Building a backyard shed can be a fun project for the whole family that will provide you with the extra storage space you need. Even though these sheds can be built by almost anyone with simple tools, it's really important to find the right shed plans for your skill level. There is a wide universe of plans available and some of them may assume you have more experience with construction than you do and will leave out some important details that could make the project more difficult.
In years past backyard sheds were primarily built by contractors or homeowners with a lot of woodworking experience. Because of this, these plans only included the larger details of how the shed was assembled and presumed that the person building the shed would have the experience to fill in the gaps. While this may have worked great for an experienced contractor, it left many less experienced homeowners with an impossibly difficult project.
Over the years these simple shed blueprints have been improved to include all the details that the average weekend warrior will need to build the perfect backyard shed.
Most of these modern shed plans include far more information than the older and simpler plans. In addition to the basic assembly details they will include tips on how to layout the materials to save time and may even include nailing and -weatherproofing instructions. This type of minutia is very important to the casual builder and not having this level of detail can turn this type of project from fun to forgettable very quickly.
Another nice addition to these newer shed plans are cutting diagrams that show you how to measure out the raw lumber for the best yield. This means less waste and a lower cost for the shed overall. Figuring this out could be an exercise in trial and error that most homeowners would rather not deal with.
Included with a more complete shed plans package are detailed diagrams of the order of assembly for the particular shed you are building. Knowing what part of the shed to build first is a key step in the assembly as many of the parts need to be connected together at specific times in the build process. While this may be elementary to an experienced builder, it led to a lot of re-work with older shed plans for many homeowners. These newer plans take all the confusion out of the process of assembly and give you an easy guide to follow.
Some of these shed plans will also help you build several sections of the shed simultaneously to minimize this repetitive work. They can also help you with time-savers like assembling smaller parts early that are used later as part of a wall or roof so you have them handy when you need them. Doing these similar activities at the same time can make them easier and save you time later.
If you are an experienced builder, much of this information will seem second nature, but still might save you time since each project is different. For the average homeowner, these details are exactly what they need to know for them to finish this type of project on time and on budget. Finding the most complete backyard shed plans might cost you a little more initially but will save you time and a whole lot of frustration by not having to work with less detailed plans.
