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I Built a Shed (2020)

eduardosasso.co

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Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#191

Post by dudul »

sokoloff wrote: post #174
adventured wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The home insurance people will absolutely nail him on this. They'll eventually send someone out to inspect the property on a policy renewal. They'll refuse to renew the policy until the code violations are corrected. And they'll definitely notice and have questions about the odd 'shed' that looks new and very out of place. If he has really wired it as it seems, if anything consequential (unrelated) happens to the pro…

Where do you live that insurance companies send inspectors ‘round? I’ve owned 2 houses for a total of over 25 years and never had an insurance inspector visit nor heard of them visiting anyone else for a renewal. Is this common elsewhere in the world?

Been a homeowner for 10+ years and it never happened to me either. I only see insurance people when I have a claim to evaluate the cost.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#192

Post by mgarfias »

Wow. Just wow.

Not gonna pollute with comments about it that others have already made.

I will add that I am making electrical/gas renovations to the house/detached garage.

Basically we are adding LP to the house for my new range, and a gas water heater. Also ran gas to the garage for powering a genset. The past year or so has taught me the import of off grid solutions for certain things like cooking and hot water.

So, I had to dig a trench from the house to the garage. Code called for 18” deep, but I went as deep as my backhoe would allow. Grey pvc conduit was put in for elec, a separate tube for fiber, and pex for water.

The LP co, came and installed a 250gal tank on a pad I poured, then ran gas in some kinda pex-like tubing to the house and garage. County eventually came out to inspect and signed off, allowing me to back fill (partly down now). Next steps are to finish connecting the pvc to the house, finish the water run, and then I need to buy the copper for the elect run - probably $1500 worth.

The only bits I’m concerned about is getting the power shut off, and power lines moved to the underground conduit I’ve placed from the pile to the house as I’ll need an actual electrician or will have to wait a week for the power company to turn back on after the shut off.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#193

Post by mgarfias »

mgarfias wrote: post #192

Wow. Just wow. Not gonna pollute with comments about it that others have already made. I will add that I am making electrical/gas renovations to the house/detached garage. Basically we are adding LP to the house for my new range, and a gas water heater. Also ran gas to the garage for powering a genset. The past year or so has taught me the import of off grid solutions for certain things like cooking and hot water. So…

Oh, I’d add that my current power runs through the trees to the house, and from the house to the garage in the trees. And the house is nearly 50 years old, and therefor grandfathered in without an electrical shutoff on the side of the house. Part of this project is to fix all that.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#194

Post by sixstringtheory »

wbl wrote: post #140
0xbadcafebee wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You just went from concerned citizen, to person with anger management issues lashing out. If your thoughts here were in good faith, you would help the author learn about code compliance so that he could make the necessary modifications and learn about the real-world consequences of not being in compliance. Instead you're making a threat to send code enforcement after him so that he can be punished for being ignorant.…

The punishment for building code violations is death. The building code enforcement is a lot more lenient in comparison.

All the people replying to this minimizing the concerns of the original comment need to go back and reread it. The point that really raised their hackles was the electrical issue, not insulation or overlapping rooflines.

Electricity can instantly kill you or start a fire, which could kill you and your neighbors. Look at what just happened in Boulder. Fire is dangerous, especially when combined with high winds. I personally saw that play out twice while living in Boston, one of which was determined to have been caused by sparks from unpermitted welding, the other by improper disposal of smoldering construction debris. Both small starts whipped up by winds, both times multiple people died.

The phrase I’ve heard is “regulations are written in blood.”

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#195

Post by tharkun__ »

hinkley wrote: post #100
tharkun__ wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I like your parent's explanation of why screws are not allowed by code in some places and also saying that yes, screws actually can be used, if you use the right ones, even if they aren't allowed by code in some places. I really like that because just mentioning code doesn't do any good. Just because code says something doesn't mean that it makes sense. There's tons of omissions in codes or stuff that is unnecessaril…

Overlapping rooflines allow you to make a “detached” building that is functionally an addition to your house. The downside is that if you want to build a breezeway to a detached garage you’re going to have to get permits to do that. It sucks but otherwise you get people who make a long narrow house that’s a series of rooms that were built over time, and never inspected. You may see properties that have three fairly l…

This is exactly the reason I asked for reasoning. A perfect example of a specific reason for something in code where depending on what you are doing yourself you can safely ignore the code violation (except for the legality part). If the reason you gave is indeed the reason and only reason.

I would argue that if inspections for safety reasons are why this is in code then code needs to remove this restriction and other rules should be put in place and inspections should become less expensive, easier to get done etc. Basically make it easier and less of a problem for people to get inspected. You will still get people that won't do one of course. Make it possible to inspect them anyway. Of course I understand that there are conflicting priorities at work here too. Meaning funding. The optimal way for everyone would be quite expensive. So we get suboptimal solutions that are sometimes "OK" to circumvent and sometimes not.

