DIY Advice Please.

[KennyFuckinPowers]

I have a 10ft x 10ft metal shed in my Garden, it's empty, but my Brother gave me a good idea about putting a weight bench and other fitness stuff in it for us to use, but it has no floor, it's sitting on top of Slabs and when it's raining, it gets rather soaked inside, as far as I can tell after weeks of trying to figure it out, it's coming from the ground ( The wetness I mean ) it seems pretty tight other than that. 

 

What is the easiest and cheapest way to floor it to keep out the rain? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. We will get it insulated and put wood up for the walls of the shed, my old man will wire in some electric for us to have a light etc... it's just the floor we've hit a wall with. 

 

 

[tom_widdows]

Think we need a bit more info.

Is the shed bolted to the slabs or held down by its own weight?
By slabs do you mean paving slabs similar to those used to make paths, and if so were these laid specifically as a based for the shed or were they there as a patio?
Is the area around the shed flat, or are there any slopes falling towards it?

My initial thought is to move or carefully dismantle the shed and put down a minimum 150mm thick concrete slab with suitable Damp proof membrane on 50mm sand and min 150mm sub-base/ well compacted hardcord. If you want to insulate it put minimum 50mm PIR rigid insulation (kingspan Thermafloor or similar) under the slab with a polyethene separation layer between them. This will help protect against frost
Area of the slab should be slightly larger than the shed to give you room for error and ideally the fininshed slab level should be above the external ground level (say 50mm step).

Found this video on Youtube and there seem to be a fair few others.

As for insulating walls this can backfire if you are not careful particularly as its a metal structure. You could find the retrofit insulation increases the condensation build up leading to rust and corrosion.

Theres lots of talk about the benfits of retrofitting buildings to improve energy effiency but not alot of this warns of the consequences of getting it wrong. Seen cases were people packed their lofts with extra insulation only to find their ceilings turning black because they hadn't put in tile vents to maintain the required cross flow ventilaiton. 
If the orginal building isn't designed to be insulated to modern levels, doing so can go spectacularly wrong.

Personally I think if you are really serious about using this for a gym you might find it cheaper in the long run to buy a new shed which comes with insulation already built into the roof and wall panels.






 

 

[RicoS321]

Exactly what Tom says. If you're insulating then you need to be doing the roof properly and insulated slab below. Doing the roof properly (warm roof) will likely raise the height and you might be subject to planning (not sure what the rules are to be honest). A garden room is a totally different structure to a shed. Do you need the insulation? Bearing in mind you'll be jumping about like a feel on yer gym equipment, you'll soon warm up. I'd be inclined either to knock it down and start again or fix the slab as per Tom's advice and just put the existing structure back in place and keep the equipment covered to prevent rust.

[KennyFuckinPowers]

Shit, a lot more work than I thought. But makes complete sense when you explain it like that. 

 

I think the best bet is definitely taking it apart and fixing the base, would probably be the more logical thing to do. Much appreciated Tom & Rico.  

[Elgindon]

F'like C? 

               Is the shed tiltable? We recently tilted an 8' x 6' wooden shed at one end and shoved 2x 3" posts underneath,then tilted the opposite way to get 2 more posts at the opposite end = 4 posts @ 2 foot spacings.Then screw deckboards onto the posts,the opposite way inside the shed.As long as youre not crashing massive weights onto the floor,could that be a potentially inexpensive option? 

Edited March 30, 2021 by Elgindon

[RicoS321]

45 minutes ago, Elgindon said:

F'like C? 

               Is the shed tiltable? We recently tilted an 8' x 6' wooden shed at one end and shoved 2x 3" posts underneath,then tilted the opposite way to get 2 more posts at the opposite end = 4 posts @ 2 foot spacings.Then screw deckboards onto the posts,the opposite way inside the shed.As long as youre not crashing massive weights onto the floor,could that be a potentially inexpensive option? 

Good shout. Saying that, my in-laws neighbour had a chicken shed done in that fashion, had been there for a decade or more, but about ten years ago there was a really strong storm and thing was blown half way across their driveway (about 20m). Took four of us to put it back, we couldn't believe something that size and weight could be moved by the wind in this country. If yer in a built up area, you'd likely be fine though.

