More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

[ndemge]

Thanks to everyone that has helped with my concrete questions.<br /><br />After seeing that to level my site for my shed, I'm going to have to bild 2 retaining walls, concrete, finishing, I'm porbably looking at $2k before I have the site ready for construction.<br /><br />So I think I will change the plan to a wood deck, all I need there is concrete piers.<br /><br />the plan:<br /><br />16x32<br />using 2x8x16' to span the full lenght<br />23/32 tounge and groove subfloor on top of that<br />16" center<br /><br />Now the question, can any of that be changed at all or is that minimum? can 24" center be used? or a thinner ply for the floor without sag?<br /><br />no heavy equipment will be in the shed.

 

[KaGee]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Noel, I went to the library and and brought home a couple of books to brush up on that. 24" on center is very doable with the proper floor joist size and support. If you pier it properly, you can get away with as little as 2x6 joists.

 

[Boomyal]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

I vote for 16" centers to adequately support the 3/4" flooring. I used 24" on mine and regret it. It is still 'ok' but it is too springy between the joists.

 

[tommays]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Based on BUILDING MY GIANT DECK its gonna cost a LOT more to do it in wood in time and most likely money <br /><br />And the 23/32 is just good enough for normal house loads . I know you dont plan to load it up real heavy but even a good size ATV would be pretty bouncy on that.<br /><br />tommays

 

[ndemge]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

tommays... for where it is going, the piering is going to be a lot cheaper than building retaining walls. will be a LOT cheaper to let the water just run under it than re-route the entire landscape.<br /><br />-There will never be a vehicle parked in here, where I'm putting it, it is a workshop only.<br /><br />....moomyal, that's all I needed to hear. I want something solid to work on. will go 16" <br /><br />..kagee... I assume to go with 2x6 joists I'd have to have piers in the middle as well? cost wise it would probably equal out if that's the case.

 

[boling]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

2X8 16"centers, 3/4 T&G flooring. Overbuild the floor, you can't upgrade it later. These buildings always get loaded. It's a place to put "stuff". Stuff moves in much quicker than it moves out.<br />Consider 10' walls, this allows a shelf at the 8' mark for more "stuff"and you can walk under it.(great for hanging fishing rods out of the way).<br /><br />Spend more on the shell now, then do the inside a little at the time.<br /><br />I did a 16X16 with 10' walls on a concrete slab, sure it was more than I wanted to spend, no regrets now except for floorspace. I should've done a 16X32<br /><br />Should be a fun project.

 

[Colorado04]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Gotta agree with CC... nothing worse than a soft floor. Buddy of mine had to cover the 3/4 t&g aspinite flooring in his shed after the first winter. It all started to sag from the weight of the fridge, stove and some boxes he let me store in there while mine was being built. I think his shed used 24" centers. The joists didn't move but for some reason, the flooring did. Do you plan on using the shed as workshop? The combined wieght of a radial arm saw, table saw whatever can get pretty heavy. Never mind anything else you dicide to put in there.<br /><br />What size sono tube are you going to use for the piers? I bet you will need 12" diameter or bigger for those loads. How deep will they need to go so they don't move? Building code here is minimum 36" deep,minimum 6" above grade and 3/4 clear gravel base under the pier.

 

[ndemge]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

I was planning on using 12" tube, 3-4' into the ground. code is 2.5' here for decks<br /><br />ground is very solid here. On my dad's shed up the hill about 1/4 mile away, they hit bedrock at 2' and set the footer on that.

 

[Colorado04]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Sounds good...hope your as fortunate as your dad.

 

[KaGee]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

For a 16' span, using 2x6, you may end up needing 4 piers total. If you went with 2x8, 3 piers may suffice. <br /><br />A good construction book will give you the proper math to figure it out..<br /><br />Don't know about where you live, but a building that size here would require a building permit, and you would have to do what the inspector wants, no matter what.

 

[ndemge]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

I live in a tiny town... called the county, they said you have to go by the town's code, not theirs.<br /><br />County rule is anything over 120 sq ft needs a permit... I talked to the guy that had the job as zoning guy 3 years ago, and the rule then was, any protable building does not need a permit. This is considered portable since it sits ON the piers and the posts are not impedded into the ground. fine line, but that's the rule. And of course, there will be no electric... <br /><br />That gets added later, and of course I'll pull a permit for that

 

[JRJ]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Building off the ground is nice because you can store stuff under your shed. The 10' walls are a great idea. If single door, make it at least 4', and plan a ramp for stuff on wheels. A porch overhang is also real handy. 2"X6"'s (like a deck) make a strong floor that can be sheeted over later if you want to. I miss the shed I built a few houses ago. Have fun.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Hey Noel.... have you looked into a steel hut building? They are pretty cheap and you can get by with pilars for a foundation and add a concrete floor later.<br /><br />The other oprion is building one on skids that is how they skirt the codes here. You can even by a 24 x 14 wood shed pre built that they deliver on a trailer.

 

[dtherrien]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Noel.....Use at least 2x10 16 on center or run a carring beam down the center for the 2x8. With the 16ft 2x8 you will have alot of deflection. Kinda like a big trampouline.

 

[KRS]

Re: More shed questions.... Wood instead of Concrete.... spans?

Just priced out doing the same thing, 12x16, 4x6 timbers for the piers, then 2x6 subframe on top of that (pretreated wood), then plywood floor, it was $1,200..., so that x 2 for your size and I don't see a savings. I was doing 12" OC for the floor joists though.