“Maybe we should vacation in the backyard she shed”, I tell Leslie at the end of week two of our coronavirus self-quarantine. I look out the window starring at the sunny yellow exterior of the structure as I speak. Somehow, seeing its presence gives me solace even as I know we must stay home for weeks until the pandemic resolves.
If you staycation, a she shed provides a great way to have a lazy afternoon reading or napping while getting a little closer to the nature in your own backyard.
Our she shed has a normal size door, but it could have just as easily been modified with a larger door for wheelchair access. I have not done it just yet, but I will build a path that approaches the porch so a wheelchair can easily navigate to it from our home.
The Backyard She Shed Plan Hatches
No secret that she wanted travel to her favorite destination, Disneyland. Leslie and I have noticed as we take trips she always enjoys some downtime in the hotel room. Go figure. We hatched a plan to construct a “hotel room hangout” in the backyard and before we knew it we were looking for locations.
We built the she shed in the summer of 2017 and limited work by purchasing a pre-constructed Tuff Shed Weekender Model. The 10 x 14 fit nicely in the backyard and the little porch made it all the more inviting. Finished, the inside is not quite 10 feet square – just big enough as an escape.
Our Experience (and Pointers) Building a She Shed
I will admit that I am no expert carpenter or anything of the sort, so this is by no means a tutorial on how to put a small house in the backyard, but this is what we did and these ideas might help you if you ever decide to build a “vacation” in your backyard:
- If you opt for a Tuff Shed (or other prefabricated structure), make sure the vendor knows what your plans are. They need to do their finishing a different way if you plan to put up drywalling on the inside.
- Originally, I looked into solar power to provide the lighting and electric to it. This could work out well if you have a spot where you do not need air conditioning or heating. With our hot summers and cold snowy winters, we needed both. I hired and electrician and dug the 16 inch trench to get power back there and I am so glad I did.
- We dropped the ceiling down and insulated to keep the ventilation in the structure like a real house. After reading articles online from people who know a lot more than me on this type of thing, it seemed the right route to take.
- We used the pink fiberglass insulation in the walls (R-13) and attic (R-30). Because of the thickness of the attic insulation and to retain ventilation up there, we put plastic spacers between the rafters (they are like this).
- If I would have paid for someone else to help me, it would have been to do the mudding and smooth the walls. That was hard to get right! Unfortunately, in its finished, painted state, it is easier to see the mistakes I made. Lucky for me, our daughter doesn’t mind.
- We textured the walls and did a knockdown ceiling. There are plenty of altruistic people who have posted YouTube videos on how to do the ceiling – just make sure you have plenty of mudding as it takes quite a bit.
- We installed a very small ceiling fan light. I love the ceiling fan – it adds such a nice touch and can eliminate having to run the air conditioner for a chunk of the day in the heat of summer.
- The flooring we put in is actually from Ikea. They sell it as kind of an outdoor patio flooring and it comes in 1 foot squares. It was very easy to install, looks decent, and gives it an outdoor feel we wanted to retain.
- I am sure you won’t have trouble coming up with how to decorate it. My wife found the white sectional from a couple moving into a smaller place. When we went to pick it up and they learned what it was for, they wanted to give us more stuff to furnish it – people are so nice! The provided the rug we used too.
Maybe today I will take Jamie out to the backyard she shed since we must relegate ourselves to the fifth acre that comprises my lot. That is our corner of quarantine zone. We can play the guitar, sing, and read for our virus-forced staycation. With a soft couch, some pillows and blankets, and a ceiling fan, we are sure to be comfortable!
