So

There’s a space in the garden which is crying out for a new shed / roofed chill out area,

Now I’m yet to make up my mind whether to just buy a ready made shed or build something unique..

Im keen to get a concrete base started – if I go for a standard shed base floor plan will this still be ok for a hand built project as well.

What I’m trying to ask is if I decided to go for a bespoke option and with timber posts would it be preferable to sink these in at the same time as the base ? Or can it sit on top of the concrete?

Hard core base will allow water to drain away, shed usually rot from floor upwards, and dont forget gutters and down pipes along with a water butt to stop flooding garden.

Not concrete. Think of the environment. IIRC 1KG cement = 1KG Carbon emissions…
Just hardcore or build on top of 4×4 posts laid flat

I love concrete!

Are you a witch?

How about (from ground level up) slate chippings or other coarse aggregate, bricks or breezeblock under all floor structural members, layer of DPC, shed?

Got the same conundrum for kids playhouse. Can’t be arsed concreting. Only issue i can see with putting on blocks is potential for vermin underneath. Maybe some fine metal mesh under the aggregate?

Chuck some MOT down, and then place some lintels on top. A bit of Galv sheet to top the vermin, but if they want to get in they will!

I am trying this stuff – Hawklok

I generally look out for anyone giving slabs away, always some on the go.

Build a shutter 150mm high, and just an inch or so bigger than shed base. Fill with said slabs to about 2″ from all sides, and about an inch below top. Then cover with concrete and screed to level. Saves spending loads on concrete and is bloody solid.

About twenty years ago we moved into a new house and I decided to put up a shed – saw a sheet in B&Q about building a shed base so dug a hole, put up timber shuttering (coated with oil so that it would be easy to remove), bought some hardcore, rented a cement mixer, bought loads of sharp sand and blue circle and fair’s fair it turned out lovely.

Cost three times more than the shed ffs, but turned out lovely…

dad used the technique of decent shed base and a sacrifice layer. (so make sure you can partly lift the shed up by the base[scaffold pipes/big planks/mates], between the shed and base put some 2×2 etc – with roofing felt on the top[with it being slight smaller than the shed base so nothing is sticking out/protected by shed base], when it rots lever up shed bit by bit and swop the sacrifice bits out

I am trying this stuff – Hawklok

just had a look at that, seems reasonably priced and a lot less faff.

sacrifice layer.

i bet you could use some old wooden pallets for that….

IIRC 1KG cement = 1KG Carbon emissions…

Thats the trouble with trying to recall things, actual figures are: Carbon footprint for 1000kg of concrete is 87kg (2014 figures – latest readily available), see http://www.sustainableconcrete.org.uk/co2_emissions.aspx