Steel shed and a (larger) concrete pad. Is a subfloor needed?
Hi all,
I recently bought a 15x20 steel shed and I have a concrete pad in my backyard that's slightly larger that I was going to put it on. I've been recommended to put a 15x20 subfloor that's flush with the shed dimensions, I guess to keep water from pooling near the shed base but I wonder if it's necessary. To put a wood foundation under a steel shed that will likely outlast the wood seems counterproductive. Is it possible to just cut the concrete foundation down to the exact dimensions once the shed is up (or before I put it up)? It's only maybe a foot larger on each side. Then I can just seal the shed base and the concrete with silicon and any rainwater can just run straight down into the dirt.
Am I missing something? I'd really rather avoid introducing wood into this equation if at all possible.
Thank you.
You wouldn't put a wood floor over your garage floor so you don't need a floor over your shed slab.
If you want to be really protective, you could lay a course of block or even PT wood around the perimeter of the the walls and attach the shed through the block/wood into the slab using expansion bolts.
The two garages that I have were built that way, with block, not so much to get it above the floor for water but to get it above the grass line for trimming.
If the concrete slab is larger than the shed you might want a raised floor in the shed but it's not required. It will be almost impossible to keep water out of the shed. Rain will land on the concrete not covered by the shed and some will likely seep under the shed walls. Don't think you can seal around the edge to keep the water out. It will fail. If you want a dry floor for storage you'll need to elevate the floor inside the shed.
You can pour a raised slab sized for the shed on top of the existing slab. Expensive but it will last the longest and will be the thinnest at about 4" (you really shouldn't pour concrete thinner without special precautions). Another option is to cover the floor inside the shed with bricks or concrete pavers or stepping stones. It will be easy except for the weight but the floor will be difficult to clean and there will always be nooks and crannies for insects & snakes. You can frame out and build a pressure treated wood floor. Because there will be no ventilation below the floor to keep it dry it may have a shortened life.
Thanks for the responses. The shortened life for a wood floor would be my main concern, shortened means less than 20 years? If it does need to be changed, I would basically have to take the shed apart somehow to replace it and that sounds like it'd be a massive headache.
How long depends on the wood you buy and your local conditions. I hate to say the modern "safe" treated lumber has a much shorter life than the old ACQ good stuff. If you want to build a wood floor that lasts look at the treatment level of the lumber.
Most 2" thick treated lumber is lightly treated for above ground use only. In a wet environment it doesn't last long. I've got some that was used in a small deck similar to yours (on the ground, no ventilation) and it had noticeable damage in 7 years and at 13 years was totally useless. You will get longer life if it stays dry but if you regularly get water underneath, without ventilation it will rot sooner than you want.
Treated timbers, stuff over 4" thick like 4x4, 4x6, 6x6 are treated for ground contact and will last much longer. I am now doing another experiment where I did the framing with 4x6 then topped with synthetic decking. So far, 13 years, it is holding up great though it was a lot more expensive.
If you live in a coastal area lumber yards (not big box home centers) will carry wood treated to a very high level for making docks in salt water. That stuff will last a really long time even in the 2" thick form. I can't recall if I've seen 5/4 decking boards treated to the higher levels. If you live inland check with your lumber yard to see how much it is to special order the higher treated wood.
If its just a pad, cut it to the right size before you build the shed. Raising it up will create a problem with all your door openings unless they can be modified. If they can, then the solid block around the bottom is a good idea. You don't want it in the dirt.
Hi,
I recently purchased a Chamberlain B4603TC replacement garage door opener from Costco. There was a Liftmaster in there previously, but it looks like it was from '03 so we felt it was time and wanted to replace with a belt drive.
Anyway, I followed through the instructions and replaced it successfully while being able to re-use some of the existing hardware (mounting brackets for the motor, header bracket for the rail, etc.).
It was all working perfectly and I was testing out various things (sensors, remote openers, etc.) and then it started making a reasonably loud vibrating sound, usually when opening. I'd say it's mostly when it's pulling the door from vertical to horizontal, and probably stops about halfway along that, but it's not exact.
It stops if I push up underneath the motor unit at the side closest to the garage door. I can't figure out what exactly is vibrating, but that seems to help.
The spring (I have no idea of the age, whether it has been replaced at any point prior to us moving here in 2014) seems to be working fine. If I disengage the trolley and lift it to about halfway open (or I think about 4ft open as suggested), it stays open without issue.
When I installed it initially, I mounted at the exact same height as my previous opener, which I can only assume was installed professionally given it was Liftmaster (as opposed to Chamberlain), but I don't know for sure. There's not a lot of clearance because my garage has a finished ceiling. I'd say the angle of the rail wasn't quite as described in the instructions, so I used the 2 by 4 trick on top of the door (as recommended by Chamberlain) and then mounted the motor unit slightly lower as per those results. It made no difference to the vibrations. For now, I've moved it back to the original height because the lack of clearance from the door to the ceiling meant the door was slightly catching the rail on the way up, but it didn't appear to cause any issues.
I've tightened the various bolts: u bracket to motor unit, mounting brackets for motor to ceiling, etc. but no luck.
I've included a few videos at this link: [url]https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zYu7ljFBxuyRJuH_Eoz_K8jqcBIX1L8J?usp=sharing[/url]
(Honestly the vibration isn't as obvious in the video as I'd like, but I'm hopeful you can hear it. It is annoying enough that I want to try fix it. If I can capture anything else, let me know).
I don't think there's any concern over it being safe, falling down, etc. But I'd like to stop the noise, especially since I switched from chain to belt to get it quieter.
Any ideas? I've seen recommendations of bushings (spelling?) at the bolts for the mounting brackets, but I don't know yet if that's causing the problems or if it's something else.
Thanks!
I have a 5-year-old Marantec 4500e Garage Door Opener . It always worked fine until a week ago. Now it suddenly will open but not close. It doesn't matter if it's operated using the remote or the wall mount button. The sensors are properly aligned and they are lit red and green solid. There are no broken springs and I oiled the track/rollers as well.
When I unhook it and operate manually and then rehook, the door will open and close just fine again for a day or two and then the same thing will happen all over again.
I have 8-1-2 lights blinking on the control module. I do not see this combination of errors in my manual!
What is causing this and how can I fix it?
02-22-23, 01:28 PM
