DIY 12x16 Gable Storage Shed Plan Double Door

The full 69-page PDF with the list is $19.99: buy the 12×16 gable shed plan. The free 12×16 gable shed plan PDF shows the drawing style before you buy.

What is on the 12×16 shed material list

The shopping list is split into twelve sections, so you can buy the foundation and floor first and the roof later. Each lumber line comes in the stock length that wastes the least for that part, and the list tells you to add 2 or 3 spare studs for bad boards.

12×16 shed material list by stock size

The plan adds every section up into one lumber yard order, so a yard can quote straight from it. These are its lines, unchanged.

• Full boards, not precut studs. 33 of the 91 2×4 x 8 ft must be full 96 in boards, not 92 5/8 in precut studs: the 30 rafters and fly rafters (7′ 10 13/16″ each), a lower cripple board, a sill board and the center gable stud board. Ask the yard for them by length.
• Temporary pieces are in the totals. Twelve 2×4 x 12 ft plumb braces, four braces for the center gable studs, one temporary ridge post and five 2×4 x 8 ft for stakes and deck cleats are counted in the order. You can reuse them after the build.

Hardware, fasteners and finish on the list

Hardware is where most homemade lists come up short. This one names every fastener with a size and a quantity.

The list also covers the smaller items people forget until the last trip: 1 1/4″ and 3″ exterior screws for the door and corners, wood shims, flashing tape for the window openings, two 10 ft drip caps over the door and window heads, roofing cement, 3 tubes of caulk, insect screen and staples for the vent slots.

Door, ramp and anchor lines

These lines are new on this build, and they are the ones most often left off a 12×16 list.

How the 12×16 shed plans go together, step by step

The list is only half of the plan. Every length in it is an actual cut length, and the build steps run in the order you work, so you can buy and build one stage at a time. The plan’s own time table splits the build into six stages:

The 19 build steps are numbered 9 to 27, after the eight planning sections:

• 9 to 12, base: stake the corners and match both diagonals at 20′ 0″, frame and fill the gravel pad and ramp landing, set the four 16 ft skids, build the floor frame and lay the decking from a piece map.
• 13 to 16, walls: back wall, front wall and door opening, left wall and window, right wall and window, each with a stud position table and a siding map.
• 17 and 18, close in: join the walls, hang the siding, cut out the threshold, then build and hang the double door.
• 19 to 24, roof: rafters; ridge and gable ends; roof sheathing; gable siding, fascia and soffit with the vents; drip edge and felt; shingles.
• 25 to 27, finish: anchor the shed, trim and paint, and build the ramp.

A printable checklist at the back lists all 19 steps with a date and a “checked by” box.

Cut list and cutting plan: fewer wasted boards

The cut list gives every part, its lumber and its exact length, so you can cut and label parts one section at a time. The cutting plan then shows which stock board each part comes from and what is left over, allowing 1/8″ for each saw cut.

• One board, many parts. One 2×4 x 8 ft covers all 5 front cripples at 6 1/4″, and three more give the 20 frieze blocks at 1′ 1″, seven to a board and six from the last.
• One rafter per board. Each 2×4 rafter takes its own full 8 ft board, 7′ 10 13/16″ overall, leaving a 1 1/16″ offcut.
• Offcuts with a job. The 1′ 11 7/8″ left from every 12 ft rafter tie becomes lookout blocks, gable corner nailers and short gable studs. The front trimmer offcut gives the left wall’s cripples, and the right sill offcut gives the gable vent sill and header.
• Spliced where no board is long enough. The 16′ 8″ ridge and each 16′ 8″ eave fascia are cut as 9′ 8″ and 7′ 0″ pieces, with the joint centered on a rafter.
• Shared sheets. Two floor pieces come from one plywood sheet, and three pairs of roof pieces share OSB sheets. The plan warns that you run short if you cut them any other way.

Key specs of the 12×16 gable shed

These are the numbers the list is built on. Check them against your yard before you order, because the list only matches this exact shed.

How to use the material list at the lumber yard

• Buy by section. The list is grouped so you can order the foundation and floor first, then the walls, then the roof, and nothing sits in the rain for weeks. Wood that stays wet decays faster (USDA Forest Products Laboratory Wood Handbook).
• Buy the soffit plywood with the walls. The header spacers are ripped from the 1/2″ plywood sheets on the fascia and soffit list, so the plan says to buy those two sheets now.
• Check ground contact. The skids, the pad frame and every ramp part should be ground-contact rated pressure-treated lumber, UC4A or higher for the skids and the 4x6s.
• Pick straight boards. Sight down each joist and rafter board and set the crown facing up when you build.
• Buy the spares. Add the 2 or 3 extra studs the list suggests for boards that turn out twisted or split. They are not in the yard order.
• Read the panel stamps. Check that the OSB carries a span rating that suits roof sheathing (APA: OSB).
• Ask about roof delivery. The plan puts a shingle bundle at about 60 to 80 lb and suggests asking the supplier to deliver the 11 bundles onto the roof if they offer it.
• Buy the windows early. Prefabricated units are usually 1/2″ smaller than the 36″ x 36″ rough opening, so check yours before you frame.

What fits through the 72 inch double door

• A riding mower. With both leaves open the door is about 5′ 11 1/2″ clear. The plan’s drawing parks a 42 in deck mower nose in; a 48 in deck fits with its deflector raised, and a 54 in deck does not.
• A small lip, not a step. The floor sits 9 3/4″ up, and the ramp on the list ends about 13/16″ below the deck, over an aluminum threshold cap instead of a threshold board.
• Shelving. The plan’s layout puts 24 in deep shelves on the back wall and 16 in deep shelves on the back 6 ft of each side wall, with 7′ 7 1/2″ of clear height to the plates.

Free 12×16 PDF vs the full plan with the list

The free 8-page PDF shows the five stages of the build with views from the full plan, so you can see the drawing style. It has no shopping list, cut list or measurements. The full plan adds the complete 12×16 shed material list, the lumber yard order, the cut list, the cutting plan and the 19 build steps with every dimension. If you are still choosing a footprint, the 12×16 vs 10×20 shed guide compares the two sizes.

Before you build

• Permits. At 192 sq ft and 11′ 11 5/16″ tall, this shed may need a permit or meet setback limits, and rules vary by town and HOA. Check your local permit office before you order lumber.
• The pad. The list’s 4.5 cu yd of stone covers an 18′ x 14′ pad, 4″ deep, 12″ wider than the shed on every side, plus a landing 8′ 9″ wide and 6′ 7 1/2″ out for the ramp, all inside a frame of pressure-treated 4x6s laid flat. See the gravel shed foundation guide for how to lay one.
• Anchors. The plan works out that the empty shed on loose skids can slide in gusts near 60 mph, which is why the 6 ground anchors are on the list. Check your local permit office for what your area asks.
• Helpers. The heaviest wall is about 210 lb as a bare frame and a T1-11 sheet about 60 lb, so plan a second person for raising walls, hanging siding, setting the ridge and lifting sheets onto the roof.

Related plans

• 4 ft shorter: the 12×12 gable shed plan. 4 ft longer: the 12×20 gable shed plan.
• 2 ft shallower at 160 sq ft: the 10×16 gable shed plan.
• Same footprint with a single slope: the 12×16 lean-to shed plan.
• Pricing other roofs on this footprint: the 12×16 lean-to shed material list and the 12×16 hip roof shed material list.
• Every gable shed plan in one place.