BEFORE & AFTER: TRANSFORMATION OF AN OLD RUN-DOWN BACKYARD SHED (IT'S INCREDIBLE!!!)

BEFORE & AFTER: TRANSFORMATION OF AN OLD RUN-DOWN BACKYARD SHED


DIY remodels are a dime a dozen on the internet, but it’s hard to pass up sharing one with such an amazing before and after. Imgur user, mysacrifice, and his father decided they were tired of having a shabby shed that looked like it might be a hiding place for Freddy Kruger’s slightly scarier cousin. With some skill, determination, and the appropriate materials, they created something which could potentially put She Sheds to shame!

It took a few days, a hammer, an angle grinder, and some tin snips to knock off the stucco and cut away the wire meshing that kept this “beauty” together.

The shed was structurally sound just hideous. I got to work removing the old stucco which was WAY more time consuming and messy then I thought it would be. I used an angle grinder with a masonry cutting disc to cut grooves into the stucco and the wire mesh behind. Then I used my hammer and pry bar to smash away the stucco and cut away the remaining wire mesh with my tin snips. It took a couple days and my hands were pretty beat up after.

The next step was to create a basic blueprint of their vision. This siding measurement accounted for a little waste, as they decided it was safer to over order the materials than not have enough.

Took some rough measurements to order my siding from. I always account for a little waste and over order. Better to have a little extra then not enough.

Step by careful step, the wall replacement began!

Smashy smash

Once the wall was completed, a pergola was constructed to add to the seating area. 2x4s were used for the construction so things wouldn’t look too bulky. Here they were bracing and leveling the main columns.

Little brother helping me stand up the pergola posts. Put some braces on and leveled that sucker out!

Perfectly fitting these notches with a circular saw, hand saw, hammer, and pry bar was probably like trying to shave with scissors. Still, with a bit of ingenuity they were able to get the job done.

Started framing up the pergola. Cut the 2x4 to size and notched them out where they would sit on the header/beams. Sadly I only had my circular saw/hand saw/hammer/prybar to make these notches. So they are not the most accurate, but we made it work

That alone was worth some congratulations. Why not take it a step further?

This part went fairly quickly

How about some railing made from split 2x4s? Now that’s a complete seating deck.

Donezo. I made some backing pieces that anchor the railing in place from the inside. She's solid!

You know, natural lighting is just what the doctor ordered to make a shed more lively. Especially when a friend has a free window you can use.

Found an old window at a buddies place in the country. Decided why not! Natural lighting rules! Test fitting the frame

Once the cut was made, sweet sunlight was able to make their day.

Cut that sucker out using the trusty dewalt again!

The frame and window were fairly simple to install.

Cleaned up the glass and popped it back in. Not bad for zero dollars.

Some simple wood stain was used to seal the siding. One coat was used for protection, and later on a second coat was applied to the front to darken the wood.

Siding came and it was time to stain. Found the color code for the old stain and ordered the same stuff. Just a simple brush on stain. I did a single coat on the backs to seal them and two coats with time to try between on the front. This gave them a much richer and darker tone, more like what was on the house.

The house wrap was carefully stapled up, and then the siding was tacked in place with deck screws on each end. More screws were applied later to secure the siding. After the job was finished, they had quite a bit of extra siding.

More siding

The extra siding was used to create a matching cover that hides the waterfall pump and filter for their koi pond.

We had some leftover siding and decided to make a box to cover the waterfall water filter for the pond. The lid easily comes off for cleaning and the whole box can be removed for winter cleanup.

Wow. Now that’s how you turn a shanty-town shed into something that adds relaxation, style and property value to your home!

That's all for now!