ebinmaine 66,497 #1 Posted August 13, 2018 @rjg854, Here's the project I mentioned in the Thread about my Honey's 657. My Honey and I are both big believers in keeping our equipment covered up and out of the sun, rain and snow. In the last three years we have amassed two 10 cu. foot yard dump trailers, a log splitter, I built a log pole style trailer... Two snow blowers, lawnmower... And the herd of horses keeps growing... We'll soon have three up and running and probably 5 before spring. It's time to make more storage space. Last fall we stuffed the log splitter under the back corner of the shop and this spring did the same with a snowblower. I've decided to elaborate and improve on that plan. Here's the back of the shop "before". Note the poor condition of the building. We'll be replacing the molding around the windows and reapplying a moisture barrier sheet. There are 5 vertical stands across. We'll be removing the center one and the one behind it and digging out the dirt until the floor joists are 48" or more from the ground. There's about 35 inches of clearance on the left (shorter) side right now. We're then going to hang this shed roof unit from the building and support it with whatever is handy at the outside corners. It measures about 71" front to back and 103" wide. Trina found a couple places where rodents had made themselves a new doorway under the right hand window so we cut out the bad/rotten sheathing and she sliced a new piece and installed it under the window. I've been pretty lax about keeping the mouse traps set this summer. Obviously that needs to change. We stapled on the first layer of new barrier this evening. Here's an under shot of the digging and shows the missing vertical piece. When the whole project is done we will have a space under the building that is 48 to 50 inches high, 80 or so inches wide, and almost 8 feet deep. The new roof covered portion, outside of the shed building, will be approximately 8 feet wide and maybe 70 inches deep? For a year or two the roof will be solid but the walls will probably be flexible material like a sheet of Typar or something. 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wallfish 16,756 #2 Posted August 13, 2018 1 hour ago, ebinmaine said: I've been pretty lax about keeping the mouse traps set this summer. Obviously that needs to change. Try This. Number the traps 1-20. You take 10 and Trina takes 10. Check them every 2 days at $5 a trap. That's a potential of $50 if the other doesn't set their traps! Used this approach with a friend of mine back when we moved into a mice infested apartment. We had them somewhat under control in no time but we were betting at $10 a trap. Trust me, after you forgot to set them once it'll never happened again! Plus it made it a little more fun to check and set them since there was a bounty involved. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 66,497 #3 Posted August 13, 2018 6 hours ago, wallfish said: Try This. Number the traps 1-20. You take 10 and Trina takes 10. Check them every 2 days at $5 a trap. That's a potential of $50 if the other doesn't set their traps! Used this approach with a friend of mine back when we moved into a mice infested apartment. We had them somewhat under control in no time but we were betting at $10 a trap. Trust me, after you forgot to set them once it'll never happened again! Plus it made it a little more fun to check and set them since there was a bounty involved. It's great idea John but I'd be losing money... Hahaha. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KC9KAS 4,741 #4 Posted August 13, 2018 Are you going to build a "header" to support the weight where the center posts were removed? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 66,497 #5 Posted August 13, 2018 (edited) 12 minutes ago, KC9KAS said: Are you going to build a "header" to support the weight where the center posts were removed? I only know enough about rough carpentry to get myself in trouble. Trina on the other hand comes from a family with several carpenters in it. She knows how to put up a building like she knows how to breathe. The one at the edge of the building really doesn't need it because of the amount of lumber that is built into the exterior sill and wall combination. On the second one in I might nail in an extra 2 x 6 or two which would sandwich the existing one. The guy that built this shed was a super cool very nice guy that was also not a carpenter. We've been lucky enough to find his mistakes throughout the shed and house building on multiple occasions. When the house was put up this town actually did not have any building codes in place. As you can see the foundation is nothing more than concrete blocks on the ground which presents a certain level of issues here where we have Frost that can sometimes penetrate 4 ft deep. Because of the ground shifting over the 15 years this shed has been in place, the second Post in which I will be removing is close to half an inch higher than the 8 that surround it. Edited August 13, 2018 by ebinmaine Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gwest_ca-(File Mod) 10,912 #6 Posted August 13, 2018 You would not get me under that building on a bet. Please add some ties to the bottom of the posts and cross bracing between the posts in two directions. The way it is now the posts could lay over leaving the building on the ground. Looks like they are already starting to go. Garry 2 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 66,497 #7 Posted August 13, 2018 6 minutes ago, gwest_ca said: You would not get me under that building on a bet. Please add some ties to the bottom of the posts and cross bracing between the posts in two directions. The way it is now the posts could lay over leaving the building on the ground. Looks like they are already starting to go. Garry I've had that thought myself quite a few times over the years. There are approximately 30 vertical posts or points of attachment under the shed. Each and every post is held in place by two carriage bolts and several nails. Every post has a checks and balances attachment system to it. Not the way I would have done it but it seems to have held up well over the years. When I take out the two Center posts, I think I will put in some extra diagonal bracing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
steelman 251 #8 Posted August 13, 2018 Good thing the snow load in Maine is only 50 to 60 psf....lol. Every other post should be braced at a minimum if you have anything stored above. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pfrederi 17,514 #9 Posted August 13, 2018 I would get some 6 mil plastic to put down on the ground under what ever you store there. Moisture coming out of the ground likes to condense on the cooler metal of you mower snow blower etc... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 66,497 #10 Posted August 13, 2018 5 hours ago, gwest_ca said: Looks like they are already starting to go Some of them have a very slight backward tilt to them but I think that's more due to the builders lack of carpentry knowledge than anything else. They've been that way for years. One of my good friends is actually a building and code enforcement inspector officer for the city of Portland. I had him come out and take a look at it and he couldn't find any legitimate issues. It's probably camera angle that makes them look worse than they are. 9 minutes ago, steelman said: Good thing the snow load in Maine is only 50 to 60 psf....lol. Every other post should be braced at a minimum if you have anything stored above. In a really rugged winter I get as much as 30 or 40 inches of snow on that shed roof. Over the years I've almost hoped that it would fall back on its floor so I would have a legitimate excuse to put a full Cellar underneath it. 7 minutes ago, pfrederi said: I would get some 6 mil plastic to put down on the ground under what ever you store there. Moisture coming out of the ground likes to condense on the cooler metal of you mower snow blower etc... That's a great idea Paul. Thank you! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
formariz 11,974 #11 Posted August 14, 2018 PLEASE do not be offended by my comments.I understand you did not build it, and it is not my intention to offend you but I am concerned about you and your wife's safety. You have there a disaster waiting to happen. I understand building has been up for a long time, but looking at it let me assure you that your luck is going to run out. Being in the carpentry business all of my life, the issues you have there are just too numerous to list here. It is one of the most irresponsible things I have seen.PLEASE get a qualified carpenter or contractor there to see what he can do to remedy the situation. It will cost you but your lives are irreplaceable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 66,497 #12 Posted August 14, 2018 11 minutes ago, formariz said: PLEASE do not be offended by my comments Oh no no no!! No worries there... Ever. I have a 5/8" cable here I'm looking into how to attach it. I do appreciate all the help and comments from everyone!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites