I have not found any other Instructable or online guide that suggests this method of building .

I think that this is an amazing new way to build a shed using shelving as the core, which saves a lot of work and money.

Step 1: The Need

When I retired I had to move out of my offices. That meant I suddenly had to find a home for 20 years of accumulated stuff.

Not only that, but I had to do it fast and at the lowest possible cost.
I looked at using local storage facilities or buying a big shed, but both were way out of my budget.

Step 2: The Idea

I had all the plastic shelving from my now vacated premises.... but no room or shed to put the shelving in.
Then I had that amazing AHA moment. I could use the shelving as the very core of a new building.

I was not sure that the shelving would be strong enough and firm enough to support the structure, so I needed to do a trial. For that I cleared a suitable area at the back of the garden , and laid them out.

Step 3: Preparation

The layout clearly showed that the shelving would fit neatly into the space. It was strong and I was pleased to confirm that they would be a great basis for a building.
Unfortunately, It also showed that I would need to do a lot of preparatory hacking.

Step 4: How to Get It All Together?

Ok... so I would have a core, but I needed to hold it all together and find the cheapest components that would protect the contents from the elements.

I considered just throwing a tarp' over the lot, but that was not really going to give me the protection needed.

I experimented and came up with the idea of strapping the shelving together with good old Zip ties. This was very effective in stabilising the groups of shelves but then I needed to attach a frame to hold some form of cladding, and support a roof.

I had a large number of thin interior cladding boards which I decided could be screwed onto the outside junctions of the shelves.

This would provide further strengthening to the core and give me the height I needed to construct the roof.

I originally thought of covering the outside with plywood or even OSB board, but the cost was too high...Then on an expedition to my local Wickes I saw a plastic sheet material similar to Correx. The sheeting is designed to protect floors during building work. It is VERY cheap at around £4 per 8ft by 4ft sheet. This could be my rain-proof, rot-proof cladding.

The final requirement was for the roof. Since I did not want windows taking up valuable storage space , I decided that clear corrugated PVC roof panels would be the best way to go.

Step 5: Starting the Build

I was lucky to have pavings already in place and so I just covered them with a tough plastic sheet to act as a damp-proof membrane. My wife and I assembled all the shelves and then realised that we would not have access to the end, once everything was in place.

Consequently the far end was first zip tied together, the battens screwed in and cladding fastened on. Then the pre-assembled end was pushed into place.

Step 6: The Cladding

The sheets were simply laid over the backs of the shelves and screwed to the battens. Next a knife was used to cut the sheets to size.

All screws were inserted in little plastic covers so that they would be waterproof. At the ends another vertical layer was added for extra protection, to cover the open ends and to make it look better.

Step 7: The Door

I had an old door frame and door, which was way too good for the job, but was the cheapest solution. I placed it into the gap. Then secured it direct to the plastic shelving. At one side I needed to cut filling blocks which I reinforced with metal brackets.

Of course everything had to be constantly checked for level and verticality.

Step 8: The Roof

I decided that a shallow 10 degree slope would be enough to allow rain to drain, and would maximise the internal storage height.

At first I tried to cut the lengths of PVC roofing with a jig-saw and a fine toothed blade but that was an epic fail, smashing the plastic AND the blade. Next I tried using a cutting disc on an angle grinder which is DEFINITELY the best way to do that job.

I used the wavy foam inserts that are sold along with the sheets, for extra support and sealing.

The little plastic covers were also used to prevent water leaking into the structure.

Step 9: The Finished Project

I was very pleased with the result. It is a great shed made from shelving and perfectly strong and dry.

I estimate that it has given me over 100 sq ft of storage.

I have subsequently added a door surround and a bottom board to neaten appearance.

Since using the plastic shelving as the structural support for the shed, I have been looking at other shelving systems.

I am sure that using metal, heavy duty shelving would produce an even stronger permanent structure. It could be clad with the plastic or with exterior quality ply and maybe then rendered to produce a superb building.

I definitely recommend that you try such methods yourselves.