Shed Collapse
Hi, I have two questions I was hoping to get some help with. We went away for the holidays and missed the big blizzard, but when we returned a car sized, aging steel shed in our backyard collapsed under the weight of the snow. The side walls are still up but the roof is caved…
Hi,
I have two questions I was hoping to get some help with.
We went away for the holidays and missed the big blizzard, but when we returned a car sized, aging steel shed in our backyard collapsed under the weight of the snow. The side walls are still up but the roof is caved in and the whole thing doesn’t seem very stable.
My first questions is can I get into any trouble get any kind of fine for leaving this in its current state for any extended period of time, ie. until the snow melts and it’s easier to take down? It is a private house that we recently purchased, and it’s on our property, there’s no reason for anyone but us to go back there.
And should I contact our insurance? Is this something they would cover to have safely removed? Would it change our rates?
Thanks for your input, this is new territory for us and your advice is appreciated.
Cheers.
Hi,
Should have clarified, we actually have a garage and shared driveway. The shed is next to a garage taking up basically our backyard space, so taking it down is not an issue from that perspective.
My main concern is how long I can wait. From the sound of it I shouldn’t wait too long to be on the safe side. Anyone know a good scrap yard?
Thanks again for the input.
Your structure may or may not ‘work’ as a garage; but it may be worth having an architect take a peek.
BTW, re: lot line issue–
My (then ugly metal rusted) garage was ‘grandfathered’, and showed on the DOB site, insurance, title, etc as ‘shed garage-freestanding’. It is at my/the lot line in the far back-right. Actually, some of the original walls remain in the new structure. We poured a mini BQE w/ the slab using concrete -rebar.–
A tree had grown ‘into’ the roof (and lifted it up as it grew). For roofwater run off we dug the equivalent of a sess pool in the back yard (approx 10 ft x 8 ft x 8 ft.). Same tree/leaves probably would have clogged the main waste sewer line. What a sight!
Yes, I hired an architect, had the asbestos tests, rat baiting, pictures, notification of neighbor(s) and etc. It is a process– not impossible though.
Well worth the effort for my family/friends.
Re: curb cuts– if you can show that by granting your property a cut that several cars are removed from the street parking you may be able to get one. If you’re a single car family it will be much more difficult.
Wish you the best with this, edison–
You need to either provide some pics and dims or get an architect involved. You need to see if this thing was permited. A car sized shed is not something you can put up without a permit. There are limitations on size and how close you can be to the property line. It sounds like it is an oversized shed that does not meet the allowable size without a permit.
Jock deBoer, AIA
deBoer Architects
Thanks for the advice.
Brooklander is correct. If you tear that thing down you will never get permission to put it back later. Actually all of the advice offered is really good. If you tear down now and attempt to rebuild later, DOB will make you put it in the middle of the yard. You need a very crafty architect.
Yes, the question is do you want to get rid of it or would you rather have it? Chances are high that you won’t get approval to replace it so you need to be very careful about rebuilding it.
If you just really don’t want it, I’d just have a scrap deler take it away piece-by-piece.
You don’t sound like you want to rebuild; but this ‘car size shed’ may have been a garage. And, if you remove it you will probably loose the right to rebuild it as the garage it might once again become.
I had a big metal shed that was in very bad condition. I was able to get permission to rebuild it into a garage. (My house already had the curb cut.)
It may be an eyesore and a nuisance; so be wary of kids and pesty neighbors. Both can be unpredictable and have been known to tresspass.
If you can make a garage out of it legally, your property value just went up.
I’d think about its potential value to you…
(?#1. Yes, you can get into trouble if an unvited person gets hurt on your land, and
?#2. Insurance may or may not pay for it to be removed. Act of God and all that–)
How close is it to the lot-line? More specifically, if it fell over, could it damage anything of your neighbors, including but not limited to their kids?
Assuming the answer is no, I’d leave it up until the snow clears up a bit. Then I’d just call one of the local scrap companies and try to get them to take it down in exchange for the scrap.
If the answer is yes, I’d loop a rope over one corner and try to finish pulling it down into my yard and then again I’d just wait (actually either way I’d probably try to pull it down because I like doing things like that, it got me into lots of trouble as a kid).
Either way I wouldn’t go through my insurance.