Backyard cabin fever
Tips on building a flatpack shed in your backyard
Backyard cabins and sheds are a rapidly growing trend across both suburban and rural Australia. Whether it’s for art studios, home offices or spare accommodation, that little bit of dedicated space, nearby but separated from the house itself, can dramatically benefit the way we live.
To get you started on the right foot, here’s my checklist of five key points to consider when thinking about building a flatpack shed in your own backyard.
1. WHO’S GOING TO BUILD IT?
Because it’s a pre-engineered flatpack design, you don’t have to hire a qualified builder to assemble it for you, which is a great moneysaver. You can hire a handyman to take care of it if desired, but if you have a Diy-handy friend or relative capable of building a deck or a sturdy wooden fence, they should be more than able to assemble a Sheshed kitset with you. (For safety and efficiency, we always recommend having at least two people who can work together.)
2. WHAT SIZE OF SHED DO YOU NEED?
There’s a useful “Inspiration Gallery” on the Sheshed website where you can see hundreds of customer photos for how other people are using their own sheds. Getting to see how different beds, desks and couches fit into each different size can be a great way to estimate your own requirements.
If you want to avoid needing council approval, what are your local regulations on shed size and height? Qld, Vic and WA can all build a shed up to 10sqm without council consent, NSW can build up to 20sqm, ACT can build from 10sqm to 50sqm depending on your property size, SA can build up to 15sqm, Tas can build up to 36sqm, and NT can build from 12sqm to 30sqm depending on your property size. You can build a shed bigger than these sizes, but if you want it to be compliant, you’ll need council consent.
Our most popular option is the Star Cabin, which is only 9sqm, so it fits under council requirements but can fit a queen-size bed and a bedside table. Take a tape measure outside and measure out 3x3sqm to see how it would fit — but remember there are other sizes and shapes available too.
3. WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO BUILD IT?
Once you know the size you need, check with your local council on how close you can build a shed to your property boundary or existing buildings, but typically most require the building to be no closer than 1m, and any bushfire-prone areas usually need to have 5m of space around a wooden shed.
Existing concrete slabs are great, but can be expensive to make new, so it’s usually best to build on a simple timber subframe with piers just like building a deck. Smaller sheds, like the Star Cabin we already mentioned, can even be built on a flat gravel area with treated timber bearers, which is just so easy.
4. WHEN ARE YOU WANTING IT?
We carry a lot of available stock and can usually ship a flatpack to you in only a couple weeks, but don’t leave ordering to the last minute as we’ve all experienced the frustrating and unpredictable delays with freight these days, and you need to consider how long it might take you to build and then paint the shed before you can start using it.
5. HOW ARE YOU GOING TO FINISH IT?
Once you have a shed ordered, you’ll want to choose some paint colours to protect the outside from the elements. Lighter colours are much better for maintaining a cooler interior and providing a longer lifespan for your shed (dark colours absorb more heat, which can cause warping or cracking in the timber).
Last but not least, you’ll likely want to get a sparky to add electricity to your shed for lighting and temperature control. With the double-glazing and compact size, backyard cabins can be very cost-effective to keep either warm or cool.
Josh works on marketing and customer service at Sheshed, a family business based west of Sydney in Katoomba, NSW. Sheshed sends its flatpack cabins at affordable rates across the country from Adelaide to Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and even New Zealand. View customer stories at: Sheshedcabins.com/backyard