

End result: one building with much stronger floor and roof than before,
and decent felt as well that will last and stay waterproof for years.
Total cost about 1/2 to 2/3 the price of a new shed.


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

"Gareth" wrote in message
...
Hopefully someone can suggest a solution.

I'm trying to replace rotten wood on a 6 by 4 wooden shed similar but not
exactly the same as this one:

http://www.wickes.co.uk/Timber-Sheds...ed/invt/543343

The sides are easy enough to replace - there's only one side that has
rotted. Cost of replacing the side is about £25.

But the floor (again one side) has also rotted. This is more tricky. You
can't simply buy a replacement floor. My diy skills are not good and I'm
stumped. How to replace the rotten floor of a wooden shed (only the end
1/5 is rotten). I think that cutting out the rotten wood and adding good
wood to the existing good wood may be the answer but I'm probably talking
****.

Also the support floor to roof beams have rotted at the bottom but again
only on one side and only the last 6 inches or so of the beams.

The price of a new (but very basic shed) is £125. The cost of repairing
the existing one is about £60 I think (maybe a bit more depending on the
cost of repairing the floor). My skills are also very poor indeed.

Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the
one for £60 to £70?

Reformatting your words slightly:

"My skills are also very poor indeed so it would be easier to buy a new
shed for £125 rather than bodge a repair of the existing one and waste £60
to £70"

At least you are honest about your skills! Tell us what the shed stands on
and there will be people along to suggest ways of ensuring the new shed
doesn't rot.


--
Bob Mannix
(anti-spam is as easy as 1-2-3 - not)

On Apr 3, 2:15*am, "
wrote:
On Apr 2, 11:53 pm, "Gareth" wrote:

I'm trying to replace rotten wood on a 6 by 4 wooden shed similar but not
exactly the same as this one:
Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the one
for £60 to £70?

The easiest thing would be to buy a new shed from a company that will,
for a fee, put it up for you. *But the bad news is that getting the
shed might not be the end of your worries.

The problem with a replacement shed is that it will come flat packed
and you'll still need to put it up. *It also sounds like the base for
the existing shed isn't great. *Either its not giving enough air under
it for the wood to dry out or its directly on the ground and subject
to year round damp.

Putting a small shed up, for my experience, isn't to difficult but its
far better as a 2 man job. *Do you have anyone who could give you a
hand? *I've not had any experience of replacing the floor of a shed
but if you are buying a new shed of a similar size that would give you
a new floor. *But by this time you'd be pulling the old shed to bits
and probably be better just using the new shed. *Maybe keep some of
the old shed for spares if you have storage and it looks similar.

If you do get a shed its worth getting the base sorted with a slight
slope to prevent water gathering. *Dry set slabs should be fine and
there are a number of internet guides to laying paving. *Its largely
going to be hidden by the shed on top of it so even if you DIY isn't
great any mistakes won't be very visible though you'd perhaps risk the
shed being wobbly.

My previous shed was on a base of paving slabs with a gentle run off
for each end slabs but with the middle slabs perfectly flat. *I didn't
take into account how strong the wind was in the area I built the shed
and storms would result in a big pool of water on the flat center
slabs that took days to dry. *While it only led to a puddle every now
and again it still led to part of the floor rotting. *It was a cheaper
shed and I suspect more expensive ones would have better protection
for the wood.

Fod

OK, how about this: Rather than have a wooden floor which will always
be susceptible to rot, have a stone-chip floor instead. Put the shed
down on a line of bricks so the sides aren't in contact with the
ground and fill the inside with an inch or 2 of some sort of stone/
gravel.

No problems with drainage (you can even do wet stuff in your shed
then!)
No rot
Lasts for ever
Cost comparable to 18mm OSB
Almost no skill required!

I'm thinking of doing this for my new home-made lean-to / shed thing.
Good/bad idea? Any comments?

Jon.

Tournifreak wrote:
On Apr 3, 2:15 am, "
wrote:
On Apr 2, 11:53 pm, "Gareth" wrote:

I'm trying to replace rotten wood on a 6 by 4 wooden shed similar but not
exactly the same as this one:
Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the one
for £60 to £70?
The easiest thing would be to buy a new shed from a company that will,
for a fee, put it up for you. But the bad news is that getting the
shed might not be the end of your worries.

The problem with a replacement shed is that it will come flat packed
and you'll still need to put it up. It also sounds like the base for
the existing shed isn't great. Either its not giving enough air under
it for the wood to dry out or its directly on the ground and subject
to year round damp.

Putting a small shed up, for my experience, isn't to difficult but its
far better as a 2 man job. Do you have anyone who could give you a
hand? I've not had any experience of replacing the floor of a shed
but if you are buying a new shed of a similar size that would give you
a new floor. But by this time you'd be pulling the old shed to bits
and probably be better just using the new shed. Maybe keep some of
the old shed for spares if you have storage and it looks similar.

