How much gravel do i need for a shed foundation? The amount of gravel needed for a shed foundation depends on several factors, including the thickness of the gravel layer, the type of soil beneath it, and the weight the foundation needs to support. As a general guideline, you can calculate the volume of gravel required in cubic feet using the formula:
Length (in feet) x Width (in feet) x Depth (in feet) = Volume (in cubic feet). For a 10×10 shed with a 4-inch gravel base, you’d need: 10 x 10 x (4/12) = 33.33 cubic feet of gravel.
If you want to start your projects with screened gravel that is 1/2″ to 1″ in size for shed foundation used as base material, gravel should be compacted to make a firm foundation.
When it comes to the gravel, you will want to use a size that can be compacted to make a firm foundation, while also being permeable enough to let water soak through. The goal is to avoid both runoff and puddling. ¾” drainage stone is an excellent choice for your shed foundation.
Before you calculate for how much gravel you will need to purchase in yards or tons, it’s important to calculate how large your shed foundation will be. As a rule of thumb, your gravel shed base should extend at least 12” further than each side of your shed.
For example, if you are building your gravel shed foundation for a 10×12 structure, you should take 2″ wider on surface dimensions length and width to make it at least 12×14. This will allow water running down the side of your shed and dripping off the eaves to drain away easily. If the eaves of your shed are extra-long, you will want to extend the border of your shed foundation accordingly.
In addition to planning the width and length dimensions of your shed foundation, you will also want to calculate the necessary depth. Questions is “how deep should be a gravel base be for a shed”, in general, gravel base about be 4” to 6” is a good deep or thickness range for a gravel shed foundation.
How much gravel do i need for a shed
Gravel is usually sold by the US Ton or the cubic yard or simply yard. A cubic yard of gravel is 27 cubic feet and weighs roughly 1.4 tons. For ease of calculation we will use cubic yards.
◆You Can Follow me on Facebook and
Subscribe our Youtube Channel
How much gravel do i need for a shed?, You will need approximately 3 to 4 cubic yards (5 tons) of gravel for average size shed foundation. A bed of 4″ or more of crushed/screened 3/4 minus gravel or other porous gravel is required for all sheds over 8′ wide. Gravel base is to be 2 feet larger than the shed size. Example: 10×12 shed requires 12×14 base.
To determine the amount of gravel you will need for your shed foundation, first calculate the square footage by multiply length and width. Next, multiply the square footage by the depth of gravel in feet to determine volume of gravel in cubic feet. Divide the number of cubic feet by 27 to find the number of cubic yards needed. Multiply your yards by 1.4 to figure Tons of gravel you needed.
Steps to calculate the amount of gravel you will need for your shed foundation, proceeds as follows:-
● Determine square footage = Length × Width
● Convert depth in inches to feet by dividing with 12
● Figure out volume of gravel in cubic feet = Square footage × depth in feet
● Divide the volume of gravel in cubic feet by 27 to get cubic yards of gravel needed
● Multiply Cubic yards of gravel by 1.4 to get Tons of gravel needed.
For example: How much gravel do i need for a 10×10 shed?, 10×10 shed requires 12×12 base. Ans. Maths calculation: 1) square footage = 12’×12′ = 144, 2) depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′, 3) Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 144×0.33 = 47.52, 4) Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 47.52÷27 = 1.76 yards, 5) amount of gravel in tons = 1.76×1.4 = 2.5 tons.
How much gravel do i need for a 10×10 shed
You will need approximately 1.76 cubic yards (2.5 tons or 47.52 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 10×10 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 2.66 cubic yards (3.75 tons or 72 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 10×10 shed requires 12×12 base.
● Square footage = 12’×12′ = 144,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 144×0.33 = 47.52,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 47.52÷27 = 1.76 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 1.76×1.4 = 2.5 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 10×10 shed requires 12×12 base.
● Square footage = 12’×12′ = 144,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 144×0.5 = 72,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 72÷27 = 2.66 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 2.66×1.4 = 3.75 tons.
How much gravel do i need for a 10×12 shed
You will need approximately 2.05 cubic yards (2.88 tons or 55.5 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 10×12 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 3.11 cubic yards (4.35 tons or 84 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 10×12 shed requires 12×14 base.
