Completely refurbishing an old shed can cost almost as much as buying a new one, or more. In those cases, you might as well go for the new option. Sometimes you might discover that the materials were subpar, to begin with, or that time has just taken its toll on the entire structure. So, how do you decide when your shed has finally given up the ghost?
The wood rots and the boards become tainted. Boards also shrink and grow mildew when exposed to moisture. Other signs are the foundation leaning towards one side and the base being uneven. Also, if the doors and windows no longer operate normally, your shed might be irreparable.
Even though sheds are beneficial to us, there are pros and cons to having them. We’ll have a closer look at some of them to help you decide on how to approach them later in the article.
What Can Lead To Your Shed Giving Up The Ghost?
There are a few circumstances that can lead up to your shed giving up the ghost. These factors range from human causes to occurrences by nature or other external factors. I’ll be sharing some of these and others that can lead to this unfortunate situation.
Water
Water and wood don’t usually get along. Even moisture from the air can weaken the wood. If the wood is untreated and any moisture is left for a long period of time, the wood of your shed will gradually soften and degrade over time.
If you leave this untreated, the decaying process will speed up, and this could lead to the collapse of your shed. As a result, you should strengthen the wood’s resistance to water by giving it a coat of paint or stainer.
Sheds certainly help you organize gardening equipment like mowers, pruning tools, and weed trimmers, but if it’s not properly sealed and finished, it can easily rust when rain seeps into floors and other unsealed areas.
Lastly, protect your shed floor from floods and rain by installing a decent base like a gravel or concrete base. This will allow the water to drain efficiently. It will be best to do the check-ups and monitor your shed floor when it rains to see if there’s any water buildup.
Uneven Loading
If you have a wooden shed, you will have to make sure that the ground that you will be building on is stable enough to build on. If the soil is very soft the storing of heavy equipment could cause the shed to sink.
There are solutions to this problem and it can be dealt with using gravel or concrete blocks. Also, avoid placing heavy objects or loads of equipment on one side corner of the shed. This isn’t advisable.
The weight will push the shed down towards the heavier side over time. This may lead to problems like imbalance in your shed and may even collapse.
Roofs With Spaces On Them
If there are any open spaces on the roof of the shed, you will need to attend to this matter immediately. A problem like this can lead to rotting roof beams and could lead to the collapse of the shed roof. At this point, you could say that the shed is completely irreparable.
The easiest way to see whether there are any holes or open spaces within the roof area is to cover the windows and close the door to get a completely dark shed during the day. This way, it will make it easy to spot the light coming through the open spaces.
Insect Infestation
Insect infestation is one of the major reasons that sheds become irreparable. Wood insects such as beetles, woodworm, sawflies, and termites attack timbre surfaces that aren’t treated and regularly maintained.
What these insects do is attack untreated surfaces by growing on the sides of the shed and eating away the inside of the materials, making their way through slowly degrading it. This will make the material weak and irreparable.
Also, note that wood is generally prone to grow fungi and attract termites and other bad bugs when placed in direct contact with the ground. Here is an article about how high a shed base should be.
The Quality of Construction
To save money, some people opt for cheaper materials. While this may seem like a good idea at the time, using poor-quality materials may result in different kinds of problems.
The quality of the construction materials used, like roofing nails and screws, can go a long way in causing damage to your shed. The hardware you use for a shed should be resilient and weather-resistant. Here are materials that are often overlooked or settled on when it comes to quality and should rather be good quality materials.
- Hinges
- Locks
- Nuts
- Bolts
- Screws
- Nails
- Fixings
Low-quality construction materials will decrease the longevity of your shed. They’re not durable and could potentially lead to early deterioration of the shed, costing you even more money to redo the shed earlier than expected.
Sure, anything can happen, and you aren’t sure how long these materials will last or how strong they are most of the time. The best thing we can do is to get better materials when we construct our sheds.
There is nothing worse than replacing old corroded, warped, or rusted materials plus having the risk of getting injured in the process of dealing with these damaged materials.
You’ve seen that many factors could lead to your shed giving up the ghost. They range from natural causes to lack of maintenance. So, always try to maintain your shed. Regular cleaning and inspecting are advised to keep the shed in tiptop condition.
How To Restore Your Shed?
There are countless types of damage that could that can lead to the end of your shed. It could be roof rot and openings, timber breakage, rotting, and/or warping of the floor, and worn-out or rotten windows and doors, amongst other things.
Irrespective of the causes of these problems, there are different solutions to each of these damages. So let’s go through them.
Flooring
For floor breakage, which is due to heavy equipment on the floor or heavy items being dropped on the floor, empty your storage items and remove everything on the floor.
Afterward, sweep the ground so you can get a good look at the damage. Take your time and feel each plank of the floor to see if it feels soft and very bendable. Then, check for broken boards and rotten planks that need to be replaced.
After doing that, go through with a leveler on each plank to make sure there are no slope sections on the floor. Sloping floors generally require foundation leveling. An easy way to remove and replace the timber floor is to use a claw hammer to pull out the nails and remove the board.
After that, measure the plank to find out the measurements you need to replace the rotten or worn-out one with. Also, ensure to get a pressure-treated plank for the replacement, as they’ll be able to withstand a greater amount of weight and last longer.
Rot And Insects
Most sheds around are built using timber. However, because it is an insect-targeted material, it can rot over a long period, along with other factors such as insects, mold, and mildew.
Flooring, like most roofs, is built using panels. It just has fewer risks when it comes to repairing the floor than the roof.
As earlier stated, use a hammer, specifically, a claw hammer, which I recommend from Amazon to remove the nails. When you’re through removing them, you’ll need to purchase the same size timber and replace them with the new timber.
For rotten and torn roofing materials, it is a very tricky part of the shed to work on I would suggest getting a professional company to come to do this one for you as there are risks involved when it comes to fixing any roof like a roof collapse, etc.
For rotten windows, I advise you to fix the framing. Do not remove the entire frame if it is not required, only replace the necessary parts of the frame. Only replace the frame if it’s beyond repair.
Fillers
You can get timber fillers and fill up parts of split timbre effortlessly. Just in case the skeleton of the window needs replacement, you’ll have to break out the existing frame carefully and take the measurements. Removing the shell with a claw hammer, you’ll purchase the needed timbre and nail the frame in.
Once you restored the shed, I strongly advise you to coat it with paint or a stainer. Also, use any quality shed wood preservatives under the shed before installation to protect the shed from any rainy weather in the future.
If you want to give your shed an extra boost of color, choose a preservative with a slight tint to enhance the color of your timber.
What is the Cost Analysis Of the Average Repairs And Replacement Cost Of a Shed?
Repairing or replacing your shed could be stressful at times, though beneficial. You would be able to keep storing your home and garden tools or anything you desire without worrying about anything as long as the condition of it is excellent.
The cost of repairs or replacement could vary, depending on what type of material you use, the size of the shed, where you live, and the extent of the repairs or replacement thereof.
Independent of these factors, the average expenses for the repair of your shed will vary in price as there are multiple companies to choose from and maybe you want a specific type of material.
The cost of replacing your shed will be higher because it’s almost like you’re starting from scratch.
It is best to discuss your options with a professional and knowledgeable contractor in your area, not only to compare local estimates but also to see which one suits you.
Note that many factors could affect your final bill. For example, hiring a skilled professional will add to the costs. Furthermore, your shed materials are also a large part of the cost. Hence, you must be mindful when it comes to choosing the right ones.
You just gained knowledge and learned more information on your sheds as well as their maintenance. Now, get started!
