I have recently completed my layout blueprints for my freelance N scale layout that I have been working on for several years now. I then got the idea of building a 20-30 shed in my backyard for my layout to be housed in but I cannot get pass the challenging thought of how to build a wooden (wood treated) structure on a steel frame. It will be a walk-in layout. If there are any carpenters or do it yourself experts that are skilled in construction, I would surely grateful for your help.
Before you get too far into this latest project check the zoning laws in your community. To build a shed of that size in in residential community often requires a permit or variance although it may not be a problem in a rural setting. Checking now will avoid a lot of unpleasantness later. You may find that a ready built or pre-fabricated shed of the size you want may be a better (cheaper) alternative.
Joe
Sounds to me like what you need is a double wide trailer. One designed as a construction office just has exterior walls, is already on a frame, has no water or plumbing and could be relocated if needed
I will look into the zoning law which shouldnt be too bad since its not a business i am trying to build on my family residential land. I have already looked at premade and havent found one within my budget. I do know, there are contractors who have extra wood laying around and probably would give them to me for free or a small fee.
I looked into that as well and they are in the 1000s where I live. The layout potential shed will only have the layout, light, and maybe a mini fridge.
From your avatar it looks like you live in Illinois. What are you going to do about heating in the winter and cooling in the summer? You made mention of scrap wood from construction sites. Are you going to try to do the construction yourself with just scrap wood supplies? It sounds to me that you have a lot of additional thinking to do and a lot of homework.
Joe
Zoning isn’t just for business, but includes setbacks, % coverage, permits, etc. Now a lot depends on where you are. Things that are perfectly legal and normal where I live now would have been unthinkable where I lived previously. That’s not even considering covenants that some neighborhoods have.
Don’t get the idea that some contractor will let you have the wood to build a shed for free just from his scraps. You said 20x30? That’s about 25 sheets of underlayment right there, not counting joists, studs, exterior, insulation, electrical, roofing, etc. A prebuilt shed is probably cheaper than you could do it yourself because of the quantity they deal in. Just for a estimate, draw up some basic plans for a building and take it to your local lumber yard and ask them to do a take off on it. You’ll be surprised how quick it runs up. Then when you get their estimate, double it.
I know that on many of your questions we seem like we’re bursting your bubble. We’re not trying to. But we are trying to share our experience to help you set realistic, attainable goals. Success on attainable goals will keep you enjoying things and growing in the hobby rather than getting tied up on unrealistic ones that wind up frustrating you and driving you out of the hobby.
i thank you and everyone else for commenting. The construction isn’t going to drive me away from the hobby, I will keep the layout within my room if that was the case. The shed will just have the very basic: insulation, a portable generator instead of getting everything hooked to an electric box, The exterior will have nothing on it because it wont serve a special display. There are two hardware stores: Menards and lowes who have really cheap lumber and plywood, not cheap that they will break, but affordable cheap. The roof will just be a piece of wood on
Hi!
While I appreciate your want for an outside, stand alone structure for your RR, I can only think of negative factors going against doing what you describe. Attempting to do one “on the cheap” is an exercise in futility. I’ve been around construction quite a bit over the years, and lived in northern Illinois for about 25, and built a handful of decent layouts, and so I’ve got some background to support my “negativity”…
Some of the major obstacles - other than the # 1 (Money) - is getting official approvals, designing a solid/weathertite/safe building, putting in a solid foundation, doing the actual construction, and making the structure secure from multi-legged trespassers.
You say you will get your power from a generator. Having been thru a couple of hurricanes and other outages, I can tell you they are loud, and of course use gasoline which you need to have readily available. Don’t misunderstand, they were lifesavers in those situations, but they were relatively short term.
Then there is the question of heat, which can be easily met with a kerosine stove, but what about cooling?
What it comes down to, if you can’t invest the money to “do it right”, I believe you are going to have a very difficult time of it, and your layout will suffer accordingly.
The richer the city, the more restrictive their zoning laws are going to be. Where I live in Arizona is not a rich city by any means, but there are rather strict zoning laws about outbuildings, including height restrictions, appearance, minimum distance from walls and fences, etc.
