Shopping Guides Buyer’s Guide To Garden Sheds

Date Published:

27/08/2008

Want a shed to store all your garden tools, the mower, barbecue and garden furniture? Before you buy, check out our buyer’s guide – it tells you all you need to know, including where to buy.

By Mark Ramuz

What Size Shed To Choose?

By far the most popular choice, these timber sheds can be anything from a humble potting shed to a double garage-sized workshop. For a family, don’t buy anything smaller than a 2m x 1.75m building as it will be full up with only a few tools and toys. A better choice if you have the space is a 3m x 2m or similar size – this will give you room for four bikes, a lawnmower and a few tools and toys. Remember, garden chairs, parasols and garden tables will all last longer and look better if you can store these over winter as well. Even if you put in some metal or wooden shelving, the floor space will soon fill up, however, so take a look at larger models if you want to use the shed for a hobby or a bit of DIY as well as storage.

Pitched Or Flat Roof?

The next decision is the design. Pitched roof ‘apex’ sheds can be useful for storing parasols or sports kit overhead to keep the shed floor clear for garden tools. Pent sheds have a single shallow angled roof that can be useful if you have to put the structure close to your neighbour’s fence, as the overall height is usually lower than an apex.

As for the design, it’s usually just a case of having the door at one end or centrally in the middle of one of the long sides. Wider opening doors or double doors are handy if you have bikes or other bulky items that need to be wheeled around.

What Material Should My Shed Be Made From?

Most DIY store sheds are made from strips of cheap pine, preservative treated. These featheredge boards are cheap but can warp and let in moisture and draughts – not ideal if you want to keep the family rabbit or guinea pig in the shed. As well as pets, if you want to use your shed to work in, look for a tongue and groove or shiplap cladding. This is interlocking and keeps out the draughts. For the ultimate durability, look for a cedar clad shed – this timber has a lifespan of at least 30 years and you don’t have do any maintenance if you don’t mind the silvery grey colour of the timber after a year or two.

Most companies use thin sheets of cheap felt on their products but better quality buildings have thicker felt shingles that should last for at least 10 years. Your shed will be supplied with floorboards nailed to preservative treated joists. These are the most vulnerable part of the building so try and keep the floor as dry as possible by standing the shed on paving slabs or a concrete slab, with some DPC membrane between the stone and the timber.

What Makes A Good Shed?

Here are the pros and cons of each material:

Plastic Sheds

Cons
Not environmentally friendly
Look out of place in older properties
Limited range of sizes

Pros
No maintenance
Can be taken apart and moved easily
Lightweight – easy assembly
Wide front opening

Metal Sheds

Cons
Cold material – not so good for keeping pets, ie, guinea pigs/rabbits
Condensation on tools
Noisy e.g. shutting the doors
Rust problems if water doesn’t drain away

Pros
Quick to assemble
High security with the correct locks
Choice of colours

Timber Sheds

Cons
Need re-coating with stain/paint unless you choose cedar
Cheapest versions are flimsy
Difficult to relocate

Pros
Green material - check timber is FSC Certified
Economical
Hundreds of shapes and sizes
Can paint a different colour to update
Warm material