Shed recommendations for submersible pump & water well

[Mountain trapper]

Havasu, the problem is getting the materials and finding a handyman. My friend can do some stuff but he works a lot and doesn't have much free time to come help. He had to pick up more hours to pay the mortgage on the new house. It's very hard to find reliable people who won't just come out and steal stuff and then ghost. Had handymen do that in the past. Ideally I'd love to do a ground rated pressure treated wood one. Not familiar with T-111 siding but I'm about to google it.

The siding on my pump house is T-111. They make a plywood version, which is what mine is, and they make a cheap press board one. Either one will do the job.

 

[havasu]

The siding on my pump house is T-111. They make a plywood version, which is what mine is, and they make a cheap press board one. Either one will do the job.

If it is stopped away from the ground to prevent wicking/rot.

 

[Mountain trapper]

If it is stopped away from the ground to prevent wicking/rot.

I built mine on a concrete pad on top of some 3/4 minus gravel, so the siding is several inches above the ground. Snow does build up aginst the building but there's generally very little moisture in the snow to damage the siding. And it's painted too.

 

[zoomzoom]

The siding on my pump house is T-111. They make a plywood version, which is what mine is, and they make a cheap press board one. Either one will do the job.

Or just use Hardie Panel. It looks like wood but is concrete based. It lasts forever with no rot or otherwise. That's all I use anymore.

They have several products. I use their T-111 looking products on my buildings. The buildings are nearly 30 years old and look like new. Paint them every 30-40 years just to keep it looking fresh (from paint fading).

https://www.jameshardie.com/

 

[havasu]

I faced the front of my old house with Hardie Panels. I would have suggested this to "Z" girl, but it is very heavy and cumbersome to cut and install without alot of help.

Hardie concrete products are really nice stuff.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Or just use Hardie Panel. It looks like wood but is concrete based. It lasts forever with no rot or otherwise. That's all I use anymore.

They have several products. I use their T-111 looking products on my buildings. The buildings are nearly 30 years old and look like new. Paint them every 30-40 years just to keep it looking fresh (from paint fading).

https://www.jameshardie.com/

That's what my house in Alaska was sided with. It's very good stuff, and expensive. I have 3 buildings here that I sided with T-111, one sided with cedar, and the rest I sided with 1×12 fir.
Hardie boards are good, but they aren't a budget product.

 

[zoomzoom]

Hardie boards are good, but they aren't a budget product.

Agreed that it's not cheap but neither is replacing warped/cracked/buckled/rotted T-111 every 20 years.
A wood structure for a pump house that gets a lot of moisture probably deteriorates even faster.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Agreed that it's not cheap but neither is replacing warped/cracked/buckled/rotted T-111 every 20 years.
A wood structure for a pump house that gets a lot of moisture probably deteriorates even faster.

Im sure that you get a lot more rainfall than we do, but just keep it painted and make sure there's no leaks and it should last a lifetime. Make sure that no part of it touches the ground and keeps grass and weeds away.

 

[zannej]

Since stuff in the pump house can leak or spray out I don't want something vulnerable to moisture. Especially since we get a ton of rain and its often humid.
Hardeeboard looks like a good product. I've seen it used a lot. Haven't seen it much in this area.

I'm thinking I can start with trying to build around the existing shed and then slowly dismantling it since I don't want any time where electrical is exposed to rain.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Our pump house sits out in the open. It's exposed to a lot of wind and full sun. I build the pump house about 8 or 9 years ago. We painted it then and we need to paint it again this summer or next.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Since stuff in the pump house can leak or spray out I don't want something vulnerable to moisture. Especially since we get a ton of rain and its often humid.
Hardeeboard looks like a good product. I've seen it used a lot. Haven't seen it much in this area.

I'm thinking I can start with trying to build around the existing shed and then slowly dismantling it since I don't want any time where electrical is exposed to rain.

I think Hardiboard is a good option in your area. So far the plumbing in my pump house has never leaked. I'll take a couple pictures to show how my system is connected. It's very simple. Unfortunately it'll be a few days before I can get up to the pump house.

 

[Tirediron]

Since stuff in the pump house can leak or spray out I don't want something vulnerable to moisture. Especially since we get a ton of rain and its often humid.
Hardeeboard looks like a good product. I've seen it used a lot. Haven't seen it much in this area.

