Moving a shed

[Happy Gourmand]

I have a 10x12' shed that I would like to move to the other side of our place in Meredith. It now sits on 2 4x4's that run from the front to the back of it. There is a small downhill grade on the side of the house that flattens out in the rear. Has anybody had this done? Any recommendations?

[vmlite84]

I moved my sons shed, get 4 or 5 4 inch or larger pvc pipe, comesin 8 ft lengths. jack up shed about 8 inches, put pipes running other way than floor joists, place 3 or 4 under shed and keep one up front, as you rol you take fromback to front,, we pushed it with 2 other guys and his wife moved the pvc pipes, we had it done in like an hour if not less, go to Bing and search for moveing sheds, look at the videos,, simple,, really is

[8gv]

I moved a 10'x12' shed about five feet across a flat part of my back yard.

First I jacked up each corner enough to slip in a 2"x10"x10" square layed flat.

Jacking was the tricky part because I only had one small hydraulic jack and the soil was prone to compressing below its small base.

This became easier as the shed was raised up enough to allow a larger piece of plywood to go under the jack.

Having four jacks would have helped a lot.

Repeating this around and around the shed brought it up high enough to slip in four 3"x10' pvc drain pipes on top of four 2"x4"x8' studs to use as a road bed.

Next I deployed a 4"x4"x8' landscape timber to use as a lever.

My original intention was to have wifey help with her own timber but soon realized that our coordination was poor and her skills were best suited for the role of providing "verbal lubrication".

We are accustomed to seeing buildings as stationary objects. It can be quite unnerving to see one rocking and rolling at the hands of a mad man!

As the shed moved along and exposed a pipe, the pipe was relocated to the other side.

Once relocated, the process was easily reversed.

Be advised that this was on flat land. Doing this across a sloped lot will require additional logistics.

Don't forget to empty the shed first.

[camp guy]

This project has all the qualifications of falling into the category of "Never start a project that will take more time than there is before the local hardware store closes".

I wish you the very best luck.

[vmlite84]

try this video link to make it clearer, good idea about the 2 by 4's to roll pvc on,, I just pushed it,, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EaAAXV8WuU I have a jack you can use, PM me,,,maybe I will come over and help push,,,get a few neighbors together and sip beer from a red solo cup afterwards, 4 2 by 4's cost about $16 total, pvc , 4 sections I don't know costs at Lowes really, I would guess $10 a piece,, all can be reused afterwards,, moving a shed is pretty simple as long as it is built solid,, PM me if you have any questions

[Happy Gourmand]

I like the 2x4 and pipe suggestion, I might try that this weekend with my son...and we have some "help" from the neighbors too. Only concern is going down the sloped side yard.....the video could be a candidate for America's Funniest Home Videos!!

[SAB1]

I moved mine with round fence posts I got at the depot. I needed 5 posts. jacked it up and put 3 under it. with two out in front it. Just push it with a couple guys by hand or your vehicle up to it. As a post comes out from under it just move it to the other end and keep pushing. Once it was jacked up I moved my shed 10 feet in about 10 mins.

[SAB1]

Woops. That should say 100ft in 10 mins

[fatlazyless]

For just one dollar each, the Family Dollar in Meredith has large foam noodles, about 4"d x 48", as opposed to 3.88ea at Wal-Mart, which are great for moving bulky heavy things like a boat with no trailer, and probably would work for a shed, too.

Just like the Egyptians built their great pyramids, using rounded wood logs for rollers to move huge, heavy stone blocks; a foam noodle works very well as a roller underneath the load. And for just ten bucks, you could get ten noodles, and continuously set them ahead of the shed as it gets pulled along to its destination using either human muscle power, or a car with a tow rope, or a 'come-along' attached to a tree, to pull it across the noodles. Another possibility is to use a boat trailer style winch and attach it to an available sturdy tree trunk.

If you need to purchase a 'come-along' which is also called a Maasdam Power-Pull, suggest you check out the selection at the Laconia Service Star Hardware in Lakeport.

.... rock & roll!

[Happy Gourmand]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I think I know how to proceed and may even have the help lined up. We are in Meredith, somebody said I might need a permit to move it....any feedback?

[Misha888]

put his "Bob House" down by the water yesterday. After he tipped over this rather large shed and ran into a tree I had to walk away. It was too painful.

This document might help you. If you're on the water, you might want ot look into the shoreline act, as well. http://meredithnh.org/Joomla/pdfdocs/ZONINGORD-09.pdf

Good luck.

Originally Posted by Happy Gourmand

Thanks for all the suggestions. I think I know how to proceed and may even have the help lined up. We are in Meredith, somebody said I might need a permit to move it....any feedback?