It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there are roughly two million farms found in the United States. After all, something needs to support the robust food systems we rely on every day.
Whether you work on a farm, or just live on a plot of country land, you likely have a farm shed on your property. Sadly, sheds are one of the first things to get neglected on a farm.
If your farm shed has seen better days, you might be considering renovating it without breaking the bank. Luckily, you’re in the perfect place. In this guide, we’ll be going over some simple (and not-so-simple) renovations you can do to make your shed pop.
Plan Everything Ahead of Time
The key to any successful renovation project is planning. This is important for two reasons. First, it will help you decide on the extent of the renovations.
Maybe you just want to improve the outdoor appearance and functionality of your farm shed. Or, you could want to transform the entire shed space into a workshop or guest room.
Both of these options are great. However, they’re vastly different renovation projects. As such, defining what you want the project to be can help determine what’s essential.
The second reason planning is essential is because you need to set your budget. This is vital because it’s incredibly easy for renovation budgets to go over.
Before you know it, you’re spending hundreds or even thousands more than you initially intended. By setting a hard budget, you ensure that you stay in line with what you can afford.
Budgets are also important because they determine the extent of your renovations. For example, if you have a small budget, then a complete overhaul of the space probably isn’t the best idea.
Before You Start Renovating, Organize and Clean
Most people use their farm or hay sheds for storing equipment and miscellaneous objects. So if you’re like most individuals, your shed is probably filthy and disorganized.
Before you begin the renovation, you want a clean, organized shell to work with. That means it’s time to do some Spring cleaning. First, clear out everything from your farm shed.
Then, start organizing it into three piles. The first pile should be things you want to get rid of or donate. The second should be things you want to continue to store in the shed.
And the third should be things you want to keep either in your house or a storage facility. Once you have everything organized, begin cleaning. In some cases, you might have pests like rats or bug nests in your shed.
In these cases, you will need to hire an exterminating service. Once the farm shed is clean, you can begin the renovations.
Simple Things You Can for Renovating a Farm Shed
Once you’ve got everything ready, you can begin on specific renovations for your hay shed. Again, the specifics of your renovations will depend on your wants for the new shed and your budget.
However, these are all budget-friendly options that can make a big difference in appearance and function.
1. Add a Fresh Coat of Paint
Never underestimate the power of a fresh coat of paint. A layer or two is all it takes to transform the outdoor appearance of your farm shed. When choosing colors, make sure you pick a tone that complements the nearby buildings or structures the shed is near.
For example, earthy green tones go beautifully with neutral blues. Similarly, vibrant red works nicely with dark brown shades. If your farm shed is located far away from any buildings, then don’t worry about matching.
However, you should make sure that the paint you get is made for outdoor use. That way it doesn’t start peeling at the first sight of poor weather.
2. Consider Different Siding Options
In some cases, you may need to update the siding on your farm shed before you can worry about painting it. This is especially true if it’s been decades since it saw any maintenance.
Painting rotten wood siding is going to be a waste of money. You can look into all varieties of shed sidings. However, generally speaking, you have two options for a renovation: wood and vinyl.
The wood siding looks great and is affordable. However, it does require a lot of upkeep. You’ll need to worry about staining, painting, and potential pests (like termites).
Vinyl looks less natural and is more expensive. However, it requires far less maintenance. To clean it all you need to do is hose it down. Lifespan should also be a consideration when you choose farm shed siding.
Wood siding typically lasts around ten years, while vinyl can last up to twenty-five. The other siding option you have is metal siding. However, typically this will involve an entirely new farm shed – not a renovation.
3. Choose Better Lighting Options
Even if you’re not using your local shed as a hangout space, it can still be a good idea to invest in lighting. For one thing, it allows you to find things in the shed during the night or early morning hours.
It can also drastically improve the appearance of the farm shed. If you are adding light fixtures to your farm shed, make sure they’re energy efficient.
Not only will this help the environment, but it will also save you some money down the line. How do you find energy-efficient lighting? We recommend checking out the government’s Energy Star resource.
This will help you find lighting that uses 90% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs.
4. Think About Heating and Insulation
The level of heating and insulation you want to add to your local sheds will depend on what you’re using it for. If you want to spend time in your shed, especially during the winter, then it makes sense to invest in some heating elements.
However, even if you don’t spend time in your shed, you might still want to insulate it. Again, this depends on what you’re storing in it. If the equipment or objects are climate-sensitive, then some insulation is the bare minimum you can do.
When you combine insulation with a space heater, this should be enough to spend a few hours in the shed for a workshop. However, if you want to completely renovate into a liveable room, you’re going to need to invest in some professional HVAC.
5. Build In Organization Components
If you plan on continuing to use your farm shed for organization, you’ll want to take precautions that prevent it from getting cluttered again. The best way to do this is to build organization components into the shed.
Things like shelves, work tables, bins, and wall hangers are all great options for reducing the amount of unused space in a shed.
When Should You Call a Professional
A lot of the renovations we mentioned can be done DIY. If you have the time, things like painting and shelving installation don’t require the help of a professional.
However, if you’re dealing with something outside of your wheelhouse, like lighting or heating, you’re going to want to call a professional. You also shouldn’t be afraid to contact a pro if you don’t have the time or equipment to paint or drill screws into your shed.
Just keep in mind that the more professionals you call, the more expensive the renovations will be.
Can Purchasing a New Farm Shed Be More Affordable?
When it comes to renovating an old farm shed and purchasing a new one, most people think the former is much more affordable. However, it’s important to remember that this isn’t always the case.
The reality is that if your old farm shed is too far gone, the renovation can be extremely costly. This is especially true if you’re changing it into a space outside of its original purpose.
That being said, it can also happen if you go the DIY route. If you don’t have much experience with renovations, you might make costly mistakes that are expensive to fix.
So if you don’t have the time or skill to renovate your farm shed, consider purchasing a new one. There are a variety of companies that make this process easy.
All you need to do is find one that offers farm sheds you like. Then, they’ll come to your property and assemble it for you. Not only can this option be more affordable than renovation, but it will likely also last longer. As such, it’s worth considering.
Appreciate Learning About Farm Shed Renovation? Keep Reading
We hope this guide helped you learn about some effective tips for renovating your farm shed on a budget. Remember that there’s no one-size-fits-all strategy to shed renovation.
Depending on the state of the shed, and what you plan to do with it, you’ll need to adjust your renovation plan accordingly.
If you feel stuck at all in the process, consider contacting a professional to get some advice. Need more home advice tips? Our site is stocked full of them so keep exploring to learn more.
