Garden shed office

McGaz23

Hi, hoping for a bit of guidance from anyone who has done similar recently. I've been WFH in the box room since March, it's something that will remain into the future so am looking at alternative options for where to set up as we need the box room back for space. My plan is to buy a wooden shed (6x6ft)for the back garden get some power out to it and insulate it in some way from the elements. I am planning on going with a wooden shed as we have no side access to get a concrete base in for a steel one as from what I have read this will be needed. Can anyone give advice particularly on insulating it?

I was thinking of going with something like this in the deluxe pressure treated version. Also Is a steel roof worth going with? How would you insulate it?

samo

I went with a clane steel garden shed, we didn’t need a concrete base but set on blocks, but we do have a side access! It was quite a long wait for it and cost around 1700 for 8x10 and 650 for proper electricity set up. 3-4 sockets plus lighting with WiFi via TPlink. Then 250-300 for insulation (plasterboards)

Having got it in September going great until Dec and absolutely Baltic in the winter.. I can’t really work out in it for longer than 2-3 hours at a time at the moment and also other thing to think about with wooden shed is noise, anyone cutting grass, dogs barking, heavy rain etc, it is quite loud out there, so would consider best insulation and best quality you can to make it really work. But it’s definitely a massive improvement having dedicated space outside of the house, just a bit tough in the winter when dark and much colder

McGaz23

samo wrote: »

I went with a clane steel garden shed, we didn’t need a concrete base but set on blocks, but we do have a side access! It was quite a long wait for it and chose around 1700 for 8x10 and 650 for proper electricity set up with WiFi via TPlink. Then 250-300 for insulation.

Having got it in September going great until Dec and absolutely Baltic in the winter.. I can’t really work out in it for longer than 2-3 hours at a time at the moment and also other thing to think about with wooden shed is noise, anyone cutting grass, dogs barking, heavy rain etc, it is quite loud out there, so would consider best insulation and best quality you can to make it really work. But it’s definitely a massive improvement having dedicated space outside of the house!

Thanks, will have a second look at block base for those sheds. I was anticipating the need for a heater of some sort alright, possibility just a fan heater set up on a smartplug for a few minutes prior to starting each morning, etc.

enricoh

6x6ft would be a bit claustrophobic for me to spend the day in!

McGaz23

enricoh wrote: »

6x6ft would be a bit claustrophobic for me to spend the day in!

The box room isn't much bigger, and space wise I wouldn't be able to go for a much bigger shed

CrazyFather1

I had an existing wooden shed. Ended up converting it. I put a whole new roof on it, replaced the felt and put box profile. Then I took the existing door off. Bought a new PVC door which would fit the slot and installed. The shed was already on a concrete plinth. It had two single pane windows which I have left in place.
To make it brighter I painted it up. Put a ceiling on it and threw some insulation on top of it. Then I bought cheap stick on/off wallpaper and put on the wall. That was a bit of a mess as I got from China and it was all over the place. I need to replace it all when I have a chance and do it proper

Heating was the issue, I had a oil radiator from PowerCity and it was useless. Then I swapped for a convection heater and it was better but fairly useless.
I have now invested in a infrared heater. Only arrived today and not sure if I am using correctly.

If I have time, I would love to put insulate slabs on the interior walls, then put up the wallpaper on them. Time is the problem.

seamus

Sealing up and insulating a bog standard barna-style wooden shed is difficult work as you can see fr the poster above me. You're better off ordering something that comes ready to use; insulated, sealed, etc. Electrical work can be done later, but if you have the money it's worth having it done before delivery.

We ordered a wooden shed/office rather than steel purely on aesthetics. But we ordered in July and we're still waiting...

So in hindsight the steel might have been better as we'd have had it months ago.

An Ri rua

McGaz23 wrote: »

Thanks, will have a second look at block base for those sheds. I was anticipating the need for a heater of some sort alright, possibility just a fan heater set up on a smartplug for a few minutes prior to starting each morning, etc.

You're not being realistic re heating at all.

