Shed-in-a-Box Shade Structure

[Fufa]

Has anyone had the chance to use one yet? I have the opportunity to buy one off my volunteer group, as its no longer needed.

The one I'll have is pretty similar to the one below, the whole structure is steel and shaped like a house and is big enough to fit a car parked under it. It will be used to keep a tent, small sitting area, and table with BBQ stove under. The pieces fit into each other pretty tightly, with some extra sturdiness from turn screws at the bottom joints. The bases are flat with holes for tent pegs. It already comes with a gray fitted tarp with elastic tie downs.

Good idea? Bad idea? FANTASTIC idea?



Mine differs from this one in that is has horizontal bars along the bottom sides.

[Bin Noddin]

Does the back open? There are times when you'll want it closed and comfy and other times when opening it up for ventilation would keep things from being too stifling.

[trilobyte]

There are a few threads on the subject of carports that you could take a look at. The primary issue is that, by designed, those things aren't made to withstand playa winds. If you get one that's been over-engineered then hooray, you can probably just get away with replacing a few cotter pins or bolts, and add some guy lines to reinforce and help stake it down. If not, then you run the risk of poles bending or even snapping during strong gusts (last year was a freak year, with close to zero in the strong winds department). It's not the kind of structure I'd use/recommend (I've seen too many of them fail), but your mileage may vary. If it's through your volunteer group, hopefully you've gotten (or can get) the chance to take a good look at the structure and try to get a sense of the quality of the materials. Good luck!

[Elderberry]

Looks great. You've been on the playa, so you know to stake it down well. And you might want to be prepared to remove the sides in case of a severe wind storm.

If you've seen our camp shade structure, you will notice it doesn't have sides. It came with sides, but we no longer use them because of problems with the wind. But our sides were over 40 feet long too.

[Fufa]

Yeah the back opens up. The front and back faces are their own pieces that have zippered doors or can be left off completely. I would think this one is rather sturdy, the poles are about 1.5-2" thick and really heavy. I've set it up twice and it took 6 people to lift the roof up. It's not even that hard to tie the other walls up a bit higher.

It seems way more sturdy then the bendy PVC hoops we used last year. And of course, I will guy line it up like crazy.

[Elderberry]

I'd go for it. It seems really nice and roomy too.

[moonrise]

Looks like a decent unit and the price was probably nice.

You can always "clam shell" it if we have an extra windy time out there. If you set it up full height and find it's catching too much wind, hopefully it'd withstand the first bad wind storm(s) long enough to go to "clam shell" mode. Should be easy to do (and test off playa).

AntiM and MyLarry turned me onto "clam shelling" a carport, works great for winds...I've even tested this clam shelled method of set up for snow load (also worked well).

Clam shelling is when you don't use one of the walls and set the roof end poles down on the playa, makes a lower roof and profile but the sturdy result is well worth a bit of ducking.

[Bob]

If you like it, make it work for you. Set it up at home and make it feel comfortable.

[Trishntek]

that looks very much like our Rhino portable garage. It is extremely robust. I just plant a T-post beside each vertical post and tape them together. It takes 4 people about an hour to put up our 12'X20' unit. We did use it as our activity space the past two years.

It will be our main kitchen and food storage area this year. The bottom horizontal bar is crucial to lace the cover down tight. The cover flairs out at ground level to form a nice skirt-type barrier around the bare ground perimeter. The package weighs 320 pounds and does not pack into any kind of neat little bundle. Mine is held together with thirty-two 3/8" bolts and nuts through 1 5/8" stainless pipe.

It is actually the most robust structure in my camp. I hope you got a good deal on it Fufa! Mine is also the most expensive structure in my camp.

[moonrise]

She must be off looking at something shiny.....

[Fufa]

Hey thanks guys, I think it should work fine. I'm just waiting to hear back what the group wants to charge me for it. And I will definitely set it up a few times and work out the kinks before dust time.


moonrise: Shiny? My darned homework is nowhere near shiny. Sure wish it was... Would make it less boring.

[ranger magnum]

My only concern is the dark colored roof. That is gonna absorb a lotta heat. Some aluminet over the top will help it keep cool.

As for wind resistance, use some tie downs and secure it to your car. (two cars is ideal. One on each side of the structure. Then tie down all for corners)