The Comprehensive Storage Shed Guide

If you need a storage shed for your garden or back yard, there are so many things to consider before you start spending your hard earned cash. Buying a shed to keep all your valuable items, gardening equipment, DIY gear and other odds and ends is a very personal process. Everyone has a different style, budget, storage needs and backyard space that it's impossible to describe the perfect shed for everyone. That's why it's vital you take your time, consider carefully your storage requirements and spend your money wisely. After all, every time you look out your back window you'll probably set eyes on your shed, so it's important you're happy with what you see!

The function of your shed

What do you plan on storing inside your shed? This is the first question that will have a major impact on the type of shed you need. It will affect literally everything, from the size of your shed to the construction methods and the materials you'll need to use.

Hereare some ideas about the type of shed you might choose and the design considerations:

• A Vertical shed is ideal for a few small tools, a bit of DIY equipment and long handled tools such as rakes and spades. The vertical storage shed is perfect for small backyards as they easily fit into an unused corner or up against an existing building.Some people even put them on a balcony.
• Tool shed if you want to use your shed for storing valuable tools, it's important you incorporate a number of design features that will maximise your storage space. This article will tell you what to look for when choosing tool shed plans.
• Bicycle shed: The main feature of a bike shed should be convenience and security. This article explains how the frozen pea factor can help in locating your cycle shed.
• Pool shed: Need somewhere to to store all of your pool accessories? This pool storage shed article could be just what you are looking for.
• Lawn mower shed: If you have spent hundreds of pounds on a new lawn mower, the last thing on your mind may be where you are going to store it. However having a dry, secure place that you can store and maintain your lawn mower will add years to its life, and make the chore of cutting the grass more enjoyable too!
• Mobile Home Storage: Mobile homes are notoriously short on internal storage space. How to keep those items that are too bulky to store inside without making the area around your home seem cluttered? Had you considered an invisibility cloak?

DIY or Ready-made?

Another important decision is whether you are going to build the shed yourself or buy a flat-packed pre-fabricated kit. If you have the time and love DIY, there's nothing greater than the satisfaction of building your own shed from scratch, using some raw materials and hard work! It's always advisable to use some expert shed plans and this article gives you a guide to buying really good 8 x 12 shed plans, a great size for any garden.

If you really don't feel confident in your building skills and need a backyard shed built quickly, a pre-fabricated shed might be the answer. But don't forget, you still need to carefully choose the site, prepare a good base and take time over constructing the pieces correctly. Here's a comprehensive guide on how to build a shed to meet your storage needs using a shop-bought kit.

The structural specification of the shed that you buy is important. This article will help you to look at a wooden storage shed and decide if the the components it is built from are sufficiently strong for it to last.

One of the real advantages of using a pre-fabricated kit is that you're not limited to working with wood. Metal storage sheds are a good option in the right place, though you do need to be a bit careful if the area you live in has a damp atmosphere. Metal sheds near the sea, in woodland or in dips in the landscape tend to have more problems with condensation.

I now try to steer people away from plastic storage sheds on environmental grounds. We don't need even more plastic in this world!

How to personalise your shed

Whether you're building your own shed or buying a kit, there are so many ways to make your shed unique and create a style statement for your garden. A splash of colour, some window boxes or an indoor playroom can dramatically transform your shed and make it a centrepiece. These two articles on storage shed ideas and designs have some interesting and innovative ideas to maximise the potential of your shed investment.

Finally did you build your shed in the right place? If you didn't then did you know that it is always possible to move it? This article gives you some ideas on the things that you will need to think about if you are thinking of moving your shed. And this article is a review of one readers experiences as he moved his shed to reorganise his garden storage.