6 Things To Know Before Assembling a Shed Kit

Years ago, I built a 6- by 8-ft. Suncast resin shed in my side yard with my dad. It was a fun project, but after more than a decade, my family outgrew it. (To be more accurate, we had much more junk than would fit inside.) So my wife and I decided to purchase a larger (and pricier) 15- x 8-ft. Lifetime resin shed to take its place.

While I have many fond memories of the original project, the latest shed was more challenging. Let my experiences and failures be your lessons.

Build the Platform First, Then Level It

I thought I could knock out the platform in just a couple of hours, then move on to the actual shed build. In my dreams, I had it completed by that evening, looking at my handiwork with an ice-cold beer in my hand as the sun began sinking below the horizon.

In reality, the platform alone took close to 12 hours, and I’m still not happy with the finished product.

My biggest mistake was trying to build the platform on the uneven ground where I planned to erect the shed instead of building it square elsewhere, then leveling it at the site. Trying to do both at the same time required a level of skill and precision I don’t yet have.

On the bright side, sweating for hours building a platform justifies buying that new DeWalt 20V framing nailer you’ve had your eye on.

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

It’s possible to build one of these resin sheds by yourself, but I wouldn’t recommend it. It took my wife and I a full day under a sweltering July sun to erect half the shed, then a half-day more to finish it with the help of my buddy Jimmy.

Having that third person really helped when installing doors and especially the shed roof. We needed multiple hands to adjust the truss, press in on the plastic so the screw could bite, and so on.

Assembly Time Rises Exponentially With the Size of the Shed

My dad and I built the smaller Suncast shed and base in about a day. The 15- by 8-foot shed and its base took nearly three days. Each additional piece added time and the number of ways things could go wrong.

The larger size also meant we needed metal supports along the walls and more substantial metal trusses. Thankfully there were no issues with installing them, but it did lengthen the build time.

They May Both Be Built Out of Plastic, But a Resin Shed Isn’t a Lego Set

Watching instructional videos on Lifetime’s YouTube channel, the process looked easy. You never see them struggle with getting a piece to fit or lining up a hole. But those folks put together dozens of sheds, not one. Plus, there’s the advantage of editing. You can’t judge your efforts by what you see in a video.

Pieces don’t always click easily into place. Snapping the first corner piece in place was much more difficult than anticipated, and my wife and I may yet need marriage counseling after the 40-minute argument that ensued. (Big shout-out to Teflon spray for eventually getting things to click, and perhaps saving me from spending the night in the new shed.)

You Can Be Locked Into Proprietary Accessories

Based on the shed brand, you may be locked into their particular line of accessories unless you’re willing to make some alterations.

Instead of installing the flimsy-looking shelf that came with the kit, I used the shelf brackets ($30 for two, if bought separately) and some 2- by 4-in. supports to install a 1- by 10-in. board that doubles as a shelf and tool holder. That also meant I didn’t have to buy Lifetime’s proprietary tool hooks (five for $30) to hang my various pieces of yard equipment.

Plastic Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Less Expensive

Small resin sheds are not only quicker and easier to build than a wood version, but they’re also cheaper — generally. But that gap lessens significantly the larger you go.

Our 15- by 8-ft. shed retails for about $2,500. That’s about half what my parents paid for their first home 50 years ago. And consider a slightly smaller but professionally installed wood shed cost less than $200 more. Prices may vary depending on where you live, but plastic doesn’t always mean significantly cheaper.

Knowing What I Know Now, Would I Buy a Resin Shed Kit?

Probably not.

If your needs are relatively simple — say, a place to store a lawn mower, a weed eater and maybe a shovel or two — then a small plastic resin shed makes perfect sense. But if you’re looking to go bigger, hang tool racks and add shelves to store stacks of plastic bins, there may be better options out there.

A traditional wood shed offers a lot more strength and versatility than a plastic resin version. Even if the cost to build is roughly the same, the alterations needed inside a resin shed to make it sturdier and more useful can add up quickly. Like with wood, screws don’t always go in correctly, and the holes in the plastic resin can be stripped out.

With a wood shed, you just move over an inch or two and re-drill the hole, whereas a resin shed takes more forethought and labor to repair. A wood shed would take longer to construct with a longer list of materials but would be sturdier when all was said and done.