8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed

Our verdict on the 8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed

The 8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed comes with an apex style roof, holds a 10 Years guarantee, and is fit with lockable double doors that use a hasp and staple locking system. The windows window used on this particular 8′ x 5′ use a 2mm styrene ^[1] material.

Base material: plastic

Our experts say this has 3 stand out features. A stand out feature is something found on over 70% of the top 10% of products in a particular category or is an exceptionally good feature as rated by our panel of experts.

1. The high-density polyethylene (hdpe) construction like the one used on the roof of this shed is rated one of the best by our panel of experts.

2. Our experts say this the high-density polyethylene (hdpe) floor material used here is one of the best available on all sheds.

3. A floor that is 20mm thick is something our experts say is one of the best available for this kind of shed.

Below is a brief overview of how some of the key points of this shed fairs across the market.

Guarantee

On a plastic shed, the guarantee that the manufacturer offers is usually a very good indicator of the quality of the building. The longer the guarantee the more the manufacturer believes in the quality of the building they have produced. Typically we see manufacturer guarantees for plastic Sheds ranging from zero right up to a limited lifetime guarantee.

This plastic shed comes with a 10 years guarantee. Most plastic shed come with a 10 years guarantee (36.47% of them) ^[2].

For this particular brand (Lifetime) they offer 12 ^[3] different types of guarantees on their plastic sheds, with the 10 years guarantee on this being the only they offer. The 10 years guarantee is found on 87.50% of Lifetime plastic sheds ^[4]. It is great that this shed was given one of the highest guarantees offered by the brand, and this shows the manufacturer has a lot of faith in the overall quality of this part of their product range.

When looking at comparable 8′ x 5′ plastic sheds (we found 312 of them) the most popular guarantee length offered by manufacturers was 10 years ^[5]. 43.59% came with a 10 year guarantee, 37.18% came with a missing guarantee, 15.38% came with a 15 year guarantee, 1.60% came with a 20 year guarantee, 0.96% came with a 30 year guarantee, 0.96% came with a 1 year guarantee, 0.32% came with a 25 year guarantee, 0.00% came with a limited lifetime guarantee and 0.00% came with a lifetime guarantee.

Read full analysis for guarantee.

Cladding

The plastic cladding(walls) used here is an about average form of construction for shed walls out of the 2 types ^[6] we’ve identified on same-size sheds, that you’ll also see getting used on 2% (84 of 4,360) of all sheds analysed ^[7], as well as being used on 1% (4 of 436) of the top 10% of sheds ^[8]. You’ll also find the plastic cladding showing up on 1% of 8′ x 5′ sheds (3 in total) ^[9].

Read full analysis for cladding.

Roofing

High-density polyethylene (hdpe) is the material used for the roofing, our experts rate this the best form of roof material out of the 4 types we’ve found on same-size sheds ^[10]. This roofing material is used on 1% of all sheds analysed, and after looking top 10% of sheds (436 in total), none of them make use of this roof material. Out of all 8′ x 5′ sheds we find this is actually the only one to use a high-density polyethylene (hdpe) roofing.

Read full analysis for roofing.

Flooring

Fantastic, our experts say most of the flooring options used are among the best.

The manufactures of this shed chose high-density polyethylene (hdpe) for the floor construction, we rate this the best form of floor construction out of 2 types found on same-size sheds ^[11]. This type of floor construction is used on 1% of all sheds we analysed, with none of the top 436 sheds making use of this kind of floor material. The data we have on all sheds shows us that this is the only 8′ x 5′ shed that comes with a high-density polyethylene (hdpe) floor material.

A 20mm thick floor boarding is used here, this is the best floor board thickness according to our experts and a further analysis shows us this is the only thickness used on same-size sheds ^[12]. It’s found on 1% of all sheds with none of the 436 sheds that make up the top 10% using a floor of this thickness. Out of all 8′ x 5′ sheds it turns out that this is the only one to use a 20mm flooring.

Read full analysis for flooring.

Window

Styrene windows come installed on this shed. As a glazing option, we rate it the worst out of the 3 glazing types found on 8′ x 5′ sheds ^[13]. This particular type of glazing is used on 6% of all windowed sheds and 1% of the top 10% of sheds with windows we analysed. 7% of 8′ x 5′ sheds with windows (14 in total) use styrene windows.

The windows on this shed use a 2mm thick glazing, we rate this one of the worst thicknesses for window glazing. You’ll also find this is the only thickness glazing used on same-size sheds ^[14]. Glazing this thick is found on 8% of all the windowed sheds we analysed and used on 14% of the top 10% of windowed sheds. 6% of 8′ x 5′ sheds (13 in total) use 2mm thick glazing.

Read full analysis for window.

Height

The height of this shed is 2440.0mm (8′) which is 22% more than the average 8′ x 5′ shed, giving you 441.5mm (1′) extra headroom.

Read full analysis for height.

Doors

The door height is 1,930.00mm (6′) tall which is 34% or 486.34mm (2′) taller than the average 8′