Is anybody really happy with their shed? (Durham: HOA, buying a house)

[Heathercp]

We're buying a house in Durham that has no garage (it had one at one point, but someone converted it into a playroom and the conversion is nice enough that we're going to leave it as is.) Anyway, we'll need a big shed for all our stuff. Motorcycle, tools, lawnmower, etc.

I'm about to start googling sheds, but wondered if anyone has had experience with wood vs. metal or prefab vs. site built.

I'll check with the city next week to find out what they have to say about where we can put it and how big it can be. The realtor assured us there were no restrictive covenants, so we shouldn't run into too many problems. The house was built in 1968 on a half acre lot. I really can't imagine that anyone would have a problem with a shed, but I guess you never know.

I live in the desert now - nothing rots or rusts - so I could really use some advice on what kind of shed will stand up to the elements in NC.

[VickiR]

My opinion, if the HOA has nothing to say about it and the City has nothing to say about it is to MATCH THE HOUSE!

If the home has vinyl siding, the shed should have vinyl siding, etc.

The metal sheds do rust, at some point. And if the home has masonite or hardi plank siding, it will need to be painted. If its vinyl, you'll need to hose it off occassionally, as you will your home.

I just like the look of matching!!!

Vicki

[breezy1]

We've always had a shed where I lived -- I like putting all the garden stuff, lawn mower, extra chairs, etc. in there and not cluttering up the garage.

With that being said, I would highly recommend against the metal ones -- we had one of these -- OK for very short term use (couple years), but they just do not hold up.

I would highly recommend a style that compliments the style/color of your house. Your neighbors will also appreciate that. We had one built on our site 15 years ago (salt box style with windows -- which are nice to aerate the shed and also let more light in), and painted it a dark green -- the same dark green color that matches the color of the shingles on our house, so it coordinates nicely and the dark green blends in well with the landscape.

Our shed has a wood floor bottom -- built on top of quite a load of crushed stone. We considered a concrete bottom, but didn't want to spend for it at the time. Advantage -- No floor rotting -- although ours is still holding up well. Disadvantage -- a "permanent" commitment to having the shed there. (You can always tear down the wood structure.)

If you build a quality shed now, it will hold up well over the years and not turn into an eye-soar, which many of the cheaper ones do.