Question about my new shed

Hi,I am new here and wondered if anyone can help me out.
I bought a new shed from forest garden last year which I had stored in my garage.
It is an 8ft x 6ft shiplap shed.
I painted it before I put it up.
I put it up about 5 weeks ago and the other day I noticed that the gaps had got bigger inbetween the shiplap boards and in some places the boards have split in the middle at one end.
Is this normal shrinkage or a defect with the wood?
Thanks.

 

Sounds like its all shrunk, the splits are likely where the nails are due to the nails stopping the wood from shrinking.
Its the kind of problem you get, the idea of ship lap is just that, it should lap, and thereby stop any gaps when it shrinks and still allow it to swell when it gets wet.

Some wood moves more than others but most of the stuff they make sheds out of is going to move to some extent.

 

So do you think that is normal? All the knots are splitting also.
I wouldn't mind but it wasn't cheap. I just hope it doesn't leak now it has shrunk because my Guinea pigs are housed in it,which is why I didn't go for a cheap shed in the first place.

 

Well, I do think the quality of sheds are not what they were, the timber used can vary quite a lot, but usually you hope by paying more you get something a bit better.
Did it state a particular type of timber?
Along with dimensions of the timber, ie. thickness of boards.

 

Their Shiplap shed is T&G construction so I would not expect the board to pull apart to the degree that you can see though them, thats what can happen more often on the cheaper Overlap panels like fencing.

The joints have quiet a large margin for expansion and should not be splitting as you describe.

Probably best if you can post some good pics of the gaps and splitting.
Is it happening on just one side / panel or all over ? Is it the side facing the sun thats the worst ?

If you consider its unacceptable then sending a copy of them to the supplier for comment is your next task, hopefully they might agree its unacceptable and offer a remedy.

 

Not sure how ship lap can be T&G @ricky101, its either one or the other.

Edit, just looked it up, see what you mean Ricky, although on that site I mostly saw what they just called lap.

 

I will post some pics tomorrow.
You can't see through where they have moved so I guess that's something.
It's happened on all 4 sides.
Maybe the expansion is normal but I would not have expected to see the amount of splitting that has appeared over the last day or so.
I also wondered if maybe it could be my base that has sunk slightly on one side but I had a spirit level on it today and it is still level.
I am going to ring them tomorrow, i had problems from day one with this company tbh,the first shed they sent i put it up and it rained n the night..the next day water had all leaked in through the shiplap and all over the floor,so they took it back and replaced it with this one,I had to store it in my garage as I fell and injured my foot badly so could not build it until 5 weeks ago. So not a great start.

 

We almost thought the same as you in your first post - thinking Shiplap was Overlap, until we looked at the shed sites and seems they call T&G construction Shiplap .

@Chaz, sounds a bit concerning if you have already had the same problem and a replacement sent - can you say what thickness the T&G boards were specified as.

 

Section wise this is what I've always called shiplap, it a lap over type but rebated over rather than tongued.
Shiplap Cladding 150MM x 15MM | Free Next Day Delivery

 

I don't think the thickness was included in the description sorry
It's raining today so we will see..a...if it leaks in....and b....I can't take any pics until it stops.

 

What makes you think the base is sinking ? again can you say how it was constructed or how the shed maker said you should build it.

Again a pic of the base would help.

Until we see the problem with the board joints, would not have though the base could cause that kind of problem...?

If speaking to the shed people, would not mention the base as they will be probably be looking for any excuse to say its not their fault, though equally replacing the whole shed last time was everything you could have asked for , in that sense.

Edit - just been watching this video which I assume is your shed, they make out its Premium quality, so cannot see any reason for it to be splitting and letting water in like yours.


There is one simple thing you can do to check if its built good and true and just needs a tape measure or even a piece of string.
Thats to check the squareness of the two long sides of the shed, measured from the inside.
As the diagram below shows, using a common point in each corner, meaure the distance of A and B.
If the panel is perfectly square then A and B will be equal.
If the panel is not square ie. leaning towards the door side, then A and B will be unequal.

Would be instesting to know what the A and B differences are for both long sides, there will always be a little difference, it just depends on how big that difference is.

 

When they replaced the first shed I had to store the replacement in my garage as about 3 days after it was delivered i fell and nearly broke my foot,i couldn't walk for months and only managed to get it built a month ago,its been in my garage for about 7-8 months,so i doubt that any complaint i make would be met kindly....Ha its actually funny watching that video.....
The metal badge on the front of mine says larchlap... not forest
The batons that hold the roof on were not cut the same length,2 were shorter than they should have been.
I had to use my own screws because the ones it said to use to hold the metal plates to the batons would have gone straight through the chipboard because they were too long.
The batons that are at either side of the door were warped so did not sit straight.
Neither did the corner batons fit correctly.
There is a gap of nearly an inch at the top of the door that I have had to cover.
And the floor certainly did not look like that it looks like 2 unsanded pallets with half inch gaps between the planks,when its windy my floor (fake grass) lifts up with the wind.
They have an absolute cheek charging what they do,it's crap but I'm stuck with it now so all I can do is try and fix the problem bits.
I certainly will never recommend their products to anybody.

 

Looking at the video, my first thoughts.
Doors reinforced with framing?, without those ledges and braces, you would just have some boards,, not a door, and it looks a bit puny.
Door hinges look like they came out of a christmas cracker.

Roof, osb board, never did like that stuff, and I bet its only 10mm thick.

The framing looks a bit small in section, and the window installation doesn't look strong or weather proof.

Of the whole thing the actual ship lap boarding looks ok.

I think if you buy something like that you do need to be prepared to add a few bits and up the specification yourself to make it work well.

Unfortunately, that how things are made these days, and how much you have to pay to get something that is bomb proof is anybody's guess.

 

Sounds like you would be wasting your time going back to them then ...

Not being able to see the product in the flesh is one of the big drawbacks of buying online rather than a local supplier.

If you can take some pics and those measurement mentioned eariler we might be able to comment and offer some straight forwards remedies.

Are you or someone there handy with a saw and hammer / power screwdriver, you would be surprised how often a few extra pieces of wood or metal braces can make things so much stronger and rigid.