● Square footage = 12’×14′ = 168,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 168×0.33 = 55.44,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 55.44÷27 = 2.05 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 2.05×1.4 = 2.88 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 10×12 shed requires 12×14 base.
● Square footage = 12’×14′ = 168,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 168×0.5 = 84,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 84÷27 = 3.11 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 3.11×1.4 = 4.35 tons.
How much gravel do i need for a 10×16 shed
You will need approximately 2.64 cubic yards (3.7 tons or 71.28 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 10×16 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 4 cubic yards (5.6 tons or 108 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 10×16 shed requires 12×18 base.
● Square footage = 12’×18′ = 216,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 216×0.33 = 71.28,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 71.28÷27 = 2.64 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 2.64×1.4 = 3.7 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 10×16 shed requires 12×18 base.
● Square footage = 12’×18′ = 216,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 216×0.5 = 108,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 108÷27 = 4 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 4×1.4 = 5.6 tons.
How many shingles do i need for a 10×16 shed
How many shingles do i need for a 12×20 shed
How many shingles do i need for a 10×12 shed
How many shingles do i need for a 12×12 shed
How many shingles do i need for a 8×10 shed
How much gravel do i need for a 12×12 shed
You will need approximately 2.4 cubic yards (3.35 tons or 64.68 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 12×12 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 3.63 cubic yards (5.08 tons or 98 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 12×12 shed requires 14×14 base.
● Square footage = 14’×14′ = 196,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 196×0.33 = 64.68,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 64.68÷27 = 2.4 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 2.4×1.4 = 3.35 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 12×12 shed requires 14×14 base.
● Square footage = 14’×14′ = 196,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 196×0.5 = 98,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 98÷27 = 3.63 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 3.63×1.4 = 5.08 tons.
How much gravel do i need for a 12×16 shed
You will need approximately 3.08 cubic yards (4.3 tons or 83.16 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 12×16 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 4.66 cubic yards (6.53 tons or 126 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 12×16 shed requires 14×18 base.
● Square footage = 14’×18′ = 252,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 252×0.33 = 83.16,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 83.16÷27 = 3.08 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 3.08×1.4 = 4.37 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 12×16 shed requires 14×18 base.
● Square footage = 14’×18′ = 252,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 253×0.5 = 126,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 126÷27 = 4.66 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 4.66×1.4 = 6.53 tons.
How much gravel do i need for a 8×10 shed
You will need approximately 1.46 cubic yards (2.05 tons or 39.6 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 8×10 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 2.22 cubic yards (3.11 tons or 60 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 8×10 shed requires 10×12 base.
● Square footage = 10’×12′ = 120,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 120×0.33 = 39.6,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 39.6÷27 = 1.46 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 1.46×1.4 = 2.05 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 8×10 shed requires 10×12 base.
● Square footage = 10’×12′ = 120,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 120×0.5 = 60,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 60÷27 = 2.22 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 2.22×1.4 = 3.11 tons.
● Gravel calculator for driveway
● Calculator for yards of gravel
● How much gravel for 1000 foot driveway
How much gravel do i need for a 8×8 shed
You will need approximately 1.23 cubic yards (1.72 tons or 33 cubic feet) of screened 3/4″ size gravel as base material for a 8×8 shed foundation if you bed thickness is 4″ thick. For 6″ bed, 1.85 cubic yards (2.6 tons or 50 cubic feet) of gravel needed.
Maths calculation at 4″ thickness
● 8×8 shed requires 10×10 base.
● Square footage = 10’×10′ = 100,
● Depth in inches = 4÷12 = 0.33′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 100×0.33 = 33,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 33÷27 = 1.23 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 1.23×1.4 = 1.72 tons.
Maths calculation at 6″ thickness
● 8×8 shed requires 10×10 base.
● Square footage = 10’×10′ = 100,
● Depth in inches = 6÷12 = 0.5′,
● Volume of gravel in cubic feet = 100×0.5 = 50,
● Volume of gravel in cubic yard = 50÷27 = 1.85 yards,
● Amount of gravel in tons = 1.85×1.4 = 2.6 tons.
Conclusion:
You will need approximately 3 to 4 cubic yards (5 tons) of gravel for average size shed foundation at 4″ to 6″ thick bed.