My shed roof desperately needs re felting – of course I should have done it in the summer when the weather was a lot better, but as with most things I do, it takes me months to get round to things (yes mrsunclewilco was right, but don’t tell her).

Anyway being of little DIY skills I asked the sheddies, on that fangled twitter thing. and got some good advice from the shedwitters

BuyAssociation November 5, 2009

@unclewilco Buy the stuff that has a strip of bitumen on one side underneath – heat with a blowtorch, stick down and it seals! Genius…

JULIANBRAY November 5, 2009

@unclewilco get rigid corrugated sheets of roof lining (B&Q £11 a sheet) and fixing nails much easier lasts longer

oddjones November 5, 2009

@unclewilco Yeah – prepare yourself both pysically and mentally beforehand – it’s a horrible job : http://www.onegranddesigns.com/?p=114

Christopher_R November 5, 2009

@unclewilco Wear good gloves. That cold tar stuff is horrible.

GardenBuildings November 5, 2009

@unclewilco measure the felt twice and cut the felt once. always a good one. Don’t scrimp on the tacks either or high wind will get you

If you have any more tips to help me in my task then please reply on this tweet or comment below.

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:: Like any other building, wooden garden sheds need a sturdy, level base in order to stand the test of time and survive the elements. This means mixing and pouring a concrete slab for your shed to sit on.

:: It is, of course, crucial that the base is the correct size for your shed. One that’s too small is obviously no good, but neither is one that’s too big because rain will bounce off the concrete and soak the shed’s timbers. To get it right, take the exact measurements of the shed’s floor and subtract 2cm from the width and length to give you the size of your base. The concrete should be around 7.5cm thick, unless you’re laying it on soft soil, in which case it should be around 10cm thick. Roughly half of the concrete should be above ground level.

:: To prepare the ground, clear away any plants and debris, remove enough topsoil to allow the concrete to sit at the correct depth (see above) and compact the soil with a rammer (a long-handled metal or wooden tool used for compacting). If the soil Is really soft, you’ll need to lay a 5cm layer of compacted hardcore underneath the concrete.

:: Before you put the shed together, protect the timbers with two or more coats of wood treatment, preservative or stain, following the instructions on the tin. Ensure that you coat the floor and joists really well and don’t forget to do the internal timbers. As an extra precaution against damp, you’ll need to insert a damp-proof membrane between the base and walls of the shed when you build them.

:: When erecting the shed, get someone to help you, allow plenty of time and don’t attempt the job if it’s windy. Above all, follow the assembly and aftercare instructions carefully and your shed should last for years to come.

IF you need buy a new Garden shed then our selection on Sheds.us is second to none.

Filed under: Diy by Wilco - 29794 Comments →http://www.shedblog.co.uk/2009/09/09/how-to-build-a-garden-shed/HOW+TO+BUILD+A+GARDEN+SHED2009-09-09+07%3A08%3A29Wilco

An interesting video of a stone cladded shed, not my cup of tea but good to see our American friends going something different.

I am not fully acquainted with the term “to remodel” really but all the US TV show seem to use it, but basically I think its just a bit odd DIY to improve your property?

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Britons are collectively planning to spend £4.5 billion on home improvements over Easter, with many hoping to add value to their property, a survey showed today.

The average person will spend £181 on DIY projects during the Bank Holiday weekend, rising to more than £200 among people in London, according to research by The Co-operative Bank.

Nearly a third of people said they were planning to carry out work in a bid to add value to their property, while 28% wanted to improve their current home because they could not afford to move.

But 16% of people said they were planning a DIY project so that they did not get bored, 13% want to make their home more environmentally friendly and 9% want to create more space for their expanding family.

Homeowners are most likely to carry out work on their garden and lounge at 18%, followed by the main bedroom at 17% and the kitchen at 15%.

But while 33% of people will be painting and 29% will be gardening, 12% of people planning home improvements will be buying new furnishings.

Terry Jordan, head of mortgages at The Co-operative Bank, said: “In the current economic climate with the slowdown in the property market, people are not moving house as much as before.

“Instead the research clearly shows that people are looking to make improvements to their existing homes in order to add value and better their living space.”

:: Onepoll.com questioned 3,500 people during March.

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That is the question, anyway David Snell from Homebuilding & Renovating has some tips over at the telegraph.

The long Easter weekend is the perfect time to put up a garden shed. The first thing to think about is the base. A concrete pad is relatively easy to construct as it can normally be built above ground level. This has the added advantage of keeping the shed dry and preventing rain splash at the base. Use 150mm x 25mm boards as formers, held in place by square pegs, all of which can be removed afterwards. Clear any vegetation and lay about 50mm of sand or gravel, petering out towards the edges. Then fill the rectangle with concrete (five parts all-in-ballast, one part cement) and tamp level.

It would be cheaper simply to lay tanalised 100mm x 100mm bearers on the ground but this makes an ideal nesting place for rats. Better to position two or three blocks, laid flat, at each corner or load point to support the bearers. You could even mortar the blocks together and put a layer of damp proof beneath the bearers. more…

Tiger Garden Sheds

In other shed erection news, those great lot over at Tiger Sheds have two great Shed Construction videos, one for their Apex sheds and the other for Pent.

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[kml_flashembed fversion="8.0.0" movie="http://www.tigersheds.com/videos/pent.swf" targetclass="flashmovie" publishmethod="static" width="500" height="350"]

[/kml_flashembed]

They also have some magically floating sheds on their homepage!

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Handout/PA Wire

A British-built steam supercar has successfully test-launched ahead of its bid to break a century-old world land speed record for steam-powered vehicles.

The 25ft-long British Steam Car – dubbed the “fastest kettle in the world” – reached speeds of up to 60mph on tarmac at the Ministry of Defence’s Thorney Island facility in Emsworth, Hampshire.

The team hope to break a 103-year-old record by improving on the 127mph reached by American Fred Marriott driving a Stanley steam car in 1906 at the Daytona Beach Road Course. The attempt will take place in California’s Mojave desert in June.

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Daz3D is doing this Shed Plan for Free It’s an American style old shed, and it’s free so get modeling or splicing or whatever you designers do in your shed.

and for the initiated this info about the model “No limits have been set on the twist and splay morphs. Extreme dialing will cause door to not open/close properly and also cause the back wall to poke thru the roof.”  hope you understand that!

Thanks to Andy for the tip, who says that the offer may only last a few days

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A lot of people wonder how to heat their sheds, so John over at Secrets of Shed building has a great post about this very thing, one of his readers dave has given it a go, here is a brief snippet of it

In true shed building tradition, the stove is recycled, thrown out when a narrowboat was refitted. It is essentially a solid fuel stove but will burn wood, providing the chimney arrangement is straight up or doesn’t have too many bends in it.

With the shed made predominantly of wood I was naturally concerned that the fire would need a fair amount of protection. I managed to obtain 2m of single skin galvanised chimney and a rain hood quite cheaply. The more I read about chimneys going through wood, the more concerned I got about the galvanised chimney until I abandoned my original approach with the workshop chimney and went ‘belt and braces’.

Filed under: Diy by Wilco - 23722 Comments →http://www.shedblog.co.uk/2009/01/24/installing-a-woodburning-stove-in-your-shed/Installing+a+Woodburning+Stove+in+your+shed2009-01-24+21%3A49%3A44Wilco