I'm thinking I can start with trying to build around the existing shed and then slowly dismantling it since I don't want any time where electrical is exposed to rain.

have you looked into changing to a single pump system , like a submersable , that system you have has so many stages and complications

 

[zannej]

I think Hardiboard is a good option in your area. So far the plumbing in my pump house has never leaked. I'll take a couple pictures to show how my system is connected. It's very simple. Unfortunately it'll be a few days before I can get up to the pump house.

I appreciate it. The only leak right now is at a union. I think the O-ring is either damaged or not being compressed properly. It wasn't leaking when the repair guys left but it started after. It's on an 1-1/4" fitting so I will have to see if I can get a replacement O-ring. It's also possible the fitting may be broken inside.
I took a screenshot from a video of it dripping and drew an arrow to where it leaks

have you looked into changing to a single pump system , like a submersable , that system you have has so many stages and complications

Yes, I've looked into it and it would be prohibitively expensive. They would have to drill an entirely new well for it. I actually like having a cistern because if the power is out or there is a problem I can still get water out of the cistern in a pinch. The current well pipe is far too small for a submersible pump to fit. The guy who does the repairs also does drilling and installing of whole new well systems. It would require a lot of work to get it protected and would just be a nightmare.

I wonder how hard it would be to build around the existing shed, make a taller structure, and then keep some parts of the existing shed inside that are holding the breaker box, cables, etc. Since the lean-to is messed up I don't have to remain within its confines. Maybe I could incorporate a new lean-to as an extension of the larger shed and only have a single sloped roof. I'd do a metal roof so I wouldn't need a ridge cap but I would need rake trim to keep wind from getting under the sheets.

I can't remember if I mentioned it or not, but I was looking at chicken coop/house solar fans for the shed. Would it be better to have two fans to circulate air on different walls?

 

[havasu]

Looks like that pvc coupling is cracked on top. I have those same coupling on my sprinkler valves, and they are notorious for cracking. Cut it off and use a glue on connection.

 

[Mad Dog 1]

Has anyone considered industrial cold room panels the freezer panel are designed down to about -20c ,easy to cut to size , years back we had non electric hinges that would open glass panels on a glass house roof as the temp increased [ talking 1968 ] maybe could be used with the panels to open a section in the side wall to allow heat out , i built 2 kennels outside for the dogs to sleep in when the temp went below 0c [ but we would find one outside with frost on her coat some morningswith malls / shops closing often the have to empty the building of internal structures , so panels could be available, I used them on a plot to cover the French drain I hade made then put soil on top of them , just some thoughts

 

[havasu]

Z Girl, can you provide the dimensions roughly on how large this pump house needs to be? 6'x6', 5'x5', 4'x8', 8'x5'?
I have a cheap idea, depending on the side needed.

 

[zannej]

I looked at it but didn't see any cracks but I can go examine it in a bit and see if I can feel any cracks on it.
Never heard of the cold room panels before.
I'm trying to remember the dimensions. I think it was 8x10 but I'll have to take a larger measuring tape out and check it later. I know I want to extend it out a bit at the back (behind the jet pump so there would be more space for pump maintenance.
I'll try to go out with a measuring tape in a bit.
I did have a thought that I don't necessarily need such a huge doorway so I could use some pressure treated lumber to make it a bit smaller and then have outswing doors on hinges-- or a single outswing door.

 

[Mountain trapper]

I looked at it but didn't see any cracks but I can go examine it in a bit and see if I can feel any cracks on it.
Never heard of the cold room panels before.
I'm trying to remember the dimensions. I think it was 8x10 but I'll have to take a larger measuring tape out and check it later. I know I want to extend it out a bit at the back (behind the jet pump so there would be more space for pump maintenance.
I'll try to go out with a measuring tape in a bit.
I did have a thought that I don't necessarily need such a huge doorway so I could use some pressure treated lumber to make it a bit smaller and then have outswing doors on hinges-- or a single outswing door.

An outswing door is OK if you never get snow otherwise you'll have to dig the snow out to open the door. My pump house is 8×8. It's adequate, but I wish that I had built it a little bigger, 8×10 or 10×10.

 

[havasu]

I was just wondering if a Costco or a Sam's Club could drop ship a resin walled storage shed. I've installed many of them in 2-3 hours, and the air pockets that are sandwiched in the panels would stop the freezing cold.

