Okay, I have yet another DIY question to put before the experts.

I have an old 10x12 shed on my property. And when I say old, I man that it's at LEAST 26 years old, possibly quite a bit older, and really in need of some repairs. Now last year I noticed that there's a soft, rotted spot in the floor boards. I didn't have time to do anything about it before winter came, so I just covered everything up. But it was obvious that there was some major problems with the floor.

I finally got a chance to do a more thorough examination and this is what I found:

The perimeter of the shed is made up of cinder blocks. The bottom of the shed appears to be made of 2x4s on 24" centers resting on the cinderblocks. The plywood floors seem to rest on these 2x4s (they're called Skids I believe?) and the internal framing rests on the floor.

The framing inside the shed seems to be in good shape. There's some slight damage to the roof that makes me think it's leaking a bit. On the left side of the shed though, the floorboards are sagging down and rotting. The outer plywood sheath is also falling apart towards the bottom of the shed, where it's come into contact with the soil.

So, a bit of digging and sticking my head into the ground and I discovered that on the left side of the shed at least 2 of the skids are pretty much rotted away, letting the floor sag. The right side seems to be in pretty good shape though.

So, since the frame seems to be in good shape and everything else is a mess, I'm considering ripping the shed down to the frame, repairing the skids, and redoing the exterior. Which brings me to the question: Does thing sound do-able, or am I setting myself up for a nightmare? Mostly I'm worried and wondering about how to fix the 2x4s. Should I try to jack the shed up and replace them? Or just try to slide new beams in next to them and nail them into place? Or does a damaged floor and skids mean you're best off demolishing the whole thing and starting from scratch?

Anyone have any advice?

 

Since yoy mentioned some wall damage, I would tear down and re-build. Use masonry to support the shed and place a vapor barrier underneath. All wood near the ground should be treated.

 

I agree. It sounds like too much work to repair maybe you can salvage enough materials so the cost of rebuilding won't be as expensive.

 

Thanks for the advice guys! Let me ask you though what you mean by tearing it down and rebuilding it. Are you suggesting that I totaly scrap it and leave not one stud nailed to another? Or just tear out the walls and floor and leave the frame standing (which seems to be in pretty decent condition?) My initial thoughts were to do just that and save myself the expense and effort of building a whole new frame. But if replacing the skids that support the floor is going to be extremely dfficult to do (Or rather, to do RIGHT. ) then I may just say the hell with it, demo the entire shed, and start from scratch. That would be a bit pricey for me at the moment, but it might be cheaper in the long run than doing a kludgy repair to my current shed.

 

Consider this:

Empty the shed.
Use a sawzall to cut the wall framing loose from the floor.
Temporarily brace the walls.
Move the structure off of the floor.
Rebuild the floor.
Move the structure back onto the floor and fasten in place.
Remove the temporary braces.
Sit back and admire your work and the money you saved.

If the shed falls apart while you are moving it, then you know it needs to be replaced completely.

Good luck with your project.

 

Wirepuller> That's about what I was hoping to do. I wasn't sure about how to remove the flaming from the floor though. A Sawzall will do the job though. huh? Hmmmm. I don't actually have a Sawzall though... Which means this project will require me to buy a new tool... How terrible! Oh well, I guess I'll just have to suck it up and buy one.

I still intend to rip off the roof and siding and redo it, but that I'm ertain I can handle. I just hope I manage to get to the "Sit back and admire your work" stage.

As soon as we get some dry weather, I'll start giving this a try. Thanks for the advice!

 

See if you can spot any of the nails which are holding the bottom wall plate to the floor. You should be able to pull them out. You might need a cat's paw to get them started.

When using the Sawzall , you will need a long blade, since the blade will not be laying flat on the floor.