Metal shed: types and features of construction

An outbuilding is an integral part of any personal plot. It serves as a repository for things that have no place in a living space. When cultivating the land, we use garden tools, lawn mowers, water hoses. When building a house, you need to put away tools and building materials from the rain somewhere. For the winter, clean garden furniture and barbecue parts. The garage does not always have a place to store bicycles, boats, baby carriages. All these economic issues are solved by an ordinary barn - a covered room for storing various property. In the barn, you can also arrange a small workshop, store hay, firewood, seedlings and feed for domestic animals, if any.

The construction of a building does not take much time and does not require any special building skills. If you wish, you can do it yourself, or you can purchase a ready-made structure. The last option is good because you can choose sheds from manufacturers for every taste - material, color and shape of the structure, taking into account the style direction of your summer cottage and landscape design. Today, metal sheds are especially popular due to their strength, ease of installation and durability.

The functions of an outbuilding are reduced to preserving things from atmospheric precipitation, as well as ensuring order so that each thing has its own place.

The strength of the building is also of great importance. The roof has to withstand the heavy snow and winter winds, and the walls and doors keep the property safe from intruders.

These qualities are fully met by modern metal boxes, having an attractive appearance as a bonus.

• Compared to wooden counterparts, galvanized metal sheets used in modern structures do not rot and do not allow moisture to pass through. This will allow you to store things in the barn all year round without worrying about the formation of mold or rust on the parts of sports and agricultural machinery. Hence, it follows that a metal shed can also be used as a compact garage for motorcycles or mopeds.

• A metal shed also has a number of advantages over plastic boxes. The structure is installed on the surface of the earth, which means that it will be exposed to the active influence of the sun in summer and low temperatures in winter. Not every plastic sheet is capable of withstanding such loads. From overheating, plastic can deform, lose color in the most inappropriate places for appearance. Plastic products are very sensitive to low temperatures, especially since the barn is a hollow container, and not just cladding panels on the facade. In addition, high-quality plastic is quite expensive. For metal sheds, such problems do not exist: the metal tolerates any frost, does not deform in the heat, and metal sheets have an acceptable price. If desired, such a metal structure can be made by hand.
• Concrete and brick utility blocks are a serious competitor to metal sheds in terms of quality and reliability, but their construction is a rather laborious process. The brick and concrete shed will be built using the technology of a small house, starting with the development of the project and pouring the foundation. This is a durable capital structure.

The variety of offered models allows you to choose the shed that suits you in terms of size and shape, but by design they can be of two types.

The difference is determined by the way the parts of the utility unit are connected.

• Mobile. Collapsible boxes are assembled as a constructor using fasteners, grooves and fittings. They are easy to install, if necessary, such a shed can be dismantled and moved to another place on the site. The prefabricated shed is convenient for those who have not yet decided on its permanent location. For example, in the process of building a house, the final version of landscape design has not yet been determined, and a place for storing things, tools and materials is already needed.
• Stationary. The welded structure is assembled by welding the frame elements. It is more reliable, it will last for many years, but it is not possible to disassemble and transfer it entirely. For this reason, welded frames are installed in a pre-selected place, taking into account the location of the remaining buildings on the site. It can be a free-standing barn, or a common frame with a summer kitchen, shower room or garage. Welded structures can be made with your own hands, having a welding machine, the necessary materials and a little experience.

It is advisable to plan a place for installing a barn, taking into account some important nuances. This applies primarily to stationary buildings, and for a temporary prefabricated structure it is important that it is convenient to use it, it does not obstruct the light, passages, does not spoil the design of the site and itself is not exposed to negative environmental influences.

• Ready-made prefabricated structures have an attractive appearance, so they do not have to be hidden in the far corner of the site or behind the house. You can choose a shade that matches the color, which will be in harmony with the entire country ensemble.
• There should be easy access to the barn. Roll out the cart, unwind the hose, take out the boxes with the seedlings - no buildings standing next to it, a fence or adjacent beds, which can easily be damaged, should not interfere on the road.

