Tool Shed With Green Roof

Hi All!

Before we kick off, I just want to say that this was a very cool project to make and design. I already made an instructable on a Garden shed / Tiny house. This is much more simple in setup and design So I think this still adds information and value there.

If you are interested in the exact dimensions and specifics I have a set of plans available from my website:
www.seamm.nl

Step 1: Design and Looks

So the intention of this shed is to make it blend in the fence. The design of the siding is the same as the existing fence.
The 'lines' of the boards run into the fence. This way you can have a nice storage space while not missing space and 'visual' space. This works great for this little garden.

On top a green roof was installed. The plants were succulent plants. The small garden is paved for the majority so the extra green helps soak up the rain water. This is relevant for urban area's.

The floorplan is 1 m by 2 m, or 3 feet by 7 feet.

Step 2: Set Up Posts

The 'core' of the frame are 4 posts. In the video you can see these were attached to the fence. But in the plans the posts are to put in the ground.

The posts are checked for plumb before and after attaching it to the fence. This is very important because this determines the siding and walls later on.

The size of the post is 68 mm square or 2". I used pressure treated wood for this. This is not essential but it is better for the lifespan of the wood.
Two of the post are smaller than the other. This way the roof will get it's angle.

Step 3: Water Barrier

When standing the posts I put it on top a brick and then a plastic spacer to make a water barrier. This prolongs the life of the wood considerably.

The one post which was not attached to the fences was a bit awkward to attach and work with but using multiple scrap pieces of wood you can stabilize it if you work alone.

Step 4: Preparing the Roof

To connect the posts with each other. Two 69x44 mm or 2x3" were attached to the posts from the top side.
On here the roof joists will be placed.

Step 5: Roof Joists

For the joists quite large beams were used. The green roof adds a certain load to the roof. It can contain 50 kg/m^2 of greens and water. So the roof needs to be able withstand that and a load for snowfall. So the total rating is about 100 kg/m^2. This is considerable for a small shed.

The angle of the roof is 8 degrees. Small birdmouths needed to be cut out. And in total 3 beams were installed.
The ends of the beams were connected with a pressure treated beam. The size of the beam were 144x44 mm or 2x6".

Step 6: Roof Panel

On top of the beams a sheet of OSB was installed. I lifted it on the roof. Screwed it down and then cut off the excess with a chalk line.

Step 7: Roofing Material

In between the roofing material and the roof panel. I put down a sheet of thick plastic. In my case LDPE plastic. This prefents leaking and is important to make the water flow onto the siding.

I made plastic overlap to the siding generously. On there I used corrugated steel as roofing material. This steel adds some strength to the roof which is helpful preventing damage by the green roof or anything.

Step 8: Siding Start

The roof was on, the shed is stable. I tested this by dancing on the roof :p

The siding had 5mm gaps between the boards. This made the whole shed ventilated. this is quite good for preventing moisture and mold developing inside.

When attaching the siding I made sure the 'lines' of the fence ran nicely through. And in between boards if they were level while attaching.

Step 9: Preparing the Green Roof

So now it was time to make the green roof.

The first layer was a thick protection fabric. This also prevents damage to the roofing material. The second layer was a molded plastic one with cups in it. The cups are there for water storage and keeping the soil in place.

After that a thinner fabric layer was placed. This functions as a filter and some water storage. These three layers could be cut to length and width with a sharp knife.

Step 10: The Soil and Greens

Four bags of soil were placed on the roof. This was the majority of the weight. The soil was actually small gravel with sand a nutrients so not normal soil for pot plants.

And then the plants could be rolled onto the roof. The plants are transported as rolls but they don't like that. When I received the shipment I rolled out the plants to make them breathe. This was advised by the vendor of the green roof.

I trimmed the greens to legth with an insulation knife. The plants really felt nice and soft. Similar to a patch of grass.

Step 11: Fascia Boards

After that I could trim the plastic roof layer to length and install the fascia boards. This tidies up the look of the green roof and makes the rainwater flow in the right direction.

The water drips or on the roof or on the siding because on the vertical board a horizontal board was placed.

Step 12: Shed Door

Now It was time to construct the door. The theme was kept intact by making the door have the same siding boards and spacing.

In essence it really simply goes together. It were horizontal pieces screwed to two vertical boards. A diagonal piece is a nice to have but not essential for this situation.

Before I screwed down the boards I checked if the door was 90 degrees in the corners by measuring diagonally.

Step 13: Door Lock

The door was installed with a handle and lock in one. A recess was cut and then it was screwed in place.
Such a hardware system is a good and simple way of locking the shed.

Step 14: Finishing Up!

And then the door could be hanged. I asked if a buddy could help because this is a bit tricky on your own.

The sing was finished with some trim on the outside corners. Soffits were installed to prevent animals from entering the shed.
And right after the job was done It rained heavily, this was good for the green roof because it directly grew the day after!

This whole process went fairly quick and was done in 2.5 days, I am very happy about that and how it went together!
I hope you could enjoy this and learn a few things!