Please help or I will never get a shed. :o :'(
Neither me or OH are very good at DIY and I am getting a shed for Christmas.
The problem is that it says you need a level base and the place it will go is not level. In the past the area has been mixed with rubble and small stones so that it is impossible to dig with a spade. The fall of the land is not very steep, but we just don't know how to level it and keep the lowest edge from slipping away.
My plot is down a steep slope and also a long way from the car park, so lots of very heavy stuff is difficult. Is there an easy way? Please tell me there is.
I sometimes think I will be forever shedless...
hi vee, our plot/garden was one big slop when we started off, and we levelled it by digging the high half and turning it over onto the lower half (heavy clay but diggable).
the shed slab base was laid over a hardcore bed with edging stones cemented in to keep the edge. "that'll never move" said the workman ......... wrong ! we've already had to lift some of the slabs on the outside and put some gravel underneath cos they were sinking. nothing major, but enough to collect puddles.
it was a heavy hardwork old job, which is why i paid someone else to do it.
We had a retaining wall made of old pallets which obviously wasn't strong enough to hold everything back, so now there is a more permanent feature made of decking planks and 10 posts concreted in. again, done by someone else.
in my experience, get yourself a decent expert.
good luck.
seen here without the retaining wall which now runs up the left side of the pic.
(http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/7484/1000206qg3.jpg)
I would try and move some of the rubble and stones around to try and get it level, rather than digging it, then if need be add some more small hardcore. Then rather than using slabs or a concrete base, get some bearers, which should be available from the shed supplier, assuming it's not one of the retail chains, ie B&Q etc. These are thick battens of wood which the shed sits on to keep it off the ground. If in doubt go to a garden center that sells sheds etc. The best ones tend to be those that have a franchise on site that specialise in sheds, greenhouses etc.
^^^^^^^^^^^^ I think this is good advice if you don't want to be mixing concrete, not to mention carrying bags of cement etc down the hill.
It will be worth giving the bearers an extra coat of wood preservative before you lay them, and if you have any fears that the bearer nearest the downhill slope will slip, then try driving two or three "Metposts" or lengths of angle iron in as a sort of simple piling, against which the bearer can rest.
Depends on size of shed as some people just put them straight on pallets. Get the pallets level using a spirit level and thats it straight on top. I've not done it but other allotment holders on ours have. I'm not lucky to have a shed yet, maybe next year ;)
Laying on old pallets, old timber or some railway sleepers as long as its of the ground your OK.
If you want a concrete base, dont worry about hardcore as long as the sub base is not disturbed (if you have rubble already there maybe ok to concrete over. Shutter off area to concreted with 4 inch board.
Mix concrete 6 aggregate (25 mm to dust )and 1 cement. You will need a mixer for this, you can do it yourself but its hard work. Fill the base you then need to tamp it down with a piece of timber, then screed the surplus off. This is hard work, you will find is easier with more people.
MrsKP
Your workman should of cemented all the slabs down, sometimes with slabs there is a glossy underside, I tend to scrap this off, and also use a mixture of Unibond (PVA) and water, brush this on the underside of the slab then it wont move. I've used this on slate slabs which is not porus. Works every time.
And just to note you dont need hardcore, if you were to drive on it yes. If you use it you would also need to hire a compaction plate, (wacker) £35 a day.
MrsKP did your workman use a wacker if not, there will be voids under your slabs, causing them to move.
Hope this helps.
boldielocks, i have a feeling they were far from experts ! lol
They manually wacked it with a square of thick ply on the end of a post and did dry brush sand and cement between the slabs, which of course has washed out. That's where I do all the washing of my pots and tools so it gets a LOT of water (sorry to be smug but i have LOADS of water) ;D
The fact of the matter is that it will have to do as there is nowhere i can move the shed to improve the whole thing. but i do takes your points.
Thank you so much for all your replies - there were ideas I hadn't thought of at all.
Mrs KP I love your shed base, it looks really good. I've tried to get a man in but no luck so far :o ;D
The shed supplier also sells bearers so I will definitely order some when we have beaten the ground into submission. I think putting in an edge and then hardcore/gravel is the way to go.
Thanks again