How to Build Storage Sheds Ramp

Storage sheds are valuable additions to your home. They provide protection for various tools and outdoor equipment and they help the yard to maintain a neat appearance. Most sheds are built on a raised foundation and adding a ramp will make it much easier to use.

Items Needed:

• 1 board, 1-by-4 inches 8 feet long


• 4 boards, 2-by-4 inches, 8 feet long


• 1 sheet ¾ inch plywood, 4-by-8 inches, 8 feet long


• 2 sheets plywood, 3/8 inch plywood, 4-by-8 inches, 8 feet long


• 1 4-by-8 sheet Masonite or Skatelite (optional)


• 4 to 6 pounds 2½ inch wood screws


• Measuring tape


• Pencil or chalk


• T-square


• Radial saw


• Power drill with screwdriver bit

1. Measure from the ground to the shed’s entrance door. This is the height of your ramp.


2. Use the ¾ inch sheet of plywood and the pencil (or chalk) to draw the sides of your ramp. Measure the long edge of the plywood and make a mark at six feet. This is the bottom edge of one side of the ramp.


3. Measure the height in inches needed for the ramp directly above the previous mark and make another mark. Draw a straight line from that mark down to the corner of the plywood, forming a triangle.


4. Use a saw and cut the triangle out of the plywood. Use this first side of the ramp as a template to trace the second side onto the same sheet of plywood. Cut out the second triangle.


5. Use the 1-by-4 board and cut it into two 4-foot pieces.


6. Start at the bottom and make marks every eight inches on both pieces.


7. Screw the two pieces at the first two marks, closest to the bottom. Use two screws per side.


8. Place the joists at the front of the ramp, horizontal and flush to the ground.


9. Cut the 2-by-4’s in half, making eight 4-foot pieces.


10. Screw the 2-by-4’s at every mark, two screws on each side. These joists, the horizontal supporting beams, run side to side up the center of the ramp. Add an additional 2-by-4 joist to the bottom back corner of the ramp.


11. Measure six feet along the eight-foot edge of one of the 3/8 inch plywood sheets and make a mark ay the same distance along the other side. Draw a line between the two marks.


12. Cut along this line, leaving a 4-by-6 sheet of plywood. Use this sheet as a template that you can use to cut out the second 4-by-6 sheet of plywood and the piece of masonite for the top surface.


13. Screw everything together. Lay the first sheet of plywood over the skeletal structure. Screw to the joists, using woos screws every 12 inches. Add the second sheet of plywood, following the same procedure, then finish with masonite.