Keep Your Outdoor Living Space Beautiful!
Here are some tips and tricks for your shed maintenance and care.
Prevent moisture and mildew damage
- Make sure your siding and trim are 5"-8" above ground level.
- Don’t allow garden mulch to build up and compromise your clearance.
- Keep bushes trimmed away from the building to maintain a proper air flow beneath and around the building. This also prevents wear to the siding.
- Prevent water and dirt stains along the bottom of siding by maintaining 12"-18" of gravel around the perimeter of the building. This is also essential protection against water wicking up into the siding.
- On larger buildings, gutters and downspouts could be installed.
- Make sure sprinklers do not spray water directly on the siding.
Winterize
- If your building came with a ramp, maintain a ½" - ¾" clearance between the top of the ramp and the top of the floor. This allows the ramp to float with the freeze and thaw cycle.
Keep moving parts working well
- Oil the hinges, barrel bolts, and keyhole annually.
- Use an Allen wrench to loosen or tighten the door latch as needed.
- Adjust the metal brace to keep the door straight and from bowing out at the bottom.
- If the doors don’t close properly, level the barn to realign them. Use ¼" - ½" shims at one of the back corners.
Treat it gently
- Always secure open doors to prevent wind damage!
- Buy drop rods from an authorized JDM dealer or install a simple chain, hook and eye system.
- Limit your storage in the trusses to light items such as flower pots, small boxes, inflatable water toys, etc. Roof trusses built with a bottom cord are not made to carry substantial weights.
Paint and caulk as needed
- Inspect regularly and replace missing or damaged caulking along seams where boards, trim, etc. meet.
- Repaint before your paint fails! Local weather may reduce the longevity of paint’s performance.