New Year’s Resolutions: Top 10 Tips for Owning a Storage Structure

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As a new year begins, often we try to implement new and better habits. That can be applied to many areas of our life, including how we care for our property. In this blog post, we’ll share some top tips about outdoor structure ownership. 

Choose a good location. Find level ground for your shed. This is literally the foundation of proper maintenance. 
Paint your unfinished wooden shed. It’s a best practice to paint your shed within 60 days if installation. This protective covering helps your shed last longer. 
Lubricate your handles. Be sure your knobs and handles are in working order by lubricating them from time to time. 
Watch vegetation. Keep the area around your outdoor storage structure trimmed. This does many things, including keeping critters away. 
Properly ventilate your shed. No matter what type of structure you have – wood or metal – proper air circulation is important. 
Winterize your shed. The cold weather and other elements that come along with winter can wreak havoc on your shed. Be sure it’s ready for the cold and wet season. 
Keep your shed clean and organized. Over time, the items you store will seemingly multiply. As your shed fills up, you may need to install shelves, peg boards, hooks, and other organizational elements. A clean and organized shed is safer and easier to manage. 
Check for rot. Over time, moisture can damage your wooden storage structure. Look for rotted parts and replace or repair. 
Check for leaks. Moisture inside a shed is not good. Check your roof and other areas for leaks and fix immediately—before they spread. 
Repaint your shed. Going along with our earlier tip, we suggested repainting your shed every three to four years. Depending on where you live, this could be needed more often. 

 

It’s important to protect your investment in outdoor storage structures – as well as to continue to protect everything inside of it. 

 

Happy New Year! 

Transformations: Turn That Old Shed into a Women’s Retreat (Or, a She-Shed)

We work hard, and there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done, whether at the office or around the house. But despite how busy our lives are, we can’t forget to take time for ourselves. Time to unwind and escape that hustle and bustle—or even a noisy TV in the living room.

We’ve all heard the term “man cave”—but what about a relaxing, backyard respite for women? With a little paint, some light construction/installation, and some décor, you can turn an old shed into a women’s retreat.

The ideas are seemingly endless to how you can transform a garden shed into a she-shed! Whether you’re looking for a sewing or craft nook, a studio, a reading lounge, an exercise room, or an open and airy meditation area, with a little work, you can carve out a space just for you. And we can’t forget that women share many of the same interests as men, so if your woman’s retreat ends ups looking like a typical man-cave, that’s OK with us!

The first step is cleaning out your existing shed so you can really get a handle on how much space you have—plus it’s easier to visualize the possibilities when you’re looking at an empty space. From there, draw up your plan—you can find ideas (even blueprints) online: many design websites feature she-shed makeovers—but don’t let the ideas sway you. Your shed should be uniquely you!

You will have so much fun watching your vision for a women’s retreat come to life—picking out colors, choosing décor, and installing shelves (maybe even a wine rack?) and getting furniture. But the best part will be sitting back and enjoying the space you’ve created!

Remember, alone-time is not just something that’s nice to have; solitude actually makes us happier and healthier!