I use a quality (Coachman) caravan as a home office (2004, old Grade II insulation spec, equivalent to grade III now, but caveat of wear and tear) and I run a 1000w heater at one end and Corona Inverter 5006 at the other (3.2kw, but I'm running it at 16-18c currently, letting it rip to full potential whenever needed. Oh, 2 CO alarms and 10 years a paraffin /Rolf fan so that's safe as a house).
My point is, I can switch the heat off for maybe 20-30 minutes in this current weather and already the temp will drop 5c and more. A shed will never be insulated enough to be habitable as a WFH space (I don't believe anyway but very happy to be corrected and learn). I have all the electrics I require, coffee /cooking facilities, TV using a Saorview OneForAll and an Android box and 2 cats for company. Only started in early December and was very comfortable until this cold stretch. Now it's warm still but heaters going constantly so as to battle a number of light cold ingresses.
I read that you have no side access. A pity, as a caravan with a dinette would work great (Cramped desk but I've had worse thrown at me over the years). I would think that you certainly need a base and 6x6 sounds very tight. This space of mine is on the other end, I suppose, 18ft X 8 internal if you include washroom which I'm using as storage to keep floors clear. But I'd imagine you'd need 8x6 ideally.
Best of luck.

CrazyFather1

seamus wrote: »

Sealing up and insulating a bog standard barna-style wooden shed is difficult work as you can see fr the poster above me. You're better off ordering something that comes ready to use; insulated, sealed, etc. Electrical work can be done later, but if you have the money it's worth having it done before delivery.

We ordered a wooden shed/office rather than steel purely on aesthetics. But we ordered in July and we're still waiting...

So in hindsight the steel might have been better as we'd have had it months ago.

100% agree, it is not a easy project but I like to do some DIY. The question is by the time I probably have it to the exact standard I want the office will probably reopen and it will be left as a playhouse :-)

Also worth noting, I got the PVC door from adverts second hand cheap so I haven't spent huge money so far

enricoh

If you were handy at the diy you could use a corner of the two boundary walls as two of your walls of the shed, stick a 50mm insulation board on each wall.
Get a pvc door n window of adverts like another poster. Bit of studding, bit of cladding a gutter and away you go.
Would have been an ideal Christmas project, ring in sick next week n do it!

An Ri rua

CrazyFather1 wrote: »

I had an existing wooden shed. Ended up converting it. I put a whole new roof on it, replaced the felt and put box profile. Then I took the existing door off. Bought a new PVC door which would fit the slot and installed. The shed was already on a concrete plinth. It had two single pane windows which I have left in place.
To make it brighter I painted it up. Put a ceiling on it and threw some insulation on top of it. Then I bought cheap stick on/off wallpaper and put on the wall. That was a bit of a mess as I got from China and it was all over the place. I need to replace it all when I have a chance and do it proper

Heating was the issue, I had a oil radiator from PowerCity and it was useless. Then I swapped for a convection heater and it was better but fairly useless.
I have now invested in a infrared heater. Only arrived today and not sure if I am using correctly.

If I have time, I would love to put insulate slabs on the interior walls, then put up the wallpaper on them. Time is the problem.

For a quality heater, take a look at Sheds Direct or McLoughlin Oil (mcloil.com). I bought a Corona Inverter 5006 (now 5016) 10 years ago and it's still going strong. Using ROLF (Reduced Odour Liquid Fuel) which is pretty much odourless apart from startup, you will be toasty. And plenty of ventilation in a shed structure, no matter how insulated. About 279 which seems dear but they are so well made and work so well. I bought mine in mid December 2010 in MCL Newbridge. Was the only house, and zero maintained rented at that, out of an estate of 150 with running water that winter (ceiling hatch ajar, heater in hall). It's some baby.

Running costs? In this hard cold, getting 7 days office hours from a 5L tank. So a month easy from a 20L €39 drum. If used for work and leisure /kicking back, then half those numbers again for a second 8 hour tranche if that was your thing.

