new shed on concrete slab

Section62

AliceW said:

The downside of that position - if the door is in the near short side - is having a puddle immediately in front of the door.  But if that is an issue you could put some slabs or decking boards down on the concrete to keep your feet dry.

If I  bought a heavy duty rubber honeycomb outdoor mat would that be thick enough keep my feet out of the puddle in front of the door?

Depends on the thickness of the mat, and depth of the puddle. 

Eldi_Dos

AliceW said:

The downside of that position - if the door is in the near short side - is having a puddle immediately in front of the door.  But if that is an issue you could put some slabs or decking boards down on the concrete to keep your feet dry.

If I  bought a heavy duty rubber honeycomb outdoor mat would that be thick enough keep my feet out of the puddle in front of the door?

From what you describe you may be better getting small drainage channels cut into concrete base.
Start very shallow getting progressively deeper towards the edge, a small angle grinder would not cost much if you want to DIY it.

As a stopgap, considering the icy weather, you could get a bit of natural fibre rope, secure it in place and run it over the edge of base, the capillary action should drain puddle until better solution in place.

Heedtheadvice

Another option is to buy and attach plastic facia trim or cloaking strip( thicker the  better ) from a supplier to act to raise the shed slightly so the bearers are above the puddle height and also act as a damp proof 'coarse'. Can be attached to the bearers before setting in position and about the same width or a bit less than the bearers. A cheap option.

Section62

Eldi_Dos said:

AliceW said:

The downside of that position - if the door is in the near short side - is having a puddle immediately in front of the door.  But if that is an issue you could put some slabs or decking boards down on the concrete to keep your feet dry.

If I  bought a heavy duty rubber honeycomb outdoor mat would that be thick enough keep my feet out of the puddle in front of the door?

From what you describe you may be better getting small drainage channels cut into concrete base....

I thought about that when the OP originally posted, but from the picture it looks like the base includes the original garage walls demolished to slab level, with a skim of mortar over the top to level the remains of the wall off.

Not 100% sure, but I think grinding drainage channels into the base to direct the water to the side risks directing water into the wall with possible frost/water damage to the brickwork.

And it doesn't look like there is enough fall to get the water to flow towards where the garage door used to be and out onto the driveway.

A length of channel drain to span over the wall and discharge clear could be a solution... but not a cheap one.

Heedtheadvice said:

Another option is to buy and attach plastic facia trim or cloaking strip( thicker the  better ) from a supplier to act to raise the shed slightly so the bearers are above the puddle height and also act as a damp proof 'coarse'. Can be attached to the bearers before setting in position and about the same width or a bit less than the bearers. A cheap option.

AIUI the problem is with the puddle in front of the door and the inconvenience of having to step over it, not the bearers getting wet.  As the shed has been put up already, trying to pack anything under the bearers now risks doing more harm than good.

Eldi_Dos

@Section62

Good points, another option would be to get a long masonry drill and drill through base to the soil at area puddling is happening, then fill hole with pea gravel or sand.

As it stands at the moment could be slip risk if ices over.

Heedtheadvice

Crikey, how did I miss that the shed is already up....

AliceW

Thank you for the suggestions. The builder who took down the old garage was going to put a channel drain in (an AKO drain?) then he decided I didn't need one. Maybe he thought it wasn't a good idea afterall.  And it sounds as though it could be expensive.

Section62

AliceW said:

Thank you for the suggestions. The builder who took down the old garage was going to put a channel drain in (an AKO drain?) then he decided I didn't need one. Maybe he thought it wasn't a good idea afterall.  And it sounds as though it could be expensive.

He wouldn't have known you would end up with a puddle in front of your shed door at the time. 

Channel drain isn't massively expensive, but getting the concrete cut out to install it now would cost a bit for labour on top of the materials.  I'd stick with my original suggestion of a couple of paving slabs or some decking boards to create a low 'step' to keep your feet above the water.  A really thick door mat might work the same way, but they can saturate if used in standing water so you'd probably still get wet feet.