 

[zannej]

Mountaintrapper, we very rarely get snow and the last time we did it was the most snow we've ever had and was only about 8" high. Since the front of the shed is under a lean-to there was no snow in front of the doorway. but that is something to consider.

Havasu, no Costco in my area but the prices of the samsclub ones were pretty high priced and they were heavy as hell. Would require a forklift to move since they are resin on outside but metal-reinforced on the inside. Mom nixed the idea of the resin sheds when I asked her about it.
Went and measured and one side is about 7-1/2' and the other is 9-1/2'. That was with an 8ft measuring tape that wouldn't hook on so its approximate. My good measuring tapes have all disappeared.

That extra 6" of going 8x10 would be nice. 8x12 would be roomier but would take more material, more roofing and require more cfm for heating/cooling. I suppose I could use ground contact pressure landscaping timbers for the foundation part and slap those down and anchor them to the ground around the existing shed and then build around it. Once the new shed is up, I can cut out parts of the metal shed to get it out of the way and tether any parts I want to keep to the inside of the new shed.

 

[zoomzoom]

@zannej
I'd like to work this backwards. What's your budget? You obviously need a new shed. Do you have anyone/anyplace around you that sells discounted or used metal roofing?

 

[Mountain trapper]

I think your best bet would be to build a new shed out of lumber. When I built mine I poured a concrete slab. I hired a concrete truck to pour it because I needed concrete for other projects. But you could easily mix your own concrete in a wheel barrow. An 8×8 slab wouldn't take too long or cost too much. You could use 2×4's for the framing and the trusses. If you build it with a shed roof it's even easier and cheaper.
If we lived closer I'd come over and build it for you in about 2 or 3 days.
On my well house the actual well is outside building and the pump is down about 625 feet. I dug down about 6 feet on the well casing and cut a hole in the casing to run the water line under where to where I was going to pour the slab. Then I poured the concrete around the water lines and the electric conduit lines.
I have a large pressure tank sitting on the slab. You have a cistern, right? You just need to account for the size of it if you build a pump house.
These are really simple, and fun, projects to build.

 

[zoomzoom]

These are really simple, and fun, projects to build.

I was thinking the same until I saw the current situation. I can do household plumbing but what's going on here is beyond my understanding.

 

[Mountain trapper]

I was thinking the same until I saw the current situation. I can do household plumbing but what's going on here is beyond my understanding.


View attachment 173152

Oh..I see what you mean. Is there any good (I mean professional) plumbers in your area? A real plumber could probably get rid of most of that pipe and fittings.

 

[zannej]

No places selling discount metal roofing nearby.

No nearby concrete places, but the metal shed is on concrete around the perimeter. The adjacent shed has concrete slab that we mixed in a small cement mixer and poured ourselves. We did once get cement truck out for big jobs via a contractor (who since passed away) but the truck got stuck in the mud and had to be towed out.

No good plumbers. The only plumber who will come out refuses to touch anything to do with a well system and he's not what I would call "good". Believe it or not, I already got rid of a lot of extraneous stuff.

I think there is some confusion from old pipes discarded on the ground. The way the pipe comes out of the cistern and the location for the pressure tank complicated how things went. There is a convoluted run of 1-1/4" pipe coming out of the cistern and going to the front of the pump. There was not enough space to try to turn the pump to a different position/angle. From there some 1" pipe comes from the top of the pump and then goes to a tank tee on a pressure tank. From the tank tee outlet it goes to PEX that loops over and then converts back to PVC. The disconnected line at the very back went out to the barnyard, barn, workshop, and back field. The line more to the left goes to the automatic waterer for the cows. The line passing under the tank tee goes to the house. We used to have separate runs for hot and cold but the deadbeat tenants decided to muck with the plumbing and tore a bunch of stuff out because they didn't understand the system and they decided they weren't ever going to move out and were going to try to claim squatter's rights.
Anyway, I added some notations to explain some things

If we hadn't just spent so much $$$ getting everything redone I'd consider switching the locations of the pump and pressure tank but then we'd have to move electrical too. I need to go in there and clean up all the pipe remnants and trash.

Not sure what the budget is as Mom keeps changing her mind. I need to price things out again and figure out what it will take to build around the old rustbucket.

Complete digression, but I saw ads and I believe I have this Gorilla Cart. Love it.