You need to check with your city zoning department and learn what their restrictions are on D-I-Y construction of a shed before you wind up building something that offends a neighbor and results in a hefty fine for zoning violations and being forced to tear it down. One of the quirks in local zoning here is, if it has a concrete floor it is considered a permanent structure which requires a building permit, but a wood floor is considered a temporary structure which does not require a permit, within certain other size and appearance restrictions.
To build a free standing garage for a car with no heat, no power and no windows is about $50.00 a square foot. $50.00 a square foot is what you should plan on for a safe structure. The sky is the limit once you decide on how much you want to spend on the options.
Brent[C):-)]
MOBILMAN44
I thank you for your input and do understand about the building code, that is why i am only brainstorming and design a blueprint foundation. I do not mean when I say cheap, but really affordable. I already planned on having a few padlocks on the shed door so no one can get in unless they wanted to take their time cutting the chain. Depending on the size it and model it might be loud or quiet, i really do not know. I seen some that run on gas and some that run on an eteneral battery. If i should get a gas generator, there is a gas station not that far from me to the gas part would be easy to handle. I will not be running the layout everyday if that’s how my comments and post may seem, but I will play in the shed often. I do plan on having at least one or two windows, for my shed since I was told in the past that the climate sometimes dictate the layout condition. if it’s hot outside, i will probably have an icebox or something to cool down the shed. Might you I just thought of this idea yesterday so i havent planned everything. I’m not planning on building the shed right now, but early next year if my plans are within code. I’m sure if i did it myself with help from a couple of friends, my shed and layout will not suffer accordingly as you say.
CACOLE
my house is on the corner of my subdivision and the neighbors on my right have their own feet with their shed on the outside for their mowers and the neighbors behind me are really never home at all so I believe my shed will not be seen by anyone except those two since it will be in the back of the house next to our enclosed patio area. Thank you tho for your comment and advice.
So let me get this straight, you are seeking help from other model railroaders here, to build a shed for your trains?
Just hire a contractor and do it right. They will know all the legal things you must do to get the permits and such.
LMD, as someone who’s spent years in construction, I’ll second the above warnings. This isn’t something that should be approached lightly. And even if you think no one’s looking, a bylaw enforcement officer will find it (they’re a sharp-eyed breed). When that ‘STOP WORK’ order goes up, things get expensive in hurry.
Speaking of “code enforcers”…
I know they used to hang out around lumber yards in cook county (Chicagoland) and follow individuals leaving with significant amounts of building materials. Like the previous poster said, that can get very expensive!
While I’m back here… Really, if you are going to build a decent outbuilding, get the thing wired. If you don’t, you will likely regularly regret it. If you do, you will be happy you did.
I forgot to mention… when I lived in Dallas I developed the plans for making a room in 1/2 of a two car garage. Thankfully I got transferred down to Houston before I put that one in place…
I’m seeking advice and tips. I do not want to use a contractor because they will charge large fees when I just want something simple and I do not want to spend a boat load of money. I will talk to the zoning inspector and offiiclals before i do anything else. right now i have only thought and drew a blueprint of the base which I want in Aluminum because I want it to be mobile so when I move to a new house, I can take the shed with me instead of building a new one, if that is possible. If I have to have a concrete base for the shed, then I will not build one and might just rent a small office space instead since it’s really silly to charge someone for a small structure that only one person will be in.
I have gone that in depth of this idea. I only had this thought since yesterday so the thought and idea is fresh. I’m taking my time because as you know christmas is coming up soon and im not going to start construction anytime soon. That is why i made this post before i do anything else.
In that case, why don’t you just buy one of those pre-built sheds? Must be a lot cheaper than building it yourself.
Not in indiana or for that matter, carmel indiana. I have already looked at premade sheds they are in the 3000+ region whereas I could build to my spec without all of that being done. The wood ar lowes and menards here are relatively affordable under $10 if you find the right ones and I already have three 6x8 plywood boards i was going to use for the layout, but if they are long enough I could use all three and buy a third one at a good price. I wanted to make the base out of Aluminium because it will not rot, not rust, wont have insect eating at it, and relatively light.