Cheapest way to build a shop

22744 Views 20 Replies 10 Participants Last post by ugotdubbz, Nov 29, 2005

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · Nov 27, 2005

I have a 10X20 canopy that I bought at sams whenever my truck caught on fire. I knew that I was gonna be doing a lot to the truck and needed somewhere to keep it from getting rained on and so that I could work on it when it rains. Anyways that thing has last about a year and a half which surprised me since I only paid $175 for it. When that hurricane came through a couple months aog the damn thing got blew over and bent up the some of the poles and stuff. I was able to stand it back up and fix it to where it would work. Well since then it has blown over about 3 more times and today was the last time. A couple of the poles have broke compltely from bending back and forth so I am thinking about building a shop. I went a while back and got some prices and to do it out of wood would be pretty expensive. I want atleast a 15X20 whatever I do. It will not be a concrete floor but later on I will add the concrete floor and maybe add on. I was told to go to a metal place and get drilling stem for the poles that go from the ground to the roof and use cover sheet for the roof and walls. What else should I ask for to get it built cheaper. I know a couple people with welders and cutting torches so we will be able to put it together ourselves but I just need to buy the materials as cheap as possible. Also how much do ya'll think that a 15X20 open on both ends would cost to build? I am just wandering if I am looking at $500 or $1000.

1 - 20 of 21 Posts

JasonB

· #2 · Nov 27, 2005

price out tuff sheds, good value.

otherwise 5 4x4 posts down each 20ft side, 40ft of 4x8, about 10 sheets of 1/2" plywood to cover the roof, 400sqft of shingles, about 22-25 2x6x20's for roof trusses. then all the a$$ociated connectors and any siding you want will add to the need for studs as well.

you are looking at 2000-2500 in materials to do it right.

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · #3 · Nov 27, 2005

On 2005-11-27 14:24, The Boss wrote:
price out tuff sheds, good value.

otherwise 5 4x4 posts down each 20ft side, 40ft of 4x8, about 10 sheets of 1/2" plywood to cover the roof, 400sqft of shingles, about 22-25 2x6x20's for roof trusses. then all the a$$ociated connectors and any siding you want will add to the need for studs as well.

you are looking at 2000-2500 in materials to do it right.

I knew that to do it in wood would be pretty damn high. I was pricing just the 4X4 were $20 a piece and then the tin for the roof was $15 a piece. I was wanting to know if anyone knew about how much I was looking at to do it in all metal. I havent really bought any metal before so I have no idea what prices are like.

JasonB

· #4 · Nov 27, 2005

steel prices are very high right now. wood should be slightly cheaper

JasonB

· #5 · Nov 27, 2005

whyat about wood post-n-beam frame with metal studs and siding?

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · #6 · Nov 27, 2005

On 2005-11-27 14:56, The Boss wrote:
steel prices are very high right now. wood should be slightly cheaper

That sucks. I was hoping to get the materials cheaper. I guess that I may just go and buy another canopy to last me another year or two.

RednekYank

· #7 · Nov 28, 2005

my neighbors shop is huge. its bigger then my house and has been up for atleast the 8 years that i have lived here. it has made it through all the hurricanes with no damage. it is a concrete base with a 2x4 frame and tin sides and roof. it looks purdy good. stays nice and warm for some reason and i cant imagine tin costing that much and 2x4s are pretty cheap. just my opinion but i say go with something like that.

purdueagford

· #8 · Nov 28, 2005

i've been bored lately, so i decided to mess around and see what i can come up with for ya. i drew some plans up on autocad and here's what i came up with....

10-4x6x16 Treated posts......$279.30
8-2x10x12 top boards...........$94.80
12-2x4x12 side boards.........$41.40
24-2x4x12 purlins.............$82.80

total price ..................$498.30

these prices are from lowes.com and do not include tax. i also didn't include the siding and roofing as i dont know what you want to use. i also didn't include the trusses in the price since there prices vary from place to place.

here is a picture of the frame that i drew up.

See less See more

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · #9 · Nov 28, 2005

I went a few weeks ago and got a ton of prices on a bunch of different stuff. I did think about building it like you did in you pic but when I got to pricing stuff I found out a cheaper way to do it. THe longest 2X4's that I could find was 16'. So just make the roof 16' wide. But instead of haveing it come to a point like on a regular roof of a house just have a flat roof with one end a little bit higher than the other. I think that would cut down on cost a lot right there just buy haveing the roof flat.

JeepnTXJ

· #10 · Nov 28, 2005

Our shop is one of those kits you buy (bought about 10-11 years ago) and is all metal except for like the ceiling joists, perlings (sp?) & such, which are wood. Concrete slab, 35x45x20ft ceiling I believe, an 8x12 sliding door on the front, and 2 12x16 sliding doors on one end. All in all I believe it was in the 8-10k range.
You can see it fairly decent in this pic. The smaller ladder on the left is a 12ft ladder for reference.

