Product Description

Easy-to-follow shed designs with loads of color examples.

The new edition of this classic do-it-yourself guide for backyard builders now contains more material and photographs than ever.

Sheds helps the do-it-yourself builder think through all the issues involved in designing and building a shed: intended use, size, cost, placement, degree of construction difficulty, and much more. Following a chapter on construction basics, the authors preview each step of building a beautiful and useful shed -- from foundation to cupola, and everything in between.

Sheds contains:
- Material lists
- Cost estimates
- Step-by-step illustrations
- New tips and hints
- Detailed instructions
- Schedules
- 16 pages of color.

Packed with detailed illustrations, plans and commonsense advice, this new edition of the classic book on building a shed is like having a professional carpenter beside you, making the project easy to control and successful.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #232662 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781554072248
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Library Journal
The use of the term sheds in this book's title is a misnomer, given that a dictionary defines sheds as small, rough shacks for storage. Except for a lean-to type wet/dry garbage shed and a firewood shed, the construction plans, directions, and many illustrations in this guide are for attractive and even fancy units ranging from 80 to over 350 square feet. The purposes range from storage, work, and gardening to poolside, boat storage, and pavilion entertaining. After introductory information on designing and building techniques, fairly detailed directions are given for building a basic 8 10 shed. From there on directions are less complete, on the assumption that the builder is experienced or will contract the more difficult work. Suggested only for collections with subject demand.
- W.T. Johnston, formerly with Coastal Plain Regional Lib., Tifton, Ga.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
Covers all project parts from the foundation to the crowning cupola with everything in between. (Joy Kraft Cincinnati Enquirer 20070405)

Step-by-step advice ... along with dozens of hand-drawn illustrations, safety tips, advice on tools and materials and a labor schedule. (The Modesto Bee 20070824)

Step-by-step advice on planning and building shed, from a simple home for tools to an elaborate Japanese boat shed. (Staten Island Advance 200706)

This book may provide a sudden rush of inspiration. (Carolyn Leitch Globe and Mail )

Materials lists, estimated costs, and step-by-step, illustrated instructions to build a truly attractive outbuilding for gardening, storage and more. (From House to Home )

About the Author
David and Jeanie Stiles are the authors of 15 do-it-yourself books and write frequently for magazines and newspapers. They divide their time between New York City and East Hampton, New York. For a total escape, they retreat to a one-room cabin they built overlooking a pond in the Hudson Valley.

Customer Reviews

Build Your Own
I first read Sheds in the local public library. It was fun just to read because I was interested in construction and I could understand how each part of the construction fit together with the others. When it came time for me to actually build a shed, I tried to find the library's copy, but I couldn't locate it, so I ended up buying it. I was glad I did. I found out that the book had been revised and expanded.

I've used this book exclusively to build my shed. I took it out to the site and kept referring to it during construction. It even inadvertently spent a few nights in the uncompleted shed. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. There are materials lists for most sheds right down to how many pounds of nails you will need. I could go the local building supply place and ask for what I needed in an intelligent way. By the end of my project, the supply people knew me by name!

Be careful about the chapter called "More Basic Sheds." Things were going along as planned with my shed construction until I decided to alter my original design by using hints from this chapter. I say hints because that's all this chapter is. But it all worked out in the end and now I have an 8 x 10 shed with an extended overhang on one side and windows all across the back.

Good ideas, but inconsistent in attention to details
[Summary: I really wanted to like "Sheds" a lot. The book has an excellent beginning and the first project has good attention to detail. It's unfortunate that most of the book, including the project featured prominently on the cover, has a much lower quality level; the author frequently omits mention of some or all the materials, hardware, and tools needed for the various projects. "Sheds" includes a wide range of construction types, and is an excellent book for shed IDEAS. But as a shed construction manual it's pretty frustrating.]

The author is up-front in saying that this isn't a book for novices; here's the last paragraph of the Introduction:

"SHEDS is written for creative, hands-on homeowners with do-it-yourself experience in weekend projects and basic home repair. You should have at least a few building and repair projects under your tool belt, be ready to tackle medium-sized, challenging projects and be willing to stretch your carpentry skills for worthwhile accomplishments."

The first three chapters of this book are very good, covering design, a general shed construction primer, and a basic 8'x10' shed with step-by-step instructions. After that, though, there are six more chapters that aren't up to the same level of quality.

The first project (the basic 8'x10' shed) is quite thorough. It has blueprint drawings (one plan and two sections). There are lists of materials, hardware, and tools needed. There's a construction schedule (8 days' worth). The step-by-step instructions are accompanied by 26 drawings to show construction details. This is an excellent start.

The very next chapter is a letdown, and the book never comes back to the level of quality set in the first project. For instance there's a section that tells you how to install Plexiglas windows, with a figure insert showing one of the screws holding the Plexiglas to the stud. But there's no mention of what size screw you need in either the text or the illustrations. Also in this chapter is a plan for a simple garden shed, with a list of materials -- but no list of hardware. The text tells you to nail the pieces together, but doesn't say what type of nails or what quantity is required.

The "Irish Garden Shed" project is quite inventive, featuring walls constructed of locust logs set in mortar. This is the project prominently featured on the book's cover, and you would (mistakenly) expect it to be covered in loving detail. But you get one plan and two section drawings, and not much more. The are no lists of materials, hardware, or tools required for the project. The text includes many instructions that just don't have enough attention to detail. An example paragraph:

"In a mortar pail, combine 6 parts sand, 6 parts sawdust, 3 parts Portland cement and 2 parts lime. Measuring accurately is critical."

It would have been easy for the author to write whether he meant parts by weight or parts by volume; if by volume, specify whether to compact the sawdust; or give an idea of what size "part" would be appropriate to fit in a mortar pail. But he didn't specify any of these things.

While "Sheds" is hit-or-miss when it comes to construction details, it's really very good when it comes to construction ideas. The foundations covered include pressure-treated skids, posts, poles, and concrete slabs. Wall types include the standard stick-built form, timber frames, and mortared logs. Roofing materials detailed are limited to asphalt and cedar shingles, but the text does mention that you need to use rolled roofing for shallow-pitched roofs. Windows include round and rectangular, either prebuilt or made from scratch. The author is even inventive when it comes to door handles, suggesting using a wooden mason's float -- which I'm using on my own shed project!

Probably the best book on building sheds
This book has the information you need to design and build your own ideal backyard shed. In fact, it serves as a great primer for any construction project. It covers planning, designing, permits, materials and construction methods. Stiles will guide you through the process, step-by-step, from the paper plan to hanging up your tools - in the shed you built! There are hundreds of great illustrations and projects you can try: a Victorian garden shed, cupolas, a Japanese boat shed, trash and recycling sheds, woodsheds, a pool pavilion and many more.