# Forum Home Renovation The Garden Shed  Outside laundry shed

## Gemini8

Hi, I am looking for advice on what to do with the outdoor laundry in the unit we bought, 
The bathroom inside is too small to accommodate the washing machine so the previous owners somehow had it outside. There is a sort of a shed built around wooden frame, but no door.
We can't even get our washing machine there as the space is not big enough for front-loader. 
So looks like we need the front removed and replaced with two doors? We don't have the dryer so it is only the machine and the trough that need to fit in, and possible some shelving for storing bits and bobs...  
Looking for suggestions on how to do it? Can the doors be made to measure and who would be able to do that - I assume they need to be steel doors? We are in Coburg - Melbourne North. 
I tried to find pre-fabricated off-the - wall shed in similar size but they are all too narrow  :Frown: .  
Any other ideas for how to make this shed useful and not an eyesore  :Smilie: ? 
Thank you heaps in advance! :Blush7:

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## Uncle Bob

I'd build a new lean to out of wood. That way you can build it the size you want and make it look as smart as your budget can afford.

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## Gemini8

> I'd build a new lean to out of wood. .

  Thank you for the suggestion! 
 What would the walls be made of - if it is timber how to proof it against the termites?
I found this one  - looks nice but it is says only for the framing that is termite resistant, not the cladding... how long that resistance treatment would last? https://www.landera.com.au/timber-ga...3ft-1.9mx0.9m/

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## YoungBolt

Christ that's a bit dodgy. 
Aren't there building codes when it comes to external additions for rooms like laundries etc? 
Could you potentially get a washer & dryer in one and install it in the bathroom or even in the kitchen (UK style) ?
Most new townhouses & apartments have laundry cupboards as opposed to a full size room. Any chance you can convert a cupboard somewhere?  
If you can only have it outside, I'd look toward making a frame using treated pine and clad it with some FC weatherboard or timber if you dont mind the maintenance. Any of those pre-fab shed's are going to look cheap and are pretty flimsy in design.
I built my shed using colourbond sheets and a frame with 450mm spacing, I'm pretty happy with how it looks in the yard. I'll post up a pic if you like.

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## Gemini8

Thank you YoungBolt, yes it looks dodgy as. The bathroom is really small and if there is a washing machine there it would have not have much space left to turn around, and the kitchen is also very small, we will be lucky to fit a dishwasher there but not the washing machine...And no cupboards anywhere, very small 2bedroom unit...there only thing a young family can afford to buy these days! 
I like the idea of timber shed but not sure about termites...?

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## Gemini8

> I'd build a new lean to out of wood. That way you can build it the size you want and make it look as smart as your budget can afford.

  Thank you for the idea - I am now looking at couple of pre-fab timber sheds now, trying to get a quote for installation. They are both around $1000 so much more expensive than steel but looks much better  :Smilie:

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## YoungBolt

> Thank you YoungBolt, yes it looks dodgy as. The bathroom is really small and if there is a washing machine there it would have not have much space left to turn around, and the kitchen is also very small, we will be lucky to fit a dishwasher there but not the washing machine...And no cupboards anywhere, very small 2bedroom unit...there only thing a young family can afford to buy these days! 
> I like the idea of timber shed but not sure about termites...?

  You're in Vic, Termites here aren't that big of a problem. It's more an issue up north. 
Anyway, just build the frame out of treated pine and you'll be fine. Termites don't really like arsenic unless they're really desperate.  
Besides, it's a small shed/laundry hack, not anything structural. If it does get attacked by termites, you just replace the bad sections. 
Termites are a problem for the structural integrity which makes it a real expensive problem if they decide to make lunch out of your house, but who cares about a shed/laundry ?

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## cyclic

You don't say how much room you have for a new shed or what size you want but surely you can find one to suit from this   https://www.bunnings.com.au/search/products?page=1&q=garden%20shed&sort=BoostOrder&pa  geSize=60  and leave the back wall out of it. 
Look up your local area for sheds as they will be much cheaper than having your own built. 
There is also nothing showing in the pic as to where the power and water enters so that may have a bearing on your choice unless you don't mind paying sparkies and plumbers.

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## Gemini8

> You don't say how much room you have for a new shed or what size you want but surely you can find one to suit from this   https://www.bunnings.com.au/search/products?page=1&q=garden%20shed&sort=BoostOrder&pa  geSize=60  .

   Thank you Cyclic, I did checked out those ready made sheds but they are all either too shallow at 0.78m or a bit too deep at 1.5m and we would prefer it to be about 1m deep , just enough for the laundry. It is a small courtyard and the space is at premium, want to leave some room for a toddler!
There is already power and washing machine taps and  connections there on the house wall inside the old shed, so we prefer to keep those.  
I now investigating flatpack cedar shed kits, there are two that looks identical from Landera and Stilla, not sure if they are made by the same company but the size looks good  :Smilie:

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## Bart1080

Are you handy with DIY tools or prefer prefab to put together? 
Would be an easy project to do.  If using treated pine, make sure its the "old fashioned" CCA treated pine.  It will last years longer than the new LOSP crap they flog to the consumer these days.   
If you r putting it against the wall, you might also consider if it the right location as you may have flexibility on where to put it based on access to or the relocation of powerpoint, drainage and cold/hot water supply. 
Also is it worth a slightly bigger shed/lean to to accommodate a few basic tools (mower, shovel, broom, rake etc)

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## YoungBolt

Why not build your own? Making a timber frame isn't too hard with a drop saw and some basic tools? Then you just buy colourbond sheets (of your colour choosing) and attach to the frame.  
Also - what kind of base do you have ? concrete, tiles etc? That would also dictate how far out you can come. 
This is the shed that I built. Not hard to do. Just some timber stud frames, colourbond sheets and some sarking for the bottom plates. 
 I bought the colourbond sheets for $80 second hand - it already had screw holes so I had to add extra noggins uptop but the cost for the extra noggins was still cheaper than buying new sheets.
I still need to finish it off a bit and excuse the random junk from my ute on the side !
if I was going to build this to house a laundry Id also fit a roof vent for moisture from the dryer and cover the outside of the studs with Allu silversark.

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## Uncle Bob

Adding to what YoungBolt said above. Sketchup can be real handy to draw things up so you can get angle cuts precise just with a measuring tape.

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## Moondog55

> I'd build a new lean to out of wood. That way you can build it the size you want and make it look as smart as your budget can afford.

  It's what I would do also.
But I would make it big enough for comfortable use so 1500mm or deeper for my own needs. If you want it to be less intrusive visually I suppose you could clad it in fake brick

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## Nick1973

The other thing is, I would make sure there's good ventilation to avoid damp and mould. We actually covered this topic extensively on our bathroom renovation website blog so you can read more there.

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