Tried this sort of stuff? http://www.adverts.ie/13868055

looksee

I had a 4x3m wooden shed with a double floor with some insulation in, and a felt roof. It also had double glazed pvc door and windows that I supplied and they put in when they were installing - on blocks. I fitted insulation between the studs in the walls and roof and lined (badly) the walls with plaster board and the ceiling with quarter inch ply (mainly because I could not manage plaster board on my own to get it into the ceiling). I worked in it for at least 4 years, all year round. I had an oil filled rad that I put on in the morning for an hour or two, maybe longer in the winter, but then the heat from the computer kept it comfortable for the rest of the day. I never had a time that I could not use it because of the temperature. When we moved house it had been there 18 years and was still sound.

funkey_monkey

I'm not sure about a wooden shed.
I think you are starting from the wrong place. I think you could be swapping the misery of the box room for the misery of a cold damp wooden shed very easily if done wrong - a waste of money.

Do you have a budget in place? Have you looked at steel offices - insulated, wired, etc. They have a 10'x10' for €7350 delivered and erected. Might have smaller ones if you ask.


https://www.steeltechsheds.ie/products/home-offices/

An Ri rua

enricoh wrote: »

If you were handy at the diy you could use a corner of the two boundary walls as two of your walls of the shed, stick a 50mm insulation board on each wall.
Get a pvc door n window of adverts like another poster. Bit of studding, bit of cladding a gutter and away you go.
Would have been an ideal Christmas project, ring in sick next week n do it!

Are there not rules about affixing things to boundary walls? Certainly in using them in this way. Would be wise to check.

McGaz23

funkey_monkey wrote: »

I'm not sure about a wooden shed.
I think you are starting from the wrong place. I think you could be swapping the misery of the box room for the misery of a cold damp wooden shed very easily if done wrong - a waste of money.

Do you have a budget in place? Have you looked at steel offices - insulated, wired, etc. They have a 10'x10' for €7350 delivered and erected. Might have smaller ones if you ask.


https://www.steeltechsheds.ie/products/home-offices/

Budget wouldn't stretch to this I'm afraid, to buy and insulate to some level I was hoping to keep to around 1300 -1500. Electric work will be done as part of a separate job which has been priced already so not taking that as part of the budget.

Clare_Culchie

We've our Adman Multistore 10' x 8' steel shed arriving in April (ordered in November). We got the garden landscaped in November with raised beds and a rectangle of crushed stone/aggregate in the far corner. We got a sparks to lay armoured electrical cable from the house under the beds to come up where the shed will be. I've zero knowledge of electricals but my all-knowing dad reckons the cable may only be rated for lighting and not electrical sockets. I'm hoping he's wrong. I'd like to install at least two 2-gang wall-sockets, although I wouldn't be able to use them all concurrently. Again, that depends on the rating of the cable, so I'm told.

I'm thinking of buying some Xtherm 50mm foil-wrapped insulation boards and putting them under the floor as the lads are installing the shed, and then fitting more Xtherm 50mm insulated plasterboard to the walls and underside of the pitched roof. I'm hoping NoMoreNails will do the job of holding it. I gather I may need to fix narrow spacers between the boards and the wall to allow airflow, but I'd prefer not if I can get away with it. I'll have to skim and plaster it to finish, and then paint or wall-paper (I'm undecided on finish).

I'll be fitting two 18W surface-mounted LEDs with built-in PIR and a Lidl zigbee light-strip. For heat I'll be putting in a 2000W flat-panel bathroom-safe electric heater under the side window.

I want to fit a drop-leaf desk in the corner nearest the door with a bluetooth keyboard and trackpad velcro'ed to it, a new Mac Mini clamped under the desk and a VESA-mounted 28" display attached to the wall. I'm hoping the Google Mesh point in the kitchen will reach the shed but I might have to use a powerline adapter if it doesn't.

I've already picked up a Yale Shed Alarm and will fit a zigbee contact-sensor to the door for security.

The shed will be primarily for storage, but I'm keeping that corner of it for myself for WFH.

McGaz23

seamus wrote: »

Sealing up and insulating a bog standard barna-style wooden shed is difficult work as you can see fr the poster above me. You're better off ordering something that comes ready to use; insulated, sealed, etc. Electrical work can be done later, but if you have the money it's worth having it done before delivery.

We ordered a wooden shed/office rather than steel purely on aesthetics. But we ordered in July and we're still waiting...

So in hindsight the steel might have been better as we'd have had it months ago.

