Shepherd's Hut Life

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How the build goes, stage by stage

From a level patch of ground to the kettle going on. Eleven stages, each with a video.

Updated 23 October 2026

A timber cabin with lit windows at sunset among trees

The short answer: eleven stages, each with a printed page and a video. Two people with ordinary tools can do every stage; how fast is up to you. No joints to cut, no measuring out: every piece is numbered and the guide shows where it goes.

A timber cabin with lit windows at sunset among trees
The moment the roof sheets are on, it's a hut.

Tools

Cordless drill, impact driver, circular saw (for the cladding), spirit level, two or three clamps, a sealant gun, tape, pencil, step ladder. A second person for the roof arches and the glazing.

The eleven stages

  1. Base or chassis. Level the site. Set the chassis, or sleepers on pads. Half a day.
  2. Floor. Bolt the numbered floor joists to the chassis, insulate between them, fix the floor boards. A morning.
  3. Walls. Stand the four wall frames on the floor and screw them together at the corners. The door and window openings are already in the frames. An afternoon, and the day the hut appears.
  4. Roof arches. Lift the curved ribs onto the walls and fix the purlins between them. Two people, a few hours.
  5. Sheathing and membrane. Screw the pre-cut OSB to the outside of the frames, then staple the breather membrane over it and tape the joints.
  6. Roof sheets. Lay the curved corrugated sheets from one end, overlapping, with the fixings in the ridges. Fit the fascia. The hut is now dry inside.
  7. Doors and windows. Lift each unit into its opening, pack it level, screw it through the frame, seal the outside. A day for all of them.
  8. Cladding. Battens over the membrane for a ventilated gap, then your chosen boards from the bottom up. The slowest stage and the most satisfying.
  9. Insulation and services. PIR board between the studs and ribs, then first-fix electrics by your electrician and, if you have a stove, the flue position agreed with your HETAS installer.1
  10. Lining. The V-groove boards over the insulation, then the ceiling. Fiddly around the curve, fast on the walls.
  11. Finishing. Paint outside, oil or paint inside, steps, and the stove fitted and signed off. Then kettle.

When you get stuck

Email a photo and we reply the same day with what to do next. Every question goes into the guide, so the next builder has an easier time.

Building through the winter

Get to stage 6 in a dry spell and the rest can happen in any weather. Keep the pallets covered until you need them and store the doors and windows flat, inside.

Related guides

A small cabin in a golden field at sunsetShepherd's hut kitsSizes, prices and what's in the box. A rustic window with a potted plant on the sill and fields beyondCost to finishThe honest total. A small hut in a meadow under large treesHow the build goesEleven stages.

Sources

  1. HETAS, April 2020 (copy hosted by The Kent Stove Company), HETAS Technical Note TN_0023: leisure accommodation units.