Re-imagining a Portable Garage

I live in California (not in snow country or high wind areas) and needed to create a storage garage for my ATV and other outdoor equipment on my property.  I had a portable garage that the roof tarps were shot on and decided that it was the perfect frame for a re-imagined portable garage to hold my equipment. I have had this garage up at my property for 5 years and have not had ANY issues with it. 

These are not perfect or precise directions,  As with any DIY project, you will need to adjust as you go. 

Here are my directions for re-imagining a portable garage into a storage shed.  

Materials:

Old portable garage frame - I used a Costco frame.  I would not recommend a junky frame. 

8 deck piers or 8 concrete filled sono-tubes

32 Lag Bolts that fit the  portable garage "feet" 

200+- feet of 2/2 or 2/3s to create purlins (enough to run the length of the roof AT LEAST 4 times on each side) If you can get 20 footers - they are the best!

 1 3/4  inch wood screws

24 1 3/4' metal pipe U straps (see photo)

Corrugated roofing (enough panels to cover roof with an overlap and overhang)

Corrugated Roofing Screws

Tools:

Level

Lag Bolt wrench or socket

Circular Saw

Drill Screw Driver

Very Tall Ladder

Saber Saw with corrugated blade

1.  Set up portable garage frame on a fairly level surface.  Remember - it will not be as "portable" anymore so choose your site carefully.  Do not add tarps.  Note:  If your portable garage does not have push button links or bolts to connect legs, rafters, side bars, add bolts to connectors using a metal drill bit to drill holes and 2 1/2 inch nuts and bolts.

2.  Place deck piers below each leg of your portable garage and lag bolt "portable garage feet" down to the wood on the piers.  Or, if ground is not level, use sono-tubes and pressure treated 4/4 and concrete to create level "piers" to attach your portable garage legs.

3.    Using a ladder, run evenly spaced 2/2s or 2/3s across the rafters the length of your portable garage on each side to serve as Purlins.   I live in California - so I ran 4 lengths on each side of the roof, one near to the top ridge connector, two evenly spaced midway down the rafter and one just above the top connector for the top rail and legs.  My purlins were repurposed - so they were not full length, so I had to lap them over each rafter. To tie purlins to the pipe rafters, place a 1 3/4 pipe strap on the pipe with screw ties facing up toward 2/2s and screw each side upward into 2/2s.  Do this on EACH pipe rafter. 

4.  Once you have all 3 sets of 2/2s running the length of each side of the roof, place corrugated roof panels on top of the 2/2s and using corrugated roof screws, screw down into the 2/2s. DO NOT TRY to stand on the roof - it will not hold you.  It is important to have a high enough ladder to do this work.  Overlap the corrugated roofing at  side edges and, depending on the length of your panels, you may have to measure and cut down the panels using a saber saw.  Mine were 12 footers - so they were way too long and had to be cut. 

5.  As you add two sides of fiberglass panel,  create a ridge cap using leftover pieces of corrugated roofing or use 6" L flashing to create a ridge cap - screw down into roof 2/2s.  It is important to add your ridge cap as you go since the roof will not support your weight AND without it, your roof will leak at the top.   

6.  Finally, if you have them, add your side tarps for siding.  Once the side tarps wear out, you can run side purlins using the directions above and add any kind of siding you have handy that will work.  I had a bunch of 1 by 2 redwood that I ran on the purlins to create a "covered bridge" look to one side of my storage shed.   

Note - this shed is not critter proof.  It is designed to keep outdoor tools out of the rain - nothing more.