I'm hoping the majority of the work would be easier given it will be new... Also the shed u ordered and are still waiting on is it a standard shed or one of the better pod types? Seems like a massive lead time.

CrazyFather1

McGaz23 wrote: »

Budget wouldn't stretch to this I'm afraid, to buy and insulate to some level I was hoping to keep to around 1300 -1500. Electric work will be done as part of a separate job which has been priced already so not taking that as part of the budget.

Have you found any sheds which you are thinking about as a starter?

samo

An Ri rua wrote: »

For a quality heater, take a look at Sheds Direct or McLoughlin Oil (mcloil.com). I bought a Corona Inverter 5006 (now 5016) 10 years ago and it's still going strong. Using ROLF (Reduced Odour Liquid Fuel) which is pretty much odourless apart from startup, you will be toasty. And plenty of ventilation in a shed structure, no matter how insulated. About 279 which seems dear but they are so well made and work so well. I bought mine in mid December 2010 in MCL Newbridge. Was the only house, and zero maintained rented at that, out of an estate of 150 with running water that winter (ceiling hatch ajar, heater in hall). It's some baby.

Running costs? In this hard cold, getting 7 days office hours from a 5L tank. So a month easy from a 20L €39 drum. If used for work and leisure /kicking back, then half those numbers again for a second 8 hour tranche if that was your thing.

Tried this sort of stuff? http://www.adverts.ie/13868055

Thanks!! Picked up an inverter heater from Sheds Direct today on back of this and a bit more reading as couldn’t face working from kitchen table for another 4 weeks as shed too cold so reckon worth the investment and sanity to keep home outside office up and running!

McGaz23

CrazyFather1 wrote: »

Have you found any sheds which you are thinking about as a starter?

Had been looking at something like this but saw today there is a 12 weeks wait time...
https://www.shedsdirectireland.com/product/wooden-cabin-shed/

From what another poster has said certain steel sheds won't need a concrete base so I might look at one of those instead, maybe something like this...

https://theshedcompany.ie/steel-garden-shed/

seamus

McGaz23 wrote: »

I'm hoping the majority of the work would be easier given it will be new... Also the shed u ordered and are still waiting on is it a standard shed or one of the better pod types? Seems like a massive lead time.

It's effectively a wooden garden room. So better quality then your standard rough-sawn wooden shed, it's properly sealed and dry lined. I'm getting them to add insulation and a T&G finish as well as double glazed PVC doors, so should in theory be toasty.

There is a serious difference between a €700 barna and a €2,000 shed, even though they both just look like sheds.

Lumen

As an example, my reasonably well build shed is using about 10kWh per day to maintain 20C for 14 hours with an ordinary convection heater on a thermostat and timer.

It has a surface area of about 75sqm and is insulated with 80mm woodfibre on the walls, 100mm on the roof and 150mm under the floor. It has around 4.5sqm of triple glazed timber framed windows.

There is no ventilation other than a few gaps around doors and windows but is breathable and the door gets opened a few times a day. Relative humidity at the moment is around 40%.

I would be interested to know other people's shed stats.

sunnib

A corrugated iron roof, I believe, is worthwhile. We had to replace the felt roof on our wooden shed in a small, north facing garden after 15 years, everything stored inside was deteriorating.. It was a DIY job, needed some hired tools.
Re: Insulating - I heard, rolls of sheep wool fleece are available, that top the list of insulating materials in efficency.

Lumen

sunnib wrote: »

Re: Insulating - I heard, rolls of sheep wool fleece are available, that top the list of insulating materials in efficency.

Sheeps wool is an odd one.

The value of untreated raw fleeces is essentially zero at the moment.

The last time I priced treated sheep wool insulation it was very expensive (like, 4k for an attic floor).

Part of the gap is down to the amount of treatment required so stop it becoming a massive moth infestation, which is either done with boron-based insecticide or plasma treatment, the effectiveness of either being somewhat uncertain or disputed.

The sad fact is that it's cheaper to produce brand new man-made insulation materials than to produce a natural product from sheep's wool.

There's also the application difficulty that you have with any low density fibre-based insulation, with issues of slumping/settlement in wall or ceiling applications. I don't know whether that's an issue with sheep's wool but I'd want to investigate it.