Condensation in metal shed

[Robin Spark]

Hi all,

I bought a metal shed thinking it would be better option than a wooden one :^O . Never realised they suffered with condensation and mine is really bad.

At the moment it is temporarily placed on the grass with a plastic sheet on the floor, but i am soon to build a wooden platform so it will be raised off the ground with 4" *2" joists and have been advised by my local timber merchant that i can use roofing ply for the floor.

I have done some research on the internet and it says to reduce condensation in the shed then I will need to line it with polystyrene tiles. I am not too keen on this idea on having a lot of polystyrene (thinking of fire hazards) so I have thought of using aluminium foil roll insulation and B&Q have got a good offer on it at the moment. I would just use "no nails" to glue it onto the shed panels.

Any suggestions or comments on this matter, thanks.

 

[ianmacd]

Insulation spray on foam is probably best but thats even more then celotex. The foil will need to trap air to work so is unlikely to work well in your shed unless you can elliminate air leaks.

 

[Apache]

If it was me I'd line it with some ply. Can fix things to the wood and will offer some insulation. Otherwise it's either a dehumidifier or a heater in there. What are you wanting to keep in it? Make sure everything gets a bloody good oil!

 

[septiclecky]

You got condensation now but when the sun decides to shine in the summer you'll have a sauna.

 

[Robin Spark]

Update, one of my friends brought me some free mdf panels today to line the shed. They told me on the phone it was going to be marine ply (got me excited!), however it wasnt and i didnt really want to refuse them after they had made all the effort to help me out. So I am now thinking perhaps of putting in some rockwool insulation in first and then line with the mdf. Ideally ply would be better and will definatley purchase ply for the floor.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Fibreboard on the roof

 

[steptoe]

try here

http://www.secondsandco.co.uk/

might be worth putting a vent in too, will stop it "sweating" so much.

 

[shieldssecurity]

I've gone and done the same thing, a 36ft x 11ft shed with a steel roof, insulated and plasterboarded the inside done all the electrics and heating then come the winter.........................damp spots all over the ceiling.

I'm thinking of taking the roof off and putting a pre-insulated type

 

[Robin Spark]

I am beginning to think i might as well call me losses and get rid of the darn thing and buy a wooden shed, unless any of you have got a metal shed and its ok. Question to Shield security if you have insulated and boarded your shed and its still damp then what type of base is it on and does it incorporate a DPM?

BTW thanks Steptoe for the link, and yes I was thinking about putting in some extra ventilation.

 

[steptoe]

No probs, a customer gave me that a while back when we got talking and I mentioned I was building a shed workshop .

one of those customers that knows everything/body, but he really did, he even knew a guy from Northern Ireland that I hadnt seen in about 30years.....

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

I am beginning to think i might as well call me losses and get rid of the darn thing and buy a wooden shed, unless any of you have got a metal shed and its ok. Question to Shield security if you have insulated and boarded your shed and its still damp then what type of base is it on and does it incorporate a DPM?BTW thanks Steptoe for the link, and yes I was thinking about putting in some extra ventilation.

I may be wrong... but IMHO the key points of your problem are

1) the floor (or lack of it) and 2) ventilation (or lack of it)!!

AFAIK any sealed container left upside down on the ground especially grass will generate loads'a condensation..

Before you do big works for your shed try a little experiment

three tests.....

1/

Stand a bucket, a bowl, a paint tin and/or a large quality street tin

upside down over night direct on your lawn,

see how much condensation there is in the morning.

2/

Stand a bucket, a bowl, a paint tin and/or a large quality street tin

upside down on a wooden board supported by battens a few inches off the lawn over night,

see how much condensation there is in the morning.

3/

Get your bucket, bowl, paint tin and/or a large quality street tin

from tests 1 & 2, cut some ventilation holes in the sides..

then put them upside down on a wooden board supported by battens a few inches off the lawn over night,

see how much condensation there is in the morning.

My gut feeling is ventilation and raising off the ground will drastically reduce your problem.

the reason for my thoughts are...

your metal shed is not much different in principal to my metal caravan...

enclosed aluminum box sealed on sides and top..

but raised up from the ground with a wooden ply floor...

and ventilation holes to allow the escape of gas in the event of a gas leak!!

Obviously the caravan also has insulation stuck on the inside of the outer skin...

but in essence its a metal shed with windows raised off the ground!

So I think you should be able to work something out!

GuinnessGuinness

 

[alchemist]

I am beginning to think i might as well call me losses and get rid of the darn thing and buy a wooden shed, unless any of you have got a metal shed and its ok. Question to Shield security if you have insulated and boarded your shed and its still damp then what type of base is it on and does it incorporate a DPM?BTW thanks Steptoe for the link, and yes I was thinking about putting in some extra ventilation.

I have a garage sized metal shed on a concrete base. It lets water in at the bottom when it rains, gets really warm in summer, and has condensation dripping down the rest of the time.

Wishing i'd had a brick one built now!

 

[batty]

I have a metal shed brought it when I was doing a welding course thought this was the best option. They do sweat though will replace it with a wooden one eventually.

 

[shieldssecurity]

I am beginning to think i might as well call me losses and get rid of the darn thing and buy a wooden shed, unless any of you have got a metal shed and its ok. Question to Shield security if you have insulated and boarded your shed and its still damp then what type of base is it on and does it incorporate a DPM?BTW thanks Steptoe for the link, and yes I was thinking about putting in some extra ventilation.

The shed is actually made of timber with a timber base. the roof is steel and has been insulated and plasterboarded. All i can make out is that the insualaton is not good enouh and the heat is hitting the cold roof, condensating and freezing up and when it thaws it drips like hell. I made a big mistake fitting the type of roof that I did

 

[steptoe]

The shed is actually made of timber with a timber base. the roof is steel and has been insulated and plasterboarded. All i can make out is that the insualaton is not good enouh and the heat is hitting the cold roof, condensating and freezing up and when it thaws it drips like hell. I made a big mistake fitting the type of roof that I did

shield , a cheapish solution may be to fit some felt inside supported by chicken wire, similar to a normal house roof, if you can get a run off(assuming its a pent roof) to the outside then this may be a viable alternative meantime.

of course you will need to put it above your existing plasterboard & insulation which may make it prohibitive in your case.