Wooden shed vendor recommendations please

[audion]

Hello,

I am looking to buy a large prefab wooden [or kit] to house a studio on my property. Not looking to do a bunch of construction myself or anything. I would like to buy it somewhere where they will deliver and assemble as part of the price. Anyone have any suggestions as to a good company to deal with. 16’-24’x 20’-30’ , or thereabouts, with a high ceiling, is what I have in mind to begin with.

Thanks,

audio

[audion]

Hello,

My post above should read "I am looking to buy a large, prefab, wooden shed [or kit]..."

Thanks,

audion

[Brian M Rose]

I'm sure that there are many people here who are better equipped to answer but i did have to purchase a portable office some years back. Actually it was relatively small and it did replace on old shed that was falling down. Because we were in a conservation area, the local council at first insisted that it should be clad in planking, so as not to change the amenity and look of the original! I would have thought that from the dimensions you give, that's going to be rather large for a shed. You'll also need foundations etc, not to mention planning permission.
Again, I'm sure that you're aware of this. It might be best to contact the likes of Portacabin and other similar companies. Oh and do make sure that you have access for the modules on the site.
Let us know how you get on.

[James Perrett]

I hope you aren't expecting it to be soundproof at all - wooden structures let just about everything through (I'm talking from experience here).

As Brian says, your structure will almost certainly require planning permission and building regulations approval for something of that size. Unfortunately the suppliers that we've used don't go up to the sort of size you are looking for but I'd be asking sports clubs/scout groups/farmers for their opinion as that's more the sort of size that they'd use.

[Drew Stephenson]

What kind of budget are you looking at? I've been looking at a few options recently but I don't have the links on this machine.
Key thing to remember: if your roof is over 2.5m at peak, or if the total area of outbuildings is more than 50% of the plot not occupied by the house, or if you're thinking of putting something in front of the house, you will almost certainly need planning permission. There are other rules as well but they're your starters for 10.
Depending on your location and council you may need it anyway for a shed of that size.

[audion]

Hello,
Thanks everyone. I know about planning and getting permission. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem on a big piece of property. My main concern just trying to find a vendor for larger sheds (or whatever you want to call it). Any chips would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Audio

[audion]

Or I may have to settle for a slightly smaller shed. Recommendation still welcome.

audion

[James Perrett]

We've bought a couple of log cabins from

http://hampshire-log-cabins.co.uk/

The oldest is now getting on for 10 years old and still looks good.

[audion]

We've bought a couple of log cabins from

http://hampshire-log-cabins.co.uk/

The oldest is now getting on for 10 years old and still looks good.

Thanks. I'll take a look at the link.

audion

[audion]

Hello,
Thanks everyone. I know about planning and getting permission. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem on a big piece of property. My main concern just trying to find a vendor for larger sheds (or whatever you want to call it). Any chips would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Audio

Ha, ha. Should read, "Any tips would be appreciated."

audion

[audion]

We've bought a couple of log cabins from

http://hampshire-log-cabins.co.uk/

The oldest is now getting on for 10 years old and still looks good.

Thanks. I'll take a look at the link.

audion

Oh, I just realized you are in the U.K. I am in the U.S. [Florida}.

Does anyone know of a source in the U.S. ?

audion

[Humble Bee]

Try to go from here to find a supplier:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiny_house_movement

[garrettendi]

I'm actually thinking that when me and Missus-to-be move home I'll set up my studio in either the garage or the same kind of building as the OP.

Which of the two would be better? I'm aware both would be noisy, but then again, it's just more of a hobby for me, I'll never be recording anything serious enough to end up on an LP. We'll be going pro for that stuff!

[James Perrett]

I'm actually thinking that when me and Missus-to-be move home I'll set up my studio in either the garage or the same kind of building as the OP.

Wooden sheds, no matter how fancy, are totally unsuitable as studios unless you are happy with virtually no soundproofing. A much better approach would be a block built building on a concrete base. My studio shell cost a little more than the equivalent log cabin but not vastly more. Combine that with a DIY inner layer and you end up with with a very well soundproofed studio which can accommodate a band rehearsing in a quiet neighbourhood.

[garrettendi]

Thanks James. Food for thought. I'll look into options when the time comes.

[audion]

I'm actually thinking that when me and Missus-to-be move home I'll set up my studio in either the garage or the same kind of building as the OP.

Wooden sheds, no matter how fancy, are totally unsuitable as studios unless you are happy with virtually no soundproofing. A much better approach would be a block built building on a concrete base. My studio shell cost a little more than the equivalent log cabin but not vastly more. Combine that with a DIY inner layer and you end up with with a very well soundproofed studio which can accommodate a band rehearsing in a quiet neighbourhood.

