How to Lay Out a Shed

The first thing you want to do when laying out your shed is to pick a spot that is easy to get to and doesn't interfere with the major space of your yard. Keep in mind that once your shed is up, it isn't one of those things that can just be slid over a bit. A shed is a very nice thing to have when storing your lawn equipment or just for storage of things that you rarely use or is seasonal. Really keep in mind the ease of use when you start laying out your shed or you could make it hard to use. Keep the doors in easy places to access, make it easy to get to and out of. You don't want to build a shed and find out later it is too much trouble to use. What I am saying is; the layout is important and shouldn't be overlooked.

Once you have picked out your spot and are comfortable with where you are putting it, you need to build four pairs of batterboards with 2x4 stakes and crosspieces about 2 feet long. Nail the crosspieces a few inches below the top of the stakes with 10d 3-inch nails. Drive in the batterboards about 2 feet past the endpoints of one wall. Tie a mason's line between the batterboards to mark the wall line then level the line with a line level. It's important to get your lines level and your corners square in this step because it's the first step in creating a square and level shed. If you don't have this part right, you will have issues down the road.

For the next wall you want to lay it out at 90 degrees to the first with your batterboards and a level mason's line. Square the corner using the 3-4-5 triangle technique. To do this you need to adjust the lines until two points 3 feet and 4 feet from the intersection are exactly 5 feet apart. This assures that you have a perfect square corner. Once you've laid out each wall, transfer the intersections of the mason's lines to the ground with a plumb bob and powdered chalk or some way to mark the ground clearly. At each corner, drive in a 2x2 stake, then mark the location of the mason's line on the crosspiece of each batterboard and remove the lines.

Once you have your stakes set in the proper place you need to run a mason's line between the stakes and level them with a line level. Check that the diagonal distance between pairs of stakes at opposite corners is equal to be sure the layout is square. Using the mason's lines as guides, mark the shed's edges on the ground with powdered chalk or something to mark it. Once you have the ground marked properly then take the stakes and lines out. You now have the layout of your shed and you can excavate the area. When excavating the area stay inside the marked lines and dig through all the organic material. The depth of the excavation depends on what type of foundation you will be using.

You now have your shed laid out and are ready to start the next step which in most cases would be to lay some drainage pipes. It really depends on what type of shed and what location you have designated your shed to be in. But you are now on your way to having a shed with the proper layout.