14x20 Gable Storage Shed Plan

The full plan is $19.99: buy the 14×20 gable shed plan. To see the drawing style first, open the free 14×20 gable shed plan PDF.

14×20 shed plans: the numbers for a site check

Mark the roof footprint and the gravel pad on your lot, not just the 20 by 14 ft walls, and leave room on every side to stand a ladder. The ridge runs the 20 ft length, so the front and back walls carry the eaves and the 14 ft side walls carry the gables.

How the 14×20 shed plans go together

The nailed floor frame racks out of square if you lift it, so build it in place on top of the skids. It weighs about 600 lb once nailed. Square the frame by its diagonals, both 24′ 4 15/16″, before you fasten it down, because a floor that is square under the sheets keeps the walls square above them.

Foundation: the pad and the spliced skids

The plan digs the pad 4″ deep and frames it with pressure-treated 4x6s laid flat, pinned with 36 rebar stakes. Inside the frame goes 4″ of 3/4″ crushed stone, tamped in two layers. The pad is 22′ 0″ x 16′ 0″, 12″ past the shed on every side, with a landing in front of the door for the ramp.

A 20 ft skid is longer than a 16 ft board, so each of the five skids is spliced from 8′ 0″ and 12′ 0″ pieces. Each joint sits under a floor joist and gets a 3 ft pressure-treated 2×4 scab on both sides. The two rim joists are spliced too, over a doubled joist. The stakes are set square when both corner diagonals measure 24′ 4 15/16″, and the finished pad is square when its diagonals read 27′ 2 7/16″.

Walls: raised in sections by two people

Each wall is framed flat on the deck and raised as a bare frame. The 20 ft walls would be too heavy for two people in one piece, so the plan splits them:

Two people raise each piece, and the second top plate then laps each section joint and ties the sections together. The siding goes on after all four walls stand.

• Hinge it. Stop blocks on the rim keep the bottom plate from kicking out over the deck edge.
• Brace at once. Never leave a raised wall unbraced, even for a minute, and never raise one in gusty wind.
• Siding last. T1-11 sheets go on once the walls are standing, plumb and braced.

Door, windows and ramp: sizes and positions

The double door is 72″ wide and 76 1/2″ tall, centered in the 20 ft front wall. The rough opening runs from 7′ 0″ to 13′ 0″ from the left corner. With both leaves open the opening is about 5′ 11 1/2″ clear. The leaves swing out and hang on heavy T-strap hinges. Our guide on how to build shed doors covers the same method.

The two windows are prefabricated 36″ x 36″ units, one in each 14 ft side wall near the front, each with its sill 3′ 6″ above the bottom plate. The back wall has no window, so the shelves have the whole wall.

The ramp is detachable pressure-treated lumber, 6′ 9″ wide and 3′ 6″ out at a 1:6 slope, so wheels roll in over a small lip at the door. Two hook-and-eye latches hold it, so you can unhook it when you need to level or move the shed. Our guide on how to build a shed ramp explains the idea.

What is on the 14×20 shed material list

The shopping list covers every stage, so you can buy the foundation and floor first and the roof later. The plan does not price the list, since costs change by region. Take it to your local yard for a quote.

The cut list names every part with its lumber and length, and the cutting plan shows which board each part comes from.

What you can fit in a 14×20 shed

The plan includes a to-scale drawing of one way to fill the floor:

• A riding mower. A mower with a 42″ deck, 4′ 7 3/16″ x 5′ 10″, goes in nose first through the double door and clears each side by 8 1/8″. A 48″ deck fits with its deflector raised, and a 54″ deck does not.
• A walkable aisle. The drawing leaves a 5′ 6″ aisle behind the mower, running to the 24″ deep shelves along the back wall.
• Side shelves. The back 6 ft of each side wall takes 16″ deep shelves.
• A bench and the rest. A 20″ deep bench fits under the right window, with a wheelbarrow, 2′ 2″ x 5′ 0″, and two bikes with staggered handlebars, 2′ 6″ x 5′ 10″.

Keep 10′ 0″ clear and level out from the front wall, the ramp plus one mower length, to line a tractor up square. Shelves are yours to add. Our guide on what size shed fits a riding mower explains how to measure your own.

How the 14×20 gable roof is framed

At 6/12 you cut one pattern rafter from the straightest 2×6, test it on both sides, then trace the rest: 32 rafters at 16″ on center plus 4 fly rafters for the rakes. Each rafter takes its own 10 ft board.

