Building a shed, step one

Photo by Kim Patch

By Eric Smalley

It was a beautiful Saturday to build something. The relentless summer heat took the day off and the threat of rain dissipated. We gathered in Alice’s backyard where a pile of precut lumber waited for us. DB&S, the lumberyard on Washington Street just over the line in JP, helpfully marked each piece with its length.

Photo by Kim Patch

We were there for the first of three GreeningRozzie Maker Mob sessions to build a small garden shed. The first session was about building the base and beginning the framing. Under the direction of our carpenter, Jeff, we cleared a patch of ground in Alice’s backyard large enough for the 4 x 4 footprint of the shed. We laid two parallel rows of paving stones, placed a four-foot length of cedar 4 x 4 on each, and then leveled them. Alice chose cedar, which is naturally insect- and rot-resistant, over pressure-treated lumber to avoid the chemicals.

Photo by Kim Patch

With the base in place, we framed the floor with 2 x 4s, attached it with long screws to the cedar 4 x 4s, and screwed on a piece of plywood for the floor. We also framed the two simpler of the four walls – the ones without a door or window. Jeff showed us some tricks of the trade: reducing the torque on the power screwdrivers to avoid stripping screws, using a chalk line to mark where to screw the plywood to the frame, starting screw holes perpendicularly before lining up the drill for angled attachments, and measuring floor and wall frames on both diagonals to ensure that the corners are square.

Photo by Kim Patch

Next up, framing the walls with the door and window, erecting all four walls and siding them.