Here the bylaws for example allow one main structure, a shed and a detached garage (even if you have an attached one already). No need for roof overhang code stuff. The intent of the bylaw is also much more clear.

The guy in the article arguably is creating such a detached building. He is also in violation of rules about how far structures have to be from the property line assuming the rules in his place are like here and that fence is towards the neighbors.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#196

Post by progfix »

hddherman wrote: post #119
progfix wrote: post #110

Two other posts from today: * Ask HN: Why does a busy man build a shed? ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29767682 ) * Why I Live In a Shed ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29762145 ) Does HN have some kind of mechanism that promotes posts with similar keywords?

I've noticed this happening as well, and the explanation that I've stuck with is that the follow-up posts are posted by readers who recognize a similar article they've previously read that's deserving of a (re)post on HN.

Sure, but I noticed those similar posts always have the same keywords in them. This time it is "sheds" and I am a little bit in disbelief that someone is gonna post more about sheds :). The first post wasn't even about sheds, it was a question about hobbies.

I don't say that this bad or anything, in fact I like that every day has a different topic on the front page. If this is a natural phenomenon then I have not heard about it yet (and it might be interesting to research?).

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#197

Post by rzzzt »

robotresearcher wrote: post #134
codazoda wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think this would still be temporary in my area because you can pick it up and put it on a flatbread trailer. The wiring might change that. I think there are still lots of rules to follow.

Bonus points for the temporary trailer.

The question is how many flatbreads you need for building one.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#198

Post by jefftk »

pengwing wrote: post #157
jefftk wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> So basically there was no dedicated room inside the house for WFH before? I was previously working from our bedroom. The main downside was if I wanted to start working while my wife was still asleep. > When you use your shed, what are the aspects that you came to value? E.g. is it more about the feeling of nature (because the garden is much closer) or is it more about the sound-separation from the rest of the home?…

Interesting. Thanks for sharing your experiences. Did you do extra-preparation on the extra room that is now available to you? E.g. foaming walls or door to have the same level of sound separation? Which direction of sound separation is more important to you, incoming sound (not being disturbed) or outgoing sound (not disturbing sleeping people with your work)?

I am not particularly noise sensitive, so the amount of sound separation you get just by being in a separate room is usually enough for me.

The shed has excellent noise separation, however, which occasionally has been useful in letting friends work there for a while.

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#199

Post by caslon »

DoreenMichele wrote: post #175
pjc50 wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Not that anything about this shed is built to code This is why we can't have nice, or at least affordable but slightly less than perfect, things. I would also note that, while I'm sure everyone's right about the rules in Santa Cruz, this is jurisdiction specific. In the UK, if your shed is less than 15m^2 and is not used as living accomodation, no building regulations apply, and you can build it with screws, nails,…

This is why we can't have nice, or at least affordable but slightly less than perfect, things. I really enjoyed reading the article just as someone who likes writing and reading. It was very engaging and I enjoyed the process he went through from having an idea to finally committing to it and I especially liked him commenting on things like choosing materials that fit in his car. I also really am enjoying the comment…

(For anyone who thinks DoreenMichele was being hyperbolic: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsa_race_massacre)

Re: I Built a Shed (2020)

#200

Post by fargle »

waynesonfire wrote: post #116
fargle wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Check your city/county, but in most places in CA and the rest of the US, zoning allows up to a 120 square foot shed without building permits. Neighborhood HOAs, if applicable, would be the other restriction. 36 square feet? good to go. If I were to do it, I'd make it slightly bigger and put a electrical sub-panel in it with an extension cord like an RV has. You could plug it into anywhere with an RV outlet. It's also…

building permit is not a zoning permit. OP may still need to get a zoning permit.

I didn't say they were the same thing. And I meant what I said: zoning allows a shed without building permits in most places. It depends on the jurisdiction but because of model zoning codes the rules are almost all the same across CA.

In CA and most of the US there is usually no separate "zoning permit", although it exists in a few places (I see berkeley and sonoma county). Usually zoning and the development and land use codes just say what you're allowed to do, and are enforced based on helpful neighbor-driven complaints. But you usually don't need a permit up front except for things like conditional use and special use permits, certainly not a shed. For things requiring a building permit, the permitted use (zoning) is just part of that process.

The OP can and should check the city/county and find out. The point I'm trying to make is there is actually a fairly high likely hood that even in over-regulated CA you can build a 120 sq. ft. "shed" or "playhouse" in the backyard without a building or zoning permit. Without knowing the exact jurisdiction, this is just general advice about the most usual practices - for example San Diego, LA, San Bernardino cities and counties.

One thing I should mention: technically plumbing/electrical in the shed or calling it or using it as an "office" might not be kosher, but in practice everyone does this with no issue. It's just a very nice "playhouse".

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