Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Let me say first that I am pleased with this product. There are some things that aren't wonderful, but I would buy it again. Here's the story: I ordered it and it came a day ahead of the promised delivery date. I happened to be standing in the driveway when UPS arrived. I waited with some amusement to see how a UPS driver wrangles a 150 lb box out of a UPS truck. After some huffing and puffing. He managed to get it on a hand truck and roll it up the driveway. I just had him drop it there and my son and I carried it to the back yard. The box is a two person carry. This is a two person project. Do not attempt to build it yourself. You need four hands for some steps. 1. Make sure your plot is dead level. If it's not, you will never get some pieces to line up. I got stumped a couple of times and then realized that a corner had shifted. I was working on soft soil. When something doesn't line up, check your level. 2. The design is ingenious and the instructions are equally cunning. They were designed by Satan himself. When in doubt, put the instructions down, walk away, drink a beer, come back to it later. The drawings are a puzzle. Be patient. 3. There is a diagram of a tool that you do not have in your tool box. It has a 7 mm nut driver on one end and a little plastic nudger end at the other. It is actually included in one of the many bags of black plastic parts. You will understand what I'm talking about when you see the picture in the instructions. Look in the parts bag, not in your toolbox. 4. Did I mention that you need four hands? You need four hands. My adult son and I worked on it for 5 hours on a Saturday until we got stumped by the nudger tool picture. I worked on it for 4 hours the second day. I may have finished it in that 4 hour session, but my second set of hands got bored with the project and vanished. I worked on it for about an hour for the next four consecutive evenings. Total time was about 13 hours for 1.5 people. Two fairly intelligent adults with minimal mechanical skills could build this in about 8-10 hours. 5. There are pictures that suggest that you wear work gloves. You need to wear work gloves. The polyvinyl cuts like no paper cut you have ever experienced and the aluminum edges may bite. Wear gloves. 6. Bendy bits: The frame is made of lightweight material which is easy to manipulate and build with. This is good. It's also bendy and pliable, which is bad. MANY parts were bent. I have a vise that I used to straighten the doors which were bent and pliers for other pieces. I also have a little bit of practice bending sheet metal in a hydraulic press and the patience of Job. You can bend most of the bent pieces back to true with some time and patience. You are purchasing a 150 lb box of mostly straight aluminum bits. You will get bent pieces in that box. Do not fret. Bend them back. 7. I was really worried about how flimsy this thing seemed while I was building it. It will frame up nicely and be very stiff and true. Do not forget step one. Make sure you install all of the braces that are included. 8. Anchor kit. I live in the infrequent hurricane zone but we do get Nor' Easters and frequent weird wind storms. My neighbor had a 12' x 12' aluminum shed that ended up on top of a tree. You're probably going to want to anchor this sucker if you live somewhere prone to wind. They sell a Palram anchor kit. I went to a hardware store and bought steel cables, tackle and anchors for about $10 less, and I think my anchors are probably more stout than the Palram kit. 9. My biggest regret is that the roof vent does not secure firmly, and the doors can be finicky when closing. They close reasonably well, but could be easier to close. I am going to have to rig some sort of chicken wire cover for the vent window, which will have to remain open virtually all summer. I intend to make it varmint proof, so a little engineering will be required. The roof vent was one of the bent items that I had to straighten and it doesn't want to shut 100% closed. This is a minor flaw that I will tinker with all Spring and it will be okay in the end. 10. I put mine on a raised planting bed and installed a gravel floor. I'm attaching some pictures. Enjoy.