If you do get a shed its worth getting the base sorted with a slight
slope to prevent water gathering. Dry set slabs should be fine and
there are a number of internet guides to laying paving. Its largely
going to be hidden by the shed on top of it so even if you DIY isn't
great any mistakes won't be very visible though you'd perhaps risk the
shed being wobbly.

My previous shed was on a base of paving slabs with a gentle run off
for each end slabs but with the middle slabs perfectly flat. I didn't
take into account how strong the wind was in the area I built the shed
and storms would result in a big pool of water on the flat center
slabs that took days to dry. While it only led to a puddle every now
and again it still led to part of the floor rotting. It was a cheaper
shed and I suspect more expensive ones would have better protection
for the wood.

Fod

OK, how about this: Rather than have a wooden floor which will always
be susceptible to rot, have a stone-chip floor instead. Put the shed
down on a line of bricks so the sides aren't in contact with the
ground and fill the inside with an inch or 2 of some sort of stone/
gravel.

No problems with drainage (you can even do wet stuff in your shed
then!)
No rot
Lasts for ever
Cost comparable to 18mm OSB
Almost no skill required!

I'm thinking of doing this for my new home-made lean-to / shed thing.
Good/bad idea? Any comments?

Jon.

Easy to keep clean - just brush...

--
Rod

Hypothyroidism is a seriously debilitating condition with an insidious
onset.
Although common it frequently goes undiagnosed.
www.thyromind.info www.thyroiduk.org www.altsupportthyroid.org

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 00:50:34 -0700 (PDT), Tournifreak wrote:

OK, how about this: Rather than have a wooden floor which will always
be susceptible to rot, have a stone-chip floor instead.

Interesting idea.

No problems with drainage

Depends entirely on the drainage of the ground, it would probably be OK up
here but in other places heavy rain produces standing water.

Also I can imagine the humidty in the shed being rather high due to
evaporation of damp from the soil/chips. Not good for tools or machinery
stored in there...

--
Cheers
Dave.

On Apr 3, 11:31*am, "Dave Liquorice"
wrote:
On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 00:50:34 -0700 (PDT), Tournifreak wrote:
OK, how about this: Rather than have a wooden floor which will always
be susceptible to rot, have a stone-chip floor instead.

Interesting idea.

No problems with drainage

Depends entirely on the drainage of the ground, it would probably be OK up
here but in other places heavy rain produces standing water.

Also I can imagine the humidty in the shed being rather high due to
evaporation of damp from the soil/chips. Not good for tools or machinery
stored in there...

Ah, but the poor quality of my constuction is such that there will be
plenty of ventilation, probably between the roof and the walls. :-)

Jon.

"John Rumm" wrote in message
news:0v-dnep5BfibpWnanZ2dnUVZ8t-nnZ2d@plusnet...
Gareth wrote:

The sides are easy enough to replace - there's only one side that has
rotted. Cost of replacing the side is about £25.
But the floor (again one side) has also rotted. This is more tricky. You
can't simply buy a replacement floor. My diy skills are not good and I'm
stumped. How to replace the rotten floor of a wooden shed (only the end
1/5 is rotten). I think that cutting out the rotten wood and adding good
wood to the existing good wood may be the answer but I'm probably talking
****.

Also the support floor to roof beams have rotted at the bottom but again
only on one side and only the last 6 inches or so of the beams.


This all sounds familiar - I did just this last week with a shed... the
roof had gone, and so had half the floor, and the back corner affecting
two sides.

The price of a new (but very basic shed) is £125. The cost of repairing
the existing one is about £60 I think (maybe a bit more depending on the
cost of repairing the floor). My skills are also very poor indeed.

Well its a close run thing cost wise. However you will be able to repair
the shed to a much higher standard of construction than you can buy a new
one for.

Would it be easier to buy a new shed for £125 or repair the existing the
one for £60 to £70?

The way I did my one was:

snipped

Thanks everyone for the replies - a lot of things to think about!

The base is concrete and the rot has taken place on one side of the shed
where (over the years) leaves had collected (falling from a nearby tree).
This is going to be a difficult problem to solve - a daily job for a fair
part of the year.

Maybe I will take Bob's suggestion about the risk of a bodged repair
although I suppose it's also pretty easy to bodge a new installation too.

The idea of doing away with the floor completely and using stone chips does
sound very interesting.

Gareth.

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 05:08:59 -0700 (PDT), Tournifreak wrote:

Ah, but the poor quality of my constuction is such that there will be
plenty of ventilation, probably between the roof and the walls. :-)

Our shed with suspended wooden floor still gets pretty humid... Thats with
the warped shiplap sides...

--
Cheers
Dave.