Progress

Here's a progress photo of the shed with the roof on.

More Treasure

Some more great finds at the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store. I got a can of varnish for the floor for $2, wood strips for $3 that will be perfect for the window stops, and the best find of all, a tempered glass sliding door that may cover all my glass needs for $100. I priced out tempered glass at $4/sf and plexiglass at $10/sf so both would have been expensive options.

Mr. Pumpkin Cometh

This post is for my good friend Sym...the story of Sym and his Pumkin obsession is too long for one to post in a blog...it spans may years and many countries. Semper Pi, Sym!

When it Rains, It Pours

I had hoped to get the shed roof on about a month ago, but the "rainy season" is upon us and it is not done yet (thanks to my less than youthful back). I did manage to get the roof frame up with some creative pulleys and hangars, and a installed a couple of the side panels, which I painted black for a different effect. Got a tarp to try to keep the floor dry. Have been taking plenty of "Vitamin I" as my good friend Sym calls it...

When the Walls come Tumbing Down

This post covers about one months worth of effort. The first pictures are the wall assembly and first "tilt up" of the walls. This was very tricky to do single-handedly, especially if there is any significant wind, so I would not recommend doing it. But I used the angled braces with each wall to make it work and everything tied together nicely. I was quite pleased when it was finally vertical. Note the plywood to the right here - I found that Home Depot has great deals on select plywood and 2x4's but they only get them occasionally so you have to keep your eyes open for them.

HOWEVER, the day after I put it up, an inspector from the City left a VIOLATION NOTICE on our doorstep. Even though I checked with the City about permits (not needed here since it was less than 120 sf, I neglected to research the setbacks enough. So, instead of fighting an uphill battle, I took the walls back down, took the sub floor up and moved about 1/2 of the piers over by 4' ft or so. It ended up only taking another 1/2 day to do this and it was probably good that I was noticed rather than building it all out and finding out after the fact.

Tips:

1. When installing the corrugated metal, USE HEAVY GLOVES. This stuff can cause a nasty cut, like a paper cut but much worse.

2. You will probably get some splinters working on this project - a good way to get them out is with duct tape, especially the small ones that are hard to tweezer.

3. I could not find the Man O War varnish anywhere, not even West Marine - this may be due to the very strict CA air quality rules. I spoke with a guy @ West Marine and he recommended "Cetol Marine Light".

Silver Lining...Tough of Grey

I used the aluminum paint recommended in the Blazona plans as a first coat of the underside of the floorboards, then followed with coats of deck sealer (could not find the Man O War varnish locally). I got a gallon of the deck sealer from the ReStore for $5! Hopefully the OSB is an OK substitute for the plywood called for in the plans.

The Taming of the Screw

Here's a shot of one of the side walls - only one more wall to go! As per usual, this project is taking way more time than I thought - would be good to do it with 3-4 other people and bang it out in a couple of weekends, but there is satisfaction in doing it all myself and learning about framing along the way.

TIP: buy an extra drill so you can dedicate one to drilling pilot holes and the other for use as a power screwdriver - buy a "wye" connection for your extension cord you you can just pick up and go. I found my second drill at Habitat ReStore (http://hfhsloco.org/restore/products) for $5!

Here's a great video I found of the same shed being built - very helpful guide...
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0xpjtH85qY)

One Man's Trash is another Man's Treasure

Here's some free wood I got from a co-worker friend. Once you start looking on Craigslist in the free section and asking around, you can save lots of money on 2x4's - just plan it carefully so the old and ugly ones are hidden in the walls.

If I had a Hammer...

This is the foundation with the back wall sitting on top of it and the front wall on top of that. I decided to buy the best clear doug fir available for the front since it was most visible - not easy to find and cost $2.50/foot instead of $2.50/10 feet! But I think it will be worth it in the end.

TIP: You can save some money by buying all of your supplies at once from Home Depot and signing up for their credit card - first purchase is 10% off...They also apparently let their cardholders use the rental truck for free!

Digging in the Dirt

Floor and foundation piers are almost complete. I used an existing slab as part of the support, so I had to dig down 6" for each pier. It would have been much easier to just build the soil up and compact it than to dig down for each one. Checking and adjusting for level is also tricky.

Lets Get It Started, Lets Get it Started...

2x4's and Concrete Piers from Home Depot






Supplies are much much less expensive @ Habitat Re Store !(http://hfhsloco.org/restore/products)
$1.20 for a 2x4x12'


This is my first post on my first blog. I created this to track the progress of a "Blazona MD100" shed I am making in the summer of 2010. It is a 10'x10' shed and I am trying to use as many recycled materials as possible. Fortunately I have a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store on my way home from work (and I volunteer for them) so I am able to easilty stop in and see what they have that will help me out. I did quite a bit of research on this before choosing the MD 100 and found it to be the most straightforward (and smooth, modern looking) shed I could make given my time and budget. It's really more of a "Cabana" than a shed.

I hope it also helps anyone who is building one as I have not found out too many references for this shed on the Web, just some pictures. I will try to post some tips but probably can't respond to too many posts as I am just barely fitting this into a busy schedule!