[Elgindon]

Aye min,If its one of these metal/plasticy Ketler sheds maybe nae a great idea.Send a pic KFP 

[KennyFuckinPowers]

Fit like Hendo. 

 

It's a Yardmaster, this one in the link. 

 

https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/yardmaster-emerald-no-floor-metal-apex-shed-10-x-10ft?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhfXP55PZ7wIVCwWiAx2VAghLEAQYASABEgLrsvD_BwE

[RicoS321]

Elgin's suggestion probably best for something like that, it wouldn't be worth insulating I wouldn't suggest. Make sure it's well secured to the base and put some metal or wooden covering around the outside of the raised base to stop beasties and the wind getting in.

[baggy89]

How tall are you and how high is your shed? Are you going to have enough space to get a power cage in and press a barbell and weights above your head?

[Elgindon]

Maybe put dampproof membrane onto the concrete first ,and Fix the posts to the concrete.If theres a lip at the bottom of the insides of the shed,run battens round the edges,and screw thru the battens and lips into the posts beneath to keep it secure

Edited March 31, 2021 by Elgindon

[tom_widdows]

 

9 minutes ago, Elgindon said:

Maybe put dampproof membrane onto the concrete first ,and Fix the posts to the concrete.If theres a lip at the bottom of the insides of the shed,run battens round the edges,and screw thru the battens and lips into the posts beneath to keep it secure

If yer going with concrete put the DPM under the slab so it stops ground moisture at the first hurdle and protects what is the main structural layer.
You can then fix battens/ posts etc into the slab without damaging it - DPMs should never be fixed with nails etc as these lead to tears effectively making it useless.

[Elgindon]

3 minutes ago, tom_widdows said:

 

If yer going with concrete put the DPM under the slab so it stops ground moisture at the first hurdle and protects what is the main structural layer.
You can then fix battens/ posts etc into the slab without damaging it - DPMs should never be fixed with nails etc as these lead to tears effectively making it useless.

I just meant a bit of black poly DPM for keeping the timber posts dry.Fold the poly edges up and fix to the posts

[RicoS321]

18 minutes ago, Elgindon said:

I just meant a bit of black poly DPM for keeping the timber posts dry.Fold the poly edges up and fix to the posts

I wouldn't bother. The moisture needs somewhere to go. Just get tanalised timber and be done with it. If you don't do it the way Tom suggests, it's best not to bother with it. Wood will happily get wet and dry out again if the moisture runs into the slab (or slabs?). A DPM could result in the water getting trapped. Screwing the timber to the slab a good shout. I'd recommend concrete screws, they're fucking ace.

[KennyFuckinPowers]

On 31/03/2021 at 09:53, baggy89 said:

How tall are you and how high is your shed? Are you going to have enough space to get a power cage in and press a barbell and weights above your head?

Yes mate, we had a little muck about inside and we managed to fit his Weight Bench in, as well as his free standing dummy and a exercise bike, we've since stored it in my normal Hut until we can sort this flooring out. 

 

@Elgindon @RicoS321 @tom_widdows 

 

My better halves Uncle is quite Handy, he reckons we could fit some wooden framing inside and drill some wood onto that, about 5" off the slabs and seal along the edges with Visqueen ( Not entirely sure what that is ) he also said insulation probably won't be necessary. I'm not clued up on if that is possible but he's willing to help so will see what happens. 

[tom_widdows]

Visqueen is a company that makes various tanking, gas protection & damp proof membranes.

Not sure if they will guarantee their product with the method you are proposing but best of luck with the project

 

Edited April 1, 2021 by tom_widdows

[scotfree]

I put up a wee shed out the back that I put on some slabs. Like you, I had damp come up through the slab. I went to the local DIY and bought this stuff. I just painted it on to the slab and I've had no moisture at all since. It only cost me $50 AUD ( £ 25 )

http://www.gripsetbetta.com/damp-stop/