Have your office or studio needs gotten bigger than your home? Do you need some extra space to get away from it all? A office shed or studio shed may be your answer. “An office in my shed?” You ask. Yes!, the idea of what a shed can be has changed. Think of it more as a detached office that can have all the amenities that your home has or it can simply have the basics you need to work, study or anything else. Building your office shed from shed plans is a great way to get the extra space you need, save money and be proud of your accomplishment of building a shed.
Extra space is why the shed was invented and having an office shed or studio shed to set up your working space in is the modern answer to the home office. A office shed is the perfect way to have a place to work in peace and quiet so that you feel like you “at the office”, away from the usual excitement that most homes have. One of the reasons that building a shed instead of adding on to your home is popular is that many local building departments allow homeowners to build sheds without building permits and the resulting property tax increases. You should always check with your local building officials to verify the rules and regulations in your area.
Saving money is always a goal when working through a building project. Building always comes with a price but there are several ways to build a shed to help you keep your office shed building project costs down. Picking the best way to build your home office will affect the price.
There are generally three ways to build an office shed:
- Purchase A Shed From A Local Company: There are usually companies local to your area that build sheds and they may have an office shed option but most often they simply build storage sheds. Every company has its styles and construction techniques so you need to make sure to research what you are getting so that you are comparing apples to apples when comparing the shed products these companies are selling before you purchase a shed.
- On line Pre-Fabricated Sheds: There are also mail order office shed companies that build modern office sheds and then flat pack them and ship them to your house where you can assemble the pieces. This method of building your shed is probably the most expensive because these sheds are purpose built and usually have a quality level that is higher than having a local company build your shed. Both of these business models are good but they do come with a cost. Purchasing a shed often costs two to three times the cost of building the shed yourself.
- Building The Office Shed Yourself: Building the office shed yourself is by far the most cost effective way to get the office space you need. The steps to building your own studio shed are to:
1. Check with your local building department about the feasibility of building a shed on your property. 2. Find and purchase office shed plans. To find good plans for your home office you should use search terms like “office shed plans”, “modern shed plans” and “studio shed plans”. 3. Price out the materials at your local lumber yard. Get at least 3 bids and then check the bids to make sure that they all include the same sizes and amounts of lumber. 4. Construct your shed. This is the fun part.
The feeling that comes from building your own shed from a good set of shed plans is very satisfying. When you stand back and say “I built that” you will always have a sense of accomplishment. When you use the space to work or relax you will know that you have created something beautiful and useful and made your yard a better place. Just be careful with your new garden retreat, your office shed may be such a great place to get away that other family members may turn it into a yoga or music studio.
There are lots of resources to help you convert your existing shed into a office at http://www.icreatables.com/sheds/office-shed-convert.html and if you are building a office shed and need the perfect office shed plans you can find them at http://www.icreatables.com/sheds/shed-plans.html