Build a Shed, Day 2: Subfloor, Framing, and Siding
Last time, we left off with Steve Wartman and his crew installing the double band-board foundation for increased structural support and an extra wide nailing surface. Today, we pickup with installing the subfloor, framing the walls, and stapling the plywood siding.
Installing the Subfloor
Steve is a big fan of Advantech subfloor for its superior weather-ability. He feels it results in less warping, twisting and delaminating. If you check the Advantech website, you’ll see that they claim the lowest water absorption rates in the industry. For these reasons, Steve installs tongue and groove Advantech rather than traditional plywood or OSB subfloor.
Steve’s crew oriented the subfloor to keep the groove side exposed for the next row. This is important because it allows you to setup a “beater block” to drive each piece snug without damaging the tongue.
Next, they screwed the subfloor in place, taking care not to put screws too close to the groove and create an obstruction.
They also staggered the joints for each row and marked the location of the joists.
Choosing Good Lumber
Choosing good, straight lumber will make any home improvement project easier, but you don’t always have that luxury. In the case that boards are bowed, it’s important that each piece is curved in the same direction. In this video, Steve shares some pro tips for checking boards and how to mark them.
Framing the Walls
This shed features 2×4 framing with studs placed 16″ on center. They began framing the front wall first, and it’s the most complicated because the front wall includes the door and two windows.
To frame the front wall, Steve’s crew began by measuring stud locations on the top and bottom plates. 2×4′s that span from the top to the bottom plate are called king studs or common studs. Headers are supported on each end by jack studs, and cripple studs are the short pieces above or below windows and doors.
In this picture, the king studs are marked with X’s, and the jack stud is marked with a J. Placing three king studs on the end isn’t necessary (you could get away with two), however it provides a nailing surface on the inside corner which is especially helpful for building shelves at a later date.
Headers are required above doors and windows. Typically they are made by sandwiching 1/2″ plywood between 2x material resulting in a flush surface inside and out. In this case, Steve’s crew built headers by nailing two 2×6′s together. The 1/2″ plywood isn’t necessary because the inside will not be a finished space.
Just like installing the joists, keeping everything square was a big focus. After each wall was built, they measured the diagonals and made adjustments as necessary.
The other three walls were framed with studs placed 16″ o.c. without any other components.
Plywood Siding
After each wall was framed, Steve’s crew installed SmartSide plywood panels. These panels are already primed, and they will be painted to match the house (after the siding is replaced).
They stapled the plywood rather than nailing it because it provides a better hold.
Each piece overlaps the adjacent piece, and the top and the bottom of the plywood extend beyond the wall to cover the second top plate (roof construction) and the band board. The same is true of the corners.
In this picture, you can see them checking the spacing with a spare piece of 2×4.
Stay tuned for our next installment where we focus on building the hip roof.
January 23rd, 2012 9:52 am
Its nice to see that its being built like a real structure, and not “just a shed”. I had seen the advantec before, nice to see that some contractors are using it in the real world.
I hope we get to see the walls raised before we see the roof (unless its done in the other order, which would be interesting).
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jeff_williams Reply:
January 23rd, 2012 at 9:59 am
Yeah, so often sheds are 2×3 @ 24″ OC or worse, like a pole barn. It will be an interesting comparison in cost between this and OPC’s pre-built shed.
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Ethan Reply:
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:04 am
The HD and Lowe’s sheds we looked at had that 2×3 @ 24″ oc constructions and they looked pathetic. The one that Fred & Kim purchased is much nicer, and I’ll be sure to draw some comparisons.
P.S. Document your shed build cause we’d love to feature it somehow!
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Fred Reply:
January 24th, 2012 at 12:21 am
This is terrible, but I’m totally going to go off-topic here. Just wanted to let you know, Jeff, that I got the DeWALT 20V MAX drill driver and will be getting a start on that “Best of” Drill driver post we talked about. Should be great. We’ll be lining up:
DeWALT, Bosch, Rigid, Porter Cable, and Kobalt.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a hold of a Milwaukee, but I think the technology in the Ridgid is pretty close! Hopefully we’ll get something out next week.
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jeff_williams Reply:
January 24th, 2012 at 10:08 am
Too bad Milwaukee didn’t send the new Fuel. Still going to be an awesome comparison.Can’t wait. Hopefully they are all 3 Ah batteries.
Ethan Reply:
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:06 am
They actually framed out each wall and then set them aside to frame out the hip roof. Then they raised the walls and slide the roof framing on top. They chose this trade-off because they wanted to frame it on the ground rather than on ladders. It was very cool to watch, and you’ll get to see it in the next post.
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January 23rd, 2012 7:21 pm
Looking good! How’s the Advantech’s price compare to standard OSB subfloor?
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Fred Reply:
January 24th, 2012 at 12:24 am
Jake, I’m sure Ethan will get you a solid number, but my understanding is that the cost is pretty much comparable to plywood products. The performance is way superior though – far less concern over moisture – great for working when you know you’re going to get wet (like today, when it poured here right in the middle of this project!)
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Ethan Reply:
January 24th, 2012 at 9:26 am
Steve said it is very close in price to fir ply and that’s the only alternative he’d consider for an application like this.
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January 24th, 2012 11:06 am
Look forward to the comparisons of this one vs the pre built one.Just the costs of the shed build not including the labor costs.
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