Where to buy a Shed?

When choosing a shed, often people want to spend some time in their decision. It's important to consider various shed styles, pricing, and available options for your space. But where do you start?

Some start by searching online, others start by asking a friend or neighbour where they got their shed and, importantly, were they happy with their experience, some may visit a Box Store, or maybe they've heard of a local Shed Manufacture like Better Way Sheds and stop by their office.

From our experience you have a few options when it comes to sheds: Box Store or Hard Ware Store, General Contractor, or Professional Shed Manufacturer. Here's a simple breakdown of the pros and cons of these shed options.

Box Store Shed:

Pro: What these companies are good at is offering smaller resin (plastic) or metal sheds. These sheds are mass produced, typically out of country, and delivered in a box for complete assembly by owner. They generally come with a floor and all you need is a level space to assemble your shed. You can typically save some $ by purchasing a shed product like this and with good instructions and some patience, a resin or metal shed can be a good choice for certain situations.

Con: Although Box Stores do offer plastic and metal sheds, we have found some customers seem to get frustrated with their overall experience in purchasing a Wooden Storage Shed from a Box Store. Here are a few possible reasons why. A Box Store's list price typically includes only the lumber, the lumber is not pre-cut and the trusses and doors are not pre-made. You may get some hardware but typically you do not get a floor, shingles for the roof, or paint for the siding. All of which you will also need to purchase additionally in order to complete your shed kit project. For the walls of the shed, Box Stores tend to offer 2x3 boards, with 24" on centre construction which can compromise strength and longevity of your shed when compared to using 2x4 boards and 16" on centre construction.

Bottom line on Box Store and Hard Ware Store Wooden Sheds: If you are quite handy you can purchase the Wooden Shed Kit and all the additional components needed for your shed project, build it yourself or hire someone to build it for you, and in the end you'll have a new shed space which may work in certain situations. Home Depot Sheds, Lowe's Sheds

General Contractor Built Shed:

This option includes general contractors who offer their services to build custom sheds.

Pro: A qualified and trusted general contractor can offer a well-built and customized shed built to your specifications.

Con: It is hard to find a qualified and trusted contractor as typically the good ones are busy and most tend to shy away from "smaller" projects like a shed. This option, due to offering a wide variety of customizations, typically tends to be the pricier shed option and it can take a bit of time as your shed will be stick framed on site.

Bottom line on General Contractor Built Shed: If you can find a good contractor you will likely end up with a well-build storage space, built to suit your needs.

Professional Shed Manufacturer:

Shed manufacturers typically have a shop and display location where they fabricate sheds and either deliver shed kits for onsite assembly or pre-build sheds at their facility and deliver fully-assembled. Some Professional Shed Manufacturers offer rough-cut siding, typically pine, others use mainly exterior-grade sidings. Certain standard customization is typically offered. Often Shed manufacturers display some stock items and fulfill custom shed orders throughout a season.

Pro: Shed Manufacturers are dedicated to specifically crafting sheds and so are usually very capable of offering a quality shed. Whether they produce sheds in a kit form, for onsite assembly, or prefabricate sheds that are delivered fully assembled, Shed Manufacturers' can offer a quality product at a reasonable price. Another positive about choosing a professional shed manufacturer is that a variety of styles and sizes are available including large sheds and portable single car garages. A manufacturer like Better Way Sheds can offer buildings from 6x6 up to 14x32. A variety of options and customizations are also available such as underfloor insulation, metal roofing and preparing buildings as potential 3 and 4 season dwelling spaces.

Con: You may not know where to find a local shed manufacturer and so it can take a bit of website and physical searching to find a good local shop. Some shed manufacturers may not offer the specific options a person is looking for. Some Shed Manufacturers maintain offsite display locations which may not be manned or display sheds may not be marked clearly which can make the process difficult to understand.

Bottom line: Purchasing a shed from a Professional Shed Manufacturer should mean you receive a quality product at a reasonable price, what's more you'll be supporting local economies, fostering ingenuity and bolstering a positive customer service experience.

At Better Way Sheds we love sheds! We think every home should have a better shed and, most importantly, we strive to offer a positive shed experience. We hope you'll take some time to browse our website to see what we offer, and how we can help meet your unique shed & storage space needs...and wants too ;)

We invite you to visit our office and Manufacturing facility at 2105 Wallbridge-Loyalist Rd. Foxboro, ON. Give us a call or shoot us a text at 613.848.5521 and we hope you'll drop by soon to chat about your plans for a new shed!