Well, hmmm, there are tons of people on the various forums that made real niceI studios out of sheds, of all different types. Some have done some soundproofing and others havenot. In my case, I don’t need much isolation because I’m out on a pretty big piece of property, away from neighbors.

I’m interested in the block building approach, though, so maybe you could explain a little more? How much did it cost?.... That type a thing. How big is it?

Thanks,

audion

[Drew Stephenson]

Oh, I just realized you are in the U.K. I am in the U.S. [Florida}.
Does anyone know of a source in the U.S. ?
audion

Ah, sorry, my links will be no good to you then. Likewise my comments on planning permission.

There's no reason why you can't build a decent sound-proofed studio that looks like a shed - but the shed bit will only ever be a skin. Soundproofing requires mass and air-tightness. I know that's not a real word!
But...
If you're starting in a quiet location, and you don't have to worry about the neighbours, and you're not looking for completely perfect isolation, then you have a lot more options. But the same fundamentals still carry. Your best bet would be either to buy a shed and then build a room-within-a-room inside it. Or to build a decent concrete/brick room and then put a wooden skin on it.

Have a gander through this thread (if you haven't already): https://www.soundonsound.com/forum/view ... 24&t=43047
It's a really good example of the challenges of building a properly sound-proofed room - it's also just a really interesting thread.

[garrettendi]

it's also just a really interesting thread.

You could say that for all the threads on SOS! Except my ones

[audion]

Oh, I just realized you are in the U.K. I am in the U.S. [Florida}.
Does anyone know of a source in the U.S. ?
audion

Ah, sorry, my links will be no good to you then. Likewise my comments on planning permission.

There's no reason why you can't build a decent sound-proofed studio that looks like a shed - but the shed bit will only ever be a skin. Soundproofing requires mass and air-tightness. I know that's not a real word!
But...
If you're starting in a quiet location, and you don't have to worry about the neighbours, and you're not looking for completely perfect isolation, then you have a lot more options. But the same fundamentals still carry. Your best bet would be either to buy a shed and then build a room-within-a-room inside it. Or to build a decent concrete/brick room and then put a wooden skin on it.

Have a gander through this thread (if you haven't already): https://www.soundonsound.com/forum/view ... 24&t=43047
It's a really good example of the challenges of building a properly sound-proofed room - it's also just a really interesting thread.

Hi,

I am not looking to go to anything like those lengths, at least not at this time. I live where the isolation is not going to be a big deal. Out in the middle of a big piece of land with no neighbors.

My reason for thinking about the shed option is to avoid having to build out a commercial space with a "room in a room". I might do a little sound treatment, but I really just need a big enough space to put my gear in. I have kind of a lot of gear [console, big pro tools rig, tape machines, lots of racks / outboard, and so forth]. And it needs to be waterproof and all that.

Air conditioning may be an issue, so I'm interested in hearing what others have done in that regard.

Thanks for responding here.

audion

[James Perrett]

If you want to see what I've done you can take a look at my studio build Facebook album at

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... b7f7f4d849

[jamedia.uk]

I know these links are for the UK but a second hand portakabin is often a good bet.
Already built, many options and prices usually with electric and lights plumbed in , windows and doors (usually with locks) just drop into place. Many are stackable. I would have thought they would be a good bet.

Only problem is they are a single truck wide ie about 10 foot and usually about 7-8 foot tall inside but can be anything from 10 to 40 foot long.

You could get a small one for drums and one for singers and have them spaced around the main studio kabin.

http://www.foremansbuildings.co.uk/port ... -for-sale/

https://containercabins.co.uk/second-ha ... le-cabins/

https://www.portable-facilities.co.uk/c ... le-cabins/

[audion]

If you want to see what I've done you can take a look at my studio build Facebook album at

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... b7f7f4d849

Hey James,

Thanks. Looks very nice, but more than I think I need or want to do at this time. Maybe I would do just the block part, but not all the hvac stuff. Did someone come out and put up walls and roof for you, or did you do all that yourself? How long did it take for the walls and roof? I'm wondering what it would cost just to have the bare-bones structure put up. Slab, walls, roof, door, window maybe?

Thanks for the response, man.

audion

[James Perrett]

That's exactly the way I did things - a local builder laid the base then built the walls and roof. It cost me around £13k back in 2010. I then added the inner shell. There's actually no fancy HVAC stuff in there - just some ducting to 4 vents under the eaves to bring the air in and 4 outlet ducts leading to a single fan to extract the air. Much of the time I find that the natural airflow is sufficient for our conditions in the UK and all the insulation used means that it stays cool in summer for most of the day and I only need fairly minimal heating in the winter. Florida is probably different though - I would guess that you almost certainly need air conditioning.