Nobody wants to do shed base

Solenoid

I called couple of local companies to give us a quote but nobody turns up on the date they give me. So posted the job on mybuilder.com but got call only from 1 builder. He never turned up either. It is for a sensory room for my disabled child. So now thinking of doing it myself. I originally wanted concrete base. Can anybody give me advice what I can manage on my own for a sensory room base in garden. Its basically a shed but need to be solid for jumping, playing etc inside. I looked on ebay and there are plastic grids. Do you think that would be suffice.  I am a lady in 40's but I am quiet strong. So thinking of doing it myself. I could even do concrete base myself but I don't think I can level it. Thanks

Ktm1050

Should be a few vids on youtube showing you what to do 

FreeBear

How large is the shed/base ?

If you have good access, you could try a local company that does plant hire & ground works.

I have one booked to do a patio base next month - One guy with a mini digger plus a dump truck and 8 tonnes of hardcore on order.

A shed base, I would do myself - The hardest part is mixing the concrete by hand in a wheelbarrow (have done two here).

ElephantBoy57

Is it as easy as making a wood surround and then order a delivery of ready-mix concrete and then they will just come with their lorry and pour it in?

FreeBear

One would normally mark out the area. Dig out 6-12 inches of earth. Put in 4 inch of crushed brick/concrete or MOT1 and compact it. Top off with 2-4 inches of concrete. The concrete slab should finish a couple of inches higher than the surrounding soil, so a wood frame is needed - Make sure it is straight, square, and level. A length of 2x3 across the width can then be used to tamp & level the concrete. Depending on the quantity of concrete and access, a ready-mix might be easier than mixing by hand.

Carrot007

ElephantBoy57 said:

Is it as easy as making a wood surround and then order a delivery of ready-mix concrete and then they will just come with their lorry and pour it in?

Nearly. Still need a trowel, a float, and a straight edge to nicely level.

Not hard. Done 2 myself. But had a mixer to less pain the concrete making (it's easy and probably cheaper than delivery).

Solenoid

Thank you for the replies. I think I might just do it myself. Thanks for recommendations and encouragement. I never did anything like that before but I believe I can do it. Just watched couple of videos on youtube. Seems easy. 

Homer_home

Good on you , its very satisfying doing it yourself
when you do the shuttering make sure thats perfectly level as that will make your job much easier
try to get the concrete to set for as long as possible as the slower it sets the stronger it is 
and remember concrete is a chemical and can give you burns so make sure you wear suitable ppe

 

gamston

if you are laying a fair bit of concrete or mortor its worth getting hold of a cement mixer, lots of folk now have them, see if someone local has one you can have for a few hours

Rosa_Damascena

Solenoid said:

I called couple of local companies to give us a quote but nobody turns up on the date they give me. So posted the job on mybuilder.com but got call only from 1 builder. He never turned up either. 

I suspect the problem here is timing - builders will be awash with more lucrative big jobs at this time of the year, esp post-lockdown. The building world seems to have gone crazy!

If you do decide to go it alone see if there's anyone that has done this before that can help out?

daivid

If you can't borrow a mixer look in to hiring. My local hire company offer mixers for just under £25 for the weekend, well worth it IMO if you have a decent amount to mix. The problem you may have is getting it to and from the hire shop if you don't have a trailer or estate car/van.