Product Description

Shed the illusion that the building in your garden in which tools and equipment are stored must be, by definition, a boring and ugly necessity.Everything you need to know on building your own purpose-built shed. Includes examples of sheds, design, size, cost, placement, and use. Step-by-step illustrations describe the construction of a basic 10ft shed, a simple garden tool shed, a recycling shed, a firewood shed, an Irish garden shed, a Japanese boat shed, and a storage shed on posts.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19142 in Books
• Published on: 2009-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

From the Author
A shed for any use and the information to build it.
Several years ago, we bought a barn on the end of Long Island and spent much time and energy converting it into a weekend home. One of the problems we discovered rather quickly was that there was never enough room for storage, our barn having no basement or garage. The obvious solution was to build a shed. We now have a firewood shed, a garden shed, a workshop shed, a bicycle shed and a trash shed. Since then, I have designed and built many more sheds for friends and clients. Since storage is a common problem, it occurred to me that the designs for these sheds might be of interest to others - thus,the birth of the SHED book! A shed doesn't have to only be for storing tools, garden equipment, bikes, or firewood. It can also be used for potting plants, or as a retreat for painting, writing, or simply getting away from it all. We've built them for all the above reasons! Building a shed, if you are at all handy, can be an extremely satisfying and rewarding experience. Use this book as a blueprint or as a stepping stone toward designing and building your own shed.

Customer Reviews

Everything You Need
I've been building a shed/home office this summer (2003) and this book inspired me to do it. After looking at loads of flimsy ready-built sheds and summerhouses and finding them a bit depressing considering what they cost, I visited the Alternative Technology Centre in Wales and decided there and then I could build my own from scratch. This book gave me the confidence to go ahead: the pinnacle of my DIY achievements before this was putting up shelves. The plans are clear and well drawn and give plenty of scope to modify. Stiles shows you how to do just about everything, including making window frames, sliding shutters, wooden catches and other trimmings. My own shed is based on Stiles's basic shed, but taller, longer, and with a veranda of my own design for weather proofing and to give it a "Western" look. I'm almost done now and I've enjoyed every minute: my shed is incredibly solid, good-looking, and weatherproof, all thanks to this book. Highly recommended.

Good for ideas, needs a little more detail on construction
The book gives the reader a lot of good design ideas for various sheds/barns/outbuildings. The Irish Garden Shed is particularly interesting. The only thing that appears to be missing is a little more detail on construction. A few photos may have assisted. However, the projects appear to be well within the capablities of most competent DIY enthusiasts with a few weeks to spare !

Sheds: The Do-it-yourself Guide for Backyard Builders
This book is a goldmine of ideas for anyone wishing to build any kind of semi-permanent structure in their garden. The ideas inside will inspire projects from tool-sheds to wendy-houses; summer-houses to full-blown studios and/or workshops. I didn't notice any major lack of constructional detail, but then I am a woodworker, so I have a reasonable grasp of what's required. The only problem I had was deciding on which ideas to leave out of my shed-build. Anyone contemplating some of the designs in the book, might find it a good idea to check with their local council first, as planning laws in the USA will be different than in the UK; different between counties in fact! This book is a good read that will have you brimming with ideas. Go for it.