• The shed is installed on a flat area, then it will be stable, and the body will not bend over time. It is advisable that the building does not end up in a lowland where water will collect with the onset of spring floods.
• The intended functions of the barn are also important. If it is planned to store garden tools and equipment in the utility block, then it is difficult to think of a better place than the path from home to the garden or field. To store building materials, livestock feed or garden furniture during the winter season, the barn can be easily removed to the far corner of the site.

By purchasing a ready-made block, you get the opportunity to easily assemble the product with your own hands, even without having sufficient experience in the construction business. However, you will still need an assistant because the structure is quite bulky. Installation takes several hours and is carried out on a pre-prepared flat area. It is desirable that a concrete slab or asphalt serve as the base, but you can also get by with guides from a bar. In some models, the kit includes a ready-made base for installation on the ground.

The prefabricated utility block is a frame made of a galvanized profile (small diameter iron pipes) and corrugated steel sheets. The product is assembled as a constructor. To build a shed correctly, in the process of work, you must clearly follow the attached instructions.

Erecting a metal shed by welding will require some welding skills and will also take much longer. But this method will save on materials, especially if they are already available from old metal structures.

In addition to the welding machine, you will need rods from a profile pipe for the frame, galvanized sheet on walls, roofing sheeting, cement, gravel, waterproofing materials and fasteners.

Installation is carried out in several sequential stages.

• Determination and calculation of the place. Drawing up a detailed plan and drawing of the future structure.It is necessary to enter all dimensions in the drawing, and in the plan - calculate in detail the amount of required materials. This will avoid mistakes and troubles during construction.
• Installation of vertical supports. The main four supports are dug into the ground and concreted. The distance between them will depend on the estimated size of the barn.
• When the concrete has hardened enough, you can start welding. Vertical beams are welded between the posts from above, in the middle and at the base. Keep in mind that on one side of the rectangle you will need to leave an opening for the front door. Using the same technology, the roof frame is mounted, the roof trusses are welded. This will require a stepladder and at least one assistant.
• The next step is to fill the floor. The space around the perimeter is laid out with wooden formwork, covered with rubble and poured with concrete. Subsequently, the concrete floor can be covered with boards or paving slabs.
• The sheathing of the shed begins with the roof covering, not forgetting to lay the waterproofing material under the metal sheets. In order to save money, ordinary film can serve as waterproofing. All corners are tightly sealed with planks or corners so that moisture does not penetrate into the shed.
• Upon completion of work, it is necessary to apply anti-corrosion compounds to the metal sheets, if the material used is not initially galvanized. Here, modern compositions sold in spray cans will come to the rescue, and in a more budgetary version, the metal can be coated with paint or a primer.

The practicality of iron sheds makes them popular in the household goods market, and for good reason.

If we talk in general about metal structures, then first of all, several advantages should be highlighted.

• Reliability and durability. Iron is resistant to atmospheric precipitation and temperature extremes, is not susceptible to the harmful effects of insects and rodents, and is resistant to chemicals and fumes.
• Economic benefit. Metal sheets or a finished structure will cost less than plastic counterparts or brick and concrete structures.
• A high class of fire safety is also important.

As for prefabricated ready-made utility blocks, several more advantages are added to the advantages of metal structures.

• Ease of transportation. When folded, a set of shed parts does not take up much space and can be transported even in a car.
• Anti-corrosion protection for all metal parts and sheets. Galvanizing and powder coating.
• Ventilation device included and indicated in the assembly instructions.
• Sliding doors of modern configuration.
• Aesthetic appearance. A wide range of colors and textures of the coating can be selected as shades for house siding, natural shades of wood or greenery in the garden.

To complete the picture, it will be useful to identify some of the disadvantages of metal sheds.

• The metal does not keep heat, which means that the shed will freeze completely at low temperatures. It makes no sense to carry out heating in a barn, but this drawback can be partially eliminated by insulating the walls and roof. Roofing material, mineral wool or foam are suitable as insulation materials.
• Metal susceptibility to corrosion. Despite all the protective measures taken by the manufacturers or on their own, the risk of mechanical damage, scratches on the walls is not excluded. A deep scratch can peel off the top coat and expose metal that will be exposed to moisture. In order to avoid such troubles, the premises should be inspected in spring and autumn, and the damaged areas should be treated with anti-corrosion agents in a timely manner.

For information on the types and features of the construction of a metal shed, see the next video.