Just realized my shed was rotting from the inside out after 2 years

I built a nice 8x10 shed in my backyard back in 2021, thought I did everything right. Used pressure treated lumber on the base, good siding, even put in a vapor barrier. But last week I was moving some boxes around and noticed the bottom 6 inches of the back wall felt spongy. Pulled off a piece of the OSB and it was black with mold and completely soft. Turns out I didn't leave enough of a gap between the ground and the siding, so moisture was wicking up from the dirt and getting trapped behind the vapor barrier. The whole back wall is basically junk now. I'm gonna have to tear it down and rebuild just that section with proper clearance and better airflow. Has anyone else dealt with hidden moisture damage in a shed that looked fine from the outside?

2 comments

2 Comments

blakem822d ago

Yeah that sucks. Vapor barriers can trap moisture just as easy as they block it if you don't get the details right. Gotta have that gap, plain and simple.

amymiller2d ago

Yeah totally feel you on that @blakem82. I was just reading this one article about how people skip the gap and end up with mold city behind the walls. Definitely not worth the shortcut.