Lifetime Outdoor Storage Shed, 11-ft x 18.5-ft

Overall, I'm pleased with the shed I finished two days ago. We're using it as storage and a workshop while we convert our garage into a playroom for our kids. There are several things we like about it, including the design, ample space, affordable price, and the fact that it's easy to maintain with just a pressure wash. However, there are a few downsides. Since it's made of plastic, some of the pieces didn't fit together as smoothly as expected, despite my efforts to level the platform and deburr the edges. Specifically, some of the corner trim was slightly too long, which prevented the corner roof panels from fitting properly. Additionally, the holes in the top tiles didn't line up exactly with the main roof panels, even though the panels lined up with the trusses and walls. The window latches were also difficult to turn, and I had to trim the plastic inserts significantly to get them to work. I'll need to contact Lifetime to get a couple of replacement windows due to a manufacturing defect. Despite these minor issues, I'm satisfied with the shed overall. I did have some difficulty putting most of it together alone. The doors absolutely require two people, so it's definitely easier with help throughout. I'm glad I received good help with the doors. I didn't need to level or have any issues with the door assembly. I love the rolling double door and single door. It's great to open it up in nice weather and makes it convenient for ventilation when using a table saw and then blowing out the sawdust. The directions, YouTube video, and BILT app were helpful and straightforward. If you have DIY experience, it's not overwhelming, but it's still a big project that took me a full workweek to complete. There were a lot of screws and bolts, and it was much more time-consuming than the two other plastic sheds I've built before. I will be pulling an electric permit to run a subpanel for power and lights. I will also be building an internal wood frame. I am grateful for the product.

For the amount of money charged, the directions and labeling shouold be perfect. Unfortunately, you get two different manuals. One for a 11x13 and another for the extensions that make it a 18.5 length. Deciphering the instructions took up alot of time and confusion. Worse.... was the lack of accurate labeling of the parts. The manual says use xxx and the bag of parts is labeled yyy. You have to look at the various bags and guess which one you need. Don't fool yourself into thinking this is a one person job. I recommend three people and it will take several days with alot of swearing and bad feelings toward the manufacturer. Now that it's done, I like it; but there were mistakes made. Many times steps had to be undone and rectified which if the manufacturer made a small effort could have been avoided.

Only a 3 because I feel for the money, effort, and size I would have been better off with a stick built shed. Seems to be a decent shed but not 5 stars. I would have given it a 4 but the door alignment annoyed me too much.
 Good to know: * Requires some DIY skill and mechanical aptitude to assemble. * It does not go up in a day or weekend. I saw somewhere in the instructions 50 hours and you need all of that. * The instructions are decent ( paper and BILT 3-D) but not perfect. That is why you need some mechanical aptitude to figure a few things out. * All the plastic panels (floor, walls, and roof) need the plastic flashing trimmed off. The floor will not snap together if you don’t trim the flashing and the walls and roof will not fit snuggly enough together to get the full screw connection. * Don’t put it up on a windy day. Even on a calm day it will lean and wobble. You will need to support/guy the walls and roof trusses until you have the roof panels on. * The doors are a real pain to adjust. * Parts are spread out among multiple boxes. Step 1 parts are not all in box 1. In fact I found the instructions in box 4 when you would have thought they would have been in box 1. I suppose it is packaged the way it is for weight distribution and space considerations but it is a little annoying. You need a 2 car garage to spread it all out and work on the sub-assemblies. * lost a cap nut in the grass and they did not have any spares in the hardware bag. A few extra washers and screws but not even 1 extra nut. I suppose they would have sent me one but had my own so why bother waiting for the mail. Complaints * The doors don’t align as good as I would like even after following the written, BILT 3-D, youtube, and help center instructions. After sending pictures to the LIFETIME help center they acknowledged things looked concerning but did not offer any further help. * Spent way too much time on trimming the flashing off all the panels. * The plastic expands and contracts with the temperature/Sun more than I like. The window frames bow noticeably once the sun shines on them and things heat up.

Over all this is a quality product. There were however a few illustrations in the assembly instructions that could have been clearer and the door latch needs improvement.

I needed replacement parts for my shed and they were sent at no charge.