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Backyard Shed for Living: What You Need to Create a Living Space

Many homeowners get a backyard shed to store lawn equipment, holiday decorations and various things that don’t fit in their home. Did you know it can be used for so much more than just storage?

backyard shed

Your shed can be converted into a wide variety of more useful rooms such as a bedroom or an extra living space. Many homeowners try to use their garage or basement, but sometimes there are problems with those options. Some homes don’t have basements and your garage is often where you park your cars leaving you no extra space.

Your shed is the perfect place to create a living space and we’ll show you everything you’ll need to create one. Let’s get started!

Add a Little Light to Your Shed

You can’t use your shed for anything other than storage if there’s no way to get light inside. Lights allow you to see and allow the shed to be inhabitable.

There are a couple of ways to go about adding light to your backyard shed. You can can run electricity to the shed so you can add lights, or you can add windows. We recommend doing both!

Run Electricity for Lights

Without electricity, your shed is nothing more than a big box. You’ll need to run electricity throughout the shed so you can add lights and outlets. You’ll be able to light your shed no matter what time of the day.

That being said, you shouldn’t do any electrical work on your own if you aren’t trained – it can be very dangerous. Hiring a professional is the surefire way to ensure that the project is done correctly and safely.

Add Windows

Artificial light is great, but it can’t beat natural light. Natural light actually has the ability to improve your mood and make you more productive. Plus, it has the ability to improve the look inside your shed.

The only way your backyard shed will benefit from natural light is if you have windows installed. They open up your shed to natural light and fresh air.

shed with beautiful doors and windows

We recommend you get vinyl windows for your shed. Since you’ll have to heat and air condition it separately from your home, energy efficiency is more crucial than ever before. You’ll want to keep the outside weather out so your shed will be more comfortable.

If you need vinyl windows for your home or shed, look no further than Feldco – we’re the Midwest’s leading window dealer. Get a free quote now and enjoy your new vinyl windows.

Create a Cool Bar

If you’re trying to create a cool hangout spot, you’re going to need a bar. It’s the perfect place to sit around with friends and talk or watch the big game. You can build your own bar or buy a pre-built one from the hardware store.

Make a Your Bar a Wet Bar

If you want to get real creative with your bar, you can run a water line to your shed. This will allow you to create a wet bar. Wet bars are bars with running water allowing you to have a sink.

Having a wet bar opens up the drinks you’ll be able to make and gives you the opportunity to wash your drinking glasses so they’re ready for the next group outing. The best part is that this helps keep your kitchen free of any sticky or smelly glasses.

Add a Little Deck

You can further add to the amount of living space available by adding a deck to your backyard shed. It’s a cool place to sit outside and enjoy the weather. All you’ll need to do is add some patio furniture and maybe an awning.

A Cool Patio Door Improves the Look of Your Shed

You can blur the lines between your deck and shed by installing a patio door. Patio doors maximize the amount of light you let into your shed and will make the inside feel larger.

There are two types of patio doors you can choose from. The first is a sliding patio door. Sliding patio doors are easy to open thanks to them operating on a sliding track. This gives you beautiful and easy access to your newly built shed deck.

If elegance is your goal, then a French patio door is the best option. They’re made up of two or three panels and can be customized to swing inwards or outwards.

No matter which style of patio door interests you, Feldco has you covered. Much like our windows, our doors are considered the best in the Midwest. In fact, we were named America’s #1 window and door company.

You’ll Need an Air Conditioner and Heater

Since your backyard shed isn’t attached to your home, it won’t be heated or cooled with your furnace or air conditioner. That means you’ll need to buy separate units for your shed.

This doesn’t have to be expensive. If you have electricity running through your shed, there are small heaters and air conditioners that can plug into the wall. Since the room is so much smaller than a normal room, it won’t take too much energy to make the room comfortable – especially if you have energy efficient windows.

Speaking of windows, we recommend you don’t get a window air conditioning unit for your shed. For one, it may be too heavy for the wall and could damage the window. Also, since the window is always open to house the unit, you won’t experience the benefits of having energy efficient windows.

Pick the Right Flooring

Most sheds come with cement or plastic floors which probably isn’t what you want for your living space. If the floor is cement, the simple solution would be to epoxy the floor. This will make it look better and be easier to clean.

If you’re looking for a more traditional home floor, tile and carpet are both doable options. While both of these can be DIY projects, we suggest you hire a professional. Since you’ll need to cut the flooring for a smaller space, it may be a little tougher.

How’s Your Backyard Shed Going to Be Used?

Now that you know what you’ll need to do to turn your backyard shed into a living space, you’ll have to decide what you want to make it. We have a few suggestions that may help you out.

A Spare Bedroom

If you have more kids than bedrooms, the natural solution is to make them share. As they get older, this idea seems less and less viable. You may think you have to move, but there is another solution.

Turning your backyard shed into a bedroom will give all the children the privacy they need. In fact, if you give your older kid the shed, they’ll feel more independent. You can teach them what it takes to maintain your own living space. It’s both practical and a great learning experience.

Your shed also makes a great spare bedroom for guests. Some people don’t feel comfortable staying in other peoples homes. By offering the shed to guests, it feels like they have their own private room. It’s a much more comfortable situation.

Office

If you work from home, you’ll need a quiet place away from all distractions. There might not be a place in your home where you can do that.

By turning your shed into an office, you have the perfect place to get work done without having to deal with others interrupting you. You can focus and get through the work you need to get done.

Workout Room

Sometimes it’s hard to find time to get to the gym. Plus, you have to pay for a membership and deal with other people. It’s no wonder many people give up going to the gym after a few months.

What if the gym was in your backyard? Would you be more inclined to go regularly? When you turn your shed into a workout room, you can go to the gym whenever you want without having to worry about competing with other people to use your favorite machine.

Living Space

Sometimes, you just need a place to relax and the shed might be the best place. Adding some comfy couches, a blue tooth speaker or even a TV will turn your shed into the perfect escape.

It can be used for more than just hiding from the world. You can also entertain guests with your cool new shed. Have a group of people over to watch your favorite show or to sit and relax.

Library

Speaking of relaxing and getting comfortable, a library is another awesome idea for your backyard shed conversion. It’s really one of the more simple projects you can do with your shed.

All you’ll need is a comfy chair, a table and a bookcase full of books. It’s the perfect place to spend hours getting lost in a good story.

Man Cave/She Shed

If you like several ideas mentioned above, mix and match. Create the perfect man-cave with your shed. Space permitting, you can even add a pool or ping pong table inside.

wood shed

Don’t think we forgot about you ladies! A new craze sweeping the nation is she sheds – it’s the equivalent of a man cave. We wrote an entire article on she shed ideas that you should check out!

Create the Perfect Backyard Shed Living Space

Many people use their backyard shed for storage and nothing else. That’s so much wasted potential. It can become another bedroom, a cool hangout space or even a workout room.

Feldco is here to help you create the shed of your dreams! Our windows and patio doors will let light in while keeping the outside temperature out. Get a free quote now and see why over 400,000 homeowners have trusted us.

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