[img=500x375]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v634/JeepnTX/jeepdone.jpg[/img]

See less See more

purdueagford

· #11 · Nov 28, 2005

i wouldn't use 2x4's to try and span 16'. i'd use at least 2x6's but probably 2x8's.

like this:

See less See more

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · #12 · Nov 28, 2005

On 2005-11-27 17:50, purdueagford wrote:
i wouldn't use 2x4's to try and span 16'. i'd use at least 2x6's but probably 2x8's.

like this:

That is what I am thinking. A friend of mine has a shop that is 20X30 that is built out of metal and that is how he did it and it works great. He got lucky thought and got most of the metel cheap to free.

scoot

· #13 · Nov 28, 2005

If you can find a garage door company that makes door you could get scrap sections and they will slide into each other . Check out pole building kits

Nick

· #14 · Nov 28, 2005

build it a little at a time. Build this first and add shingles. Use tarps for not. then latter add sides and a floor and your budge allows.
Tuff Sheds are nice. But they ain't cheap.
[img=500x375]http://www.pavementsucks.com/forums/attachments/200511/attachment-923217.jpg[/img]

See less See more

DIXIEDIRT

· #15 · Nov 28, 2005

if i lived closer id help ya build it, all i do in the summer is construction, if you are gonna span more than 15 feet do 2x8's or get trusses.

BR

· #16 · Nov 29, 2005

a 2x6 will not last long spanning 16 feet. it rated as a floor joist for 8 feet, i doubt its doubled for a roof rafter. an 8' 4x4 is $6 here, a 12' is maybe $12. i'd do the pole barn/post beam construction. its cheap, and can be good. tin, colored, not plain galvanized, is about $2 a linear foot, 36" coverage. by the time you buy the tin, expensive screws, the perlins, it will be about the same cost as plywood, however, it will last longer and the plywood will have to be painted or covered. if you plan on heating it, but not insulating, the plywood is the best choice for walls and roof covering as tin allows air circulation by design. if you go higher than 8' on your walls, you're going to have to do a 6x6, those are pricey. just do a ridge beam and rafters to save a lot of money, that is how i've built all of my stuff. a standard 24' wide truss is only like $26 up here if time and skill is a consideration. there are a lot of variables you need to figure out before anything should be bought.

See less See more

ugotdubbz

· #17 · Nov 29, 2005

Have you thought about the metal carports? It is a ton of them in my area. I got my 18x20 for $695 installed. My only regrets is not paying the little extra for 8' or 9' sides. I have had no trouble with wind or snow. We rarely ever get over 6" of snow here, but if they forcast for more I will put some temporary braces in the middle. I have since enclosed it and installed a 7'x12' garage door on it. I used the same material the top is made of for the sides. It cost me less than $2000 total for everything and I did it over about 1-1/2 years. I can post pics of the completed shed when I get to work tomorrow.

See less See more

purdueagford

· #18 · Nov 29, 2005

On 2005-11-28 17:42, BR wrote:
. if you go higher than 8' on your walls, you're going to have to do a 6x6, those are pricey.

my dad's pole barn is 12' ceiling with 4x6 posts. they are a lot cheaper than a 6x6 post. the price i gave him was for a 16' post, so he could cut a foot off and have 3 feet in the ground in concrete and 12 foot above the ground.

Robert97dodge

Discussion Starter · #19 · Nov 29, 2005

On 2005-11-28 19:53, ugotdubbz wrote:
Have you thought about the metal carports? It is a ton of them in my area. I got my 18x20 for $695 installed. My only regrets is not paying the little extra for 8' or 9' sides. I have had no trouble with wind or snow. We rarely ever get over 6" of snow here, but if they forcast for more I will put some temporary braces in the middle. I have since enclosed it and installed a 7'x12' garage door on it. I used the same material the top is made of for the sides. It cost me less than $2000 total for everything and I did it over about 1-1/2 years. I can post pics of the completed shed when I get to work tomorrow.

I have seen some like that around here for sale. But the ones here are not tall enough. I would have to find on that is taller of just make it taller.

ugotdubbz

· #20 · Nov 29, 2005

On 2005-11-29 00:07, Robert97dodge wrote:

I have seen some like that around here for sale. But the ones here are not tall enough. I would have to find on that is taller of just make it taller.

You can order them with taller sides for additional money. I have seen them as tall as 10' to 12'. For the price you can't beat it. They installed it in about 4 hours. It took me another 2 days to enclose it and install the door. They wanted to much to enclose it.

See less See more

1 - 20 of 21 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.