Tuff Shed

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

We have too much crap, partly due to the fact that both of our sets of parents were HOARDERS and we are stuck in the middle. (WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??) My parents died last year and I got rid of 99.5% of their crap before we sold their house. However, 0.5% is sitting in my back yard in plastic snap lid boxes. We have a cheapo plastic 8x10 shed which is still in decent condition, but we need something larger and sturdier so we can stack those damn boxes and also store the crap that is currently in the plastic shed. We would also like to put in a few bookcases and maybe a couple of chairs for chilling out.

Hence, I am looking at a Tuff Shed. I saw one I really liked at Home Despot. It was 10x12' with a door and window. Looks pretty nice. Nicely outfitted, it sells for about 4200$ installed--or so they say. Anyway, I have a few questions:

Do you recommend Tuff Shed?

Are they a good value?

How long will it likely last before needing repair (we live in SoCal--unfortunately!)

Which options should I absolutely get, which ones are nice, and which ones are a waste?

Will they nickel and dime me to death with options--reinforced this, heavy-duty that, super-coated this, upgraded power supply for the gable vent's titanium sublimation pump???

Are there alternatives of similar quality I should look at?

I am going to ask the Tuff Shed local dude (his business card is available on the sheds at Home Despot) to come out here and look at our setup before they show up here with a 5000$ shed and say "uhhhh, we didn't know you had XYZ problem. uhhhh We can't put the shed there!"

Thanks for your advice!

 

[Dicey]

I'm on a non-profit board and we needed an additional storage shed. We went with Tough Shed about five years ago and it's been okay. DH did the site prep, including spreading and compacting base rock and the TS people did the rest.

I was much more impressed with the sheds offered through Costco,  but other members succumbed to the sales pitch of the TS guy. This was before the pandemic drove the price of raw materials skyward. One thing to keep in mind is that Tough Shed is a franchise. Their existence depends on selling you the upgrades, and they will suggest everything.

What we store in our T. Shed normally rotates through several times a year, so climate control is less important to us. We insulated the roof and added ventilation. It's not as hot here as SoCal and what we store isn't particularly sensitive to temperature fluctuation. We have a storage rack system, so we needed no additional ahelving.

Hope that helps!

[terran]

Not to be harsh, by why does having dead hoarder parents mean you have a bunch of stuff stored in boxes in your back yard? This is your life, so if you don't have space for this stuff, maybe you shouldn't keep it?

[affordablehousing]

A neighbor put one in and was really happy with it. If you don't want the hassle of making your own, I think it's a fine option and easily accessible. It doesn't sound like your needs are super bespoke. I don't know the options he got but I took a quick look and he said it was fairly basic, and it looked fine to me.

[cool7hand]

(WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??)
 

The Depression?

[Dicey]

(WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??)
 

The Depression?

It's that and more. Possessions, aka "worldly goods" used to be a lot harder to come by. With the onset of the global economy, everything became so cheap that we are now drowning in consumer goods. We can get anything we want, for a reasonable price, overnight or sooner.

[GuitarStv]

(WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??)
 

The Depression?

It's that and more. Possessions, aka "worldly goods" used to be a lot harder to come by. With the onset of the global economy, everything became so cheap that we are now drowning in consumer goods. We can get anything we want, for a reasonable price, overnight or sooner.

Not true!  Sometimes I have to wait two days.

[reeshau]

Not to be harsh, by why does having dead hoarder parents mean you have a bunch of stuff stored in boxes in your back yard? This is your life, so if you don't have space for this stuff, maybe you shouldn't keep it?

I have to agree.  Is this stuff permanent?  Even a year of a similar size storage unit should be about half the cost.  Are you keeping things longer than that?

And, you aren't left with a shed in the backyard to justify...

[Rob_bob]

Not to be harsh, by why does having dead hoarder parents mean you have a bunch of stuff stored in boxes in your back yard? This is your life, so if you don't have space for this stuff, maybe you shouldn't keep it?

OP said they have 0.5% of stuff left, maybe it's stuff they would like to keep?  Do your parents have anything you might like to keep?

[Boll weevil]

Can’t speak to Tuff Shed specifically, but I’d be careful about using the shed for any type of medium- to long-term storage of stuff you want to hold onto. It’s certainly better than just leaving boxes piled in the backyard with regards to rain and critters, but could introduce its own problems with climate control (especially heat). Depending on what it is you’re trying to keep, a garage or actually in the residence may be better. (Could you move other stuff to the shed and then backfill with stuff from your parents that requires more protection?)

Also, by going from an 8x10 to a 10x12 you’re only gaining about 40 square feet. Not knowing how full the existing shed is or how many boxes you have, you may not be getting as much space as you’d be comfortably need for chairs. But putting in shelving and/or hanging stuff from the ceiling would certainly help open up floor space.

[sonofsven]

(WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??)
 

The Depression?

It was their folks that went through the depression, but yes, this did have an impact.

[Paper Chaser]

(WTF is/was it with people born in the 40s??)
 

The Depression?

The Depression, followed by rationing during WWII