Block wall or solid concrete wall in old hayshed

southkilkenny

Hi all, We have an old 3 span hayshed just used for sticks and park the odd machine in it. No concrete floor in it or walls, just sheeted down to within 6 feet of the ground along at the southern side to keep back some of the rain. Want to get it sorted and dry for use as a place to pull in the odd machine to do work on, could use for upcoming communions etc for the kids (bouncy castle in the shed in case of a wet day etc).

However, unsure if should put a 6 inch block wall in it and then our the floor or should I get it shuttered instead. Going forward, might consider adding a lean two to one side so obviously easier to knock some sections of block wall then but any ideas of how hard or messy it would be if we went with shuttered walls and then in a few years, wanted to go ahead and knock some sections if adding on a lean two.

Any advice welcome.

TIA

Who2

You are probably better off going with a block wall. It would be awkward enough trying to pour walls to come up just behind sheeting without having to make off the side sheeting. A lot easier to just build and plaster from that point.

Dunedin

I’d agree with Who there. I’d always advocate for a mass concrete wall in cattle sheds or maybe if being used for heavy machinery where it might be lightly that walls could get an occasional belt off a tractor or machine. In what you have described, 6’’ blocks be the way to go and plaster afterwards.

9935452

Id go blocks as well. Slightly less messing . If you shutter it the sheets most likely have to come down .

If you are olanning on putting a concrete floor in it, how we normally do it for sheds is to do the floor and foundation for the wall in one go..

Dig out the floor and go deeper a few inches deeper around the outside to give a foundation. Then lay blocks from floor level.

wrangler

If I was thinking of ever building on to it I'd continue the sheeting down to the floor and maybe put a row of blocks around the bottom to stop water flowing in. It'd be the simplest way

cute geoge

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118414387#Comment_118414387

+1

Easten

Done something similar with an old shed last year. You still have to put in a foundation for the block wall but nothing major. If you were going with a shuttered Mass concrete wall then you need a much bigger and better foundation than for blocks.

I used 6 inch solids, they are a pure backbreaker of a block, the block quarry told me farmers are the only ones using them, no block layer worth a dam wants to know about the job as they are too busy to be killing themselves laying them. They are heavy block but if you stack them in the shed to let them dry out before laying they become a good bit lighter. I made calving pens and a place to hold a pony inside in the shed, it was a cheap job but worth anything to me as I find I could always do with extra space.

Mixing livestock and Machinery in a shed isn't a great idea, unless the shed is very open and well ventilated you'll find the livestock cause condensation on the machinery which rots it as quick as if you left it outside