1. Ridge in two pieces. The 2×8 ridge is 20′ 8″, spliced from a 9′ 8″ piece and an 11′ 0″ piece, so no board on the list is longer than 16 ft. The joint is centered on the rafter pair 9′ 4″ from the left corner. A 2 ft cleat joins the two pieces, and a temporary post holds the joint until its rafter pair is in. A center gable stud on each gable wall holds each end, braced plumb both ways.
2. Rafter order. Set the end pairs first, then the pair at the ridge joint, check the ridge for level and center, then fill in the pairs between.
3. Rafter ties. 14 ties of 2×4, each 14′ 0″ long, sit on the plates beside the interior pairs and stop the walls from spreading.
4. Collar ties. 7 collar ties hold the rafters together at the ridge in wind.
5. Gable plate ties. Flat 2x4s tie each gable wall plate to the first rafter ties and stiffen the top of the end walls.
6. Hurricane ties. The 28 inside rafters get a hurricane tie at the plate, and the 4 end rafters a framing angle at each corner.

Our shed roof pitch guide explains what 6/12 means for headroom and runoff.

Roof covering, siding and trim

The roof deck is 13 sheets of 7/16″ OSB, nailed with 1/8″ gaps between sheets and held at the joints with H-clips. Drip edge goes on the eaves under the felt and on the rakes over it. Two rolls of 15 lb felt run from the eave up, then 14 bundles of 3-tab asphalt shingles cover the roof, starter strips and ridge cap included.

Shingle bundles weigh about 60 to 80 lb, so the plan has you carry half a bundle at a time or ask the supplier to deliver them onto the roof. It also has you screw a 2×4 foot stop to the sheathing a foot above the eave before you work above it, and never work on the roof alone.

The walls take 17 sheets of 5/8″ T1-11, the gables 3 more, and the door leaves 2 new sheets. Z-flashing joins the wall siding to the gable siding. Trim is 1×4 on every corner and around the windows, with a drip cap over the door and window heads, flashing tape around each window opening, and caulk on the trim joints before paint.

Vents and the rake overhang

Air comes in at the soffit through 3 vents per eave and a 2″ screened slot over each frieze block, and leaves through a 14″ x 24″ louvered vent in each gable. The plan adds it up: 184.8 sq in of high vent area and 156.0 sq in of low vent area, 340.8 sq in in all. A common attic rule of thumb, which the plan notes is not a shed requirement, asks for 269 sq in on a floor this size, about half low and half high. Our shed ventilation guide explains why that path matters. Lookout blocks carry the fly rafters 4″ out on each rake.

Anchoring the shed

An empty 12′ 7 1/16″ tall shed on loose skids can slide in a strong gust, so the plan anchors it with 8 screw-in ground anchors once the roof is on and before you fill it. Four go along each of the two outside skids, at 1′ 0″, 6′ 3″, 13′ 0″ and 19′ 0″ from the left end. Dig the stone back to the soil at each spot, start the anchor beside the skid, and run its strap up the skid onto the rim joist.

What the 117 checks cover

The back of the plan lists what was checked before it went on sale. The checks cover the framing closing, the roof geometry, the sheets and shingles covering every surface, and the drawings, tables and lists agreeing with each other. The cut list and the shopping list are checked against each other too.

Free 14×20 shed plan PDF vs the full plan

The free 8-page PDF shows the drawing style and the finished shed before you pay. It has no material list, no cut list and no dimensioned drawings. The full 74-page plan adds the shopping list, the cut list, the cutting plan, the rafter and ridge details and all the build steps with every dimension. Before it went on sale every measurement was cross-checked with 117 checks, and all of them pass.

How long a 14×20 shed takes to build

The plan gives a typical time for two people at each stage:

That adds up to about 112 hours, so plan it across several weekends. Weather, a sloped yard and the pace of your helper all move the number.

Before you build a 14×20 gable shed

• Permits. At 280 sq ft and over 12 ft tall, this shed may run into size, setback or height limits, and rules vary by town and HOA. Check your local permit office before you buy lumber; our shed permit checklist lists what to ask. Call 811 a few working days before you dig.
• Snow and wind. The plan uses common small-shed framing and is not an engineered design. In heavy snow or high-wind areas, ask about rafter size, spacing and ground anchors before you build.
• Keep it dry. Leave 6″ or more between the siding and the soil, and every spring check for lifted shingles, re-caulk the trim and make sure the skids are still level and dry.
• Helpers. Raise the walls, set the ridge and lift sheets onto the roof with a second person. Keep ladders and sheets at least 10 ft from any overhead power line.

Related plans

• Same 20 ft front, 2 ft shallower: the 12×20 gable shed plan. 2 ft deeper: the 16×20 gable shed plan.
• Same 14 ft depth, 4 ft shorter: the 14×16 gable shed plan. 4 ft longer: the 14×24 gable shed plan.
• Same footprint under a single slope: the 14×20 lean-to shed plan.
• Choosing a base first? Read the shed foundation guide.
• Every gable shed plan in one place.