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Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

imkylelambert.com

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Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#61

Post by eysquared »

cucumber3732842 wrote: post #29
eysquared wrote: post #10

Im jealous of the Tuff Shed or prebuilt being an option. Where I live we have incredibly high snow loads, so any structure ends up needing to be custom built to meet our requirements (even out buildings). I've found plenty of pre-fab units that claim to handle "high snow loads" that will not meet code where I am. I'm still planning on building out an office/studio, but it will be a much larger investment despite bein…

This is a problem with the people and ideology that are concentrated in your jurisdiction and the resulting rules that come of that. Even the snootiest "Barack Obama is my neighbor" zip codes have permitting and code exemptions for various sorts of small sheds. Structurally a wet fart will hold up plenty of snow when we're talking spans on the order of 10ft. A garden shed that can literally roll away in a tornado is…

Of course they wont! Plenty of people around here still use structures not built for the load or build under the square footage that requires a permit. Those can and do fail, and I'd prefer not to be in one when they do :).

My feedback is merely: boy it'd be nice to have the option to just order a pre-built.

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#62

Post by digitalsushi »

skullone wrote: post #48

Did similar, but went 12x16, trenched power and cat6, did rockwool insulation, did pine tongue and groove paneling and an Alaskan white cedar porch. When we sold the house, I'm pretty sure the shed is what sealed the deal, people had all sorts of things they wanted it to be, even as a spare bedroom

i did a 24x36, with a loft. 2015, 32,000 bucks from lavalley's in newport nh, installed 80 miles away in another random town. poured slab. 6 windows, 2 garage doors. i realized, all i did was build a garage, not a work from home office.

but over the next few years i learned so many hobby art projects: insulation, electrical, sheetrock. a few inspections, a few consults. a few surprises that people in this state can just go buy the stuff at a box store!

and then eventually, my 12x6 foot office appeared, the same width as a 1960s metal tanker desk. finally!

and ... i instantly hated working out there. i didnt make it 6 weeks. it's just an office for storing crap, now: i work out of the house, where the kitchen, dogs, bathroom, are. but the journey was worth it, even if the destination was not.

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#63

Post by swader999 »

onlypassingthru wrote: post #45
swader999 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Its gross but a pee bottle is what I'd do.

Really? Why not step outside and help water the plants? It is your backyard, after all.

That's what I do but I don't really have any neighbours in eyesight.

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#64

Post by quickthrowman »

mtlynch wrote: post #32

I jumped to the end and saw $2.3k for the mini split and couldn't believe it. I've installed mini splits on two homes and the quotes were always in the $15-25k range for 3-5 head units, so $2.3k for a head + outdoor condenser unit sounded implausible, but then I saw he found a surprisingly good deal: > I got a ton of quotes for installing a mini split. They ranged from $4-$7k, which was higher than I expected after r…

> I jumped to the end and saw $2.3k for the mini split and couldn't believe it. I've installed mini splits on two homes and the quotes were always in the $15-25k range for 3-5 head units, so $2.3k for a head + outdoor condenser unit sounded implausible, but then I saw he found a surprisingly good deal:

It doesn’t take long to install a mini-split condenser with a single air handler. Precast pad for the condensing unit, set the condensing unit on the pad (or buy a wall mount if you need to mount it off the ground), run sealtite to the condenser from the disconnect switch and pull in wire, drill two holes for the line sets and one hole for the power/signal cable that runs from the condenser to the air handler, mount the air handler, connect the line sets, plug in the power/signal cable, install and wire the thermostat. Seal the holes with silicone and turn the mini-split on.

It’s less than a day of work, finding a mechanical contractor to install equipment you furnish for $160-175/hr shouldn’t be hard, contractors just like ripping off homeowners because they don’t know any better.

You don’t really even need a mechanical contractor with precharged line sets, just ensure the disconnect switch is off and locked out before touching any line voltage wiring, and make sure you mount anything heavy to studs and not plywood or drywall.

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#66

Post by vondur »

We did this for my wife right before the Pandemic. Luckily we already had a 12 foot by 12 foot cement pad in our backyard. The building itself was 10 feet by 12 feet and cost $5000. Then we had to install insulation and drywall which was another $1500. Then I had a single 20 Amp power line installed and that cost another $1000, but I also had him do some other work and I assisted with the digging of the trench. I think we were at around $9000 all in with it. I checked with the company and that model of building we got is around $8000 now, so maybe around 60% more now?

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#68

Post by veverkap »

ipython wrote: post #40

Looks awesome, but I would have run single-mode fiber between the house and the office. Eliminates any issues with lightning strikes taking out equipment or other electrical gremlins, not to mention providing opportunity for expanding bandwidth in the future by just swapping out the SFP modules on each end. Pre-terminated fiber from fs.com is inexpensive and easy to work with - just measure and install.

What do you use on the house and on the shed side to convert to CAT6?

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#69

Post by 0cf8612b2e1e »

xixixao wrote: post #46
rootsudo wrote: post #43

Boy things are different in Portland where you pay people to insult sheds… But 8x10 for $20,000 just goes to show how expensive USA is for construction. There’s a point where I would review coworking space cost (not as convenient, I know) to just living and owning property abroad.

In this day and age, where material stuff is so cheap, isn’t 20K for a tiny shed crazy? Clearly it is because it involves so much work, and work is so expensive, but I can’t help but think there should be a technical solution to this. Or buildings are just not automatable? I’m amazed.

This is pretty fancy to call it a shed. Walk outside any Lowe’s or Home Depot and you will see several pre-built options that can be had for $500-$4000 with them getting increasingly elaborate.

Electrical + AC is a firm line where that goes from shed to detached office.

Re: Building a backyard office, the build and cost breakdown

#70

Post by ApolloFortyNine »

quickthrowman wrote: post #64
mtlynch wrote: post #32

I jumped to the end and saw $2.3k for the mini split and couldn't believe it. I've installed mini splits on two homes and the quotes were always in the $15-25k range for 3-5 head units, so $2.3k for a head + outdoor condenser unit sounded implausible, but then I saw he found a surprisingly good deal: > I got a ton of quotes for installing a mini split. They ranged from $4-$7k, which was higher than I expected after r…

> I jumped to the end and saw $2.3k for the mini split and couldn't believe it. I've installed mini splits on two homes and the quotes were always in the $15-25k range for 3-5 head units, so $2.3k for a head + outdoor condenser unit sounded implausible, but then I saw he found a surprisingly good deal: It doesn’t take long to install a mini-split condenser with a single air handler. Precast pad for the condensing uni…

Minisplits install costs are the biggest scam in the US, in Japan installs regularly cost under $1000 (that includes the minisplit!).

They're literally designed to be easy to install, but in the US licensing requirements tend to be insane (in my state it's 2 years apprenticeship experience for their 'easier to get' mini-split license) and HVAC companies make more off whole home systems.

These things are regularly installed DIY by homeowners (illegally most of the time but you know), it doesn't take two years of experience to be able to install these without issue. 2 weeks, or half a dozen installs surely would be more than enough.

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