In message , Nick Maclaren
writes

snipped...

Because of this, I can't advise on buying sheds,

AFAIR the question on plans for the building of sheds, implies the
building of a shed - not buying one :-)

but I can say that not skimping on the foundations, preservative and
roofing will make a major difference to the life of a shed. Note that
a foundation's main purpose is to keep the ground wet away from the
shed, and so need only be a single layer of paving slabs and some 4"x2"
heavily treated bearers (yes, tanalised or equally toxic).

Totally agree. However I wonder if the plans that John asked about
included plans for the foundations.

I think that most of the posts in this thread suggest that plans for the
building of a shed are not required in order to reach a satisfactory
conclusion.

Sheds can range from nailed-together bits of left-overs, through the
usual wooden-framed waveney lapped exterior with ply felt covered roof
(as seen in most DIY/garden centres, through to those with ply/board
exteriors with insulation and inner lining (a sort of second home to
spend those long winter nights in).

To try and be constructive, my advice to John is to:

1. Decide on how big you want your shed (usually determined by
where you intend to put it and what you want to use it for).

2. Get a pad of square-ruled paper and draw out the walls to
the size you require. Draw in verticals at about 18" distance
between them.

3. Superimpose where you want your windows and door.

4. Find room to lay out the outside frame of the largest wall
and using 4'x2' timber construct the outside of the wall
frame.

5. Use 2'x2' verticals at the positions on your plan (approx 18"
apart). Cutting them all to the same length at the same
time prevents errors.

6. Repeat (4) and (5) for the opposite wall(s) making up on
top of the facing wall frame so they are exactly the same
size.

7. Put a fillet or small diagonal brace (using any left-over
off-cuts of either 4"x2" or 2"x2") in the corners to brace
and keep at right-angles while assembling.

8. Cut the verticals where you want your windows/door
and fit 4"x2" across top and bottom of each window
and across the top of the door. Fit an extra vertical
piece of 4"x2" against the 2"x2" verticals for door
hinge strengthening (glue with weatherproof glue
as well as screwing).

9. Construct the door (and window) frame using the
related opening, using 2"x2" (window) and 4"x2" (door)
. Staple some cardboard squares into the frame to distance
the door/window for clearance. Fit fillets in the corners
to brace (temporary ones for the windows). Brace
the door frame with a horizontal 4"x2" about midway up,
and with a diagonal between top and middle and between
middle and bottom horizontal.

10. Using an end-wall as a template, construct your roof
trusses with 4"x2". I'd suggest for 6' long shed just end
trusses, 8' to 12' long three trusses (2 ends and a middle
one). Allow 6" overhang at each side of the trusses with
about 30 degrees slope. Put a small notch in each
side to engage in the top of the end wall. Put a fillet
in at the correct angle at the ridge (on the inside of the
truss), and a horizontal brace where you've cut the
notches at the overhang. If you construct your trusses
against the end-wall frames you'll get a perfect fit.

10. Pre-drill the side frames and the roof trusses to take
screws when assembling (see 13 below). At this stage
you can (if you wish) assemble the end roof trusses to
the end-wall frames using weather-proof glue and screws.

11. On your foundations, lay one end wall-frame and chalk/pencil
the inside of the end (at each end) - this is to show you
when to place your side wall frames when assembling.

12. Erect your side walls to your chalk/pencil lines (in (10)
above). Use bracing to hold vertical. Providing that your
foundations are level you shouldn't need to use a spirit
level. It's a good idea at this stage to seal the bottoms
of the sides (and later the ends) to the foundations with
weather-proof mastic.

13. Erect your end walls to your side walls, using no-nails or
similar and screws in pre-drilled holes (see (10) above).

14. Board your walls according to what you've decided
(horizontal waveney lap fence panelling,
horizontal tongue-and-groove floor panelling, or exterior-
grand plywood). It's a good idea to apply preservative
while or before fitting waveney or tongue-and-groove
so that the bits that can't be seen are protected)

15. Fit intermediate roof trusses (if required depending on
the length of your shed), ridge post (4"x2"), notching
into the roof trusses, and (length-wise) battens - the
number according to the width of your shed.

16. Board your roof (either tongue-and-groove floor-boarding
laid horizontally or ply). Leave 6" overhang front and back,
and when laid screw a 2"x2" batten to the underside.

17. Lay 2 layers of bitumen roof-felting (you can make do with
one layer for small sheds) turning over the edges and
nailing to the battens. Overlap felting so that the rain runs
over the strip below. Use bitumen sealer at joins.
Secure with 0.5"x2" battens around the edge.

18. Get window frame(s) glazed and fit windows and door.
Fit door and window furniture. You can windproof the door
using battens and window-seal on the inside.

If you want a suspended floor, at stage (7) above, construct a floor
frame of
suitably sized timber (4"x2" or greater) and glue/screw 3/4" play on
top.
Make this at least 2" longer and wider than your shed ends/sides. Larger
sheds will require the frame to be more extensive to support. When
assembling, screw the bottoms of the sides/ends onto the floor.

The window(s) can be glazed using an inside 3/8" square bead glued and
pinned with half-round beading to hold the glass in.

You can, of course, do more (insulation and lining of the walls) but the
basic framework described here will permit you to do this at any time.

From the above suggestions and your own "plan", John, you can put
together a pretty accurate cutting list/costing for all the timber and
other items.

Sorry if this has been overly long, but it's very straightforward and
shouldn't take more than a day to complete once your foundations are in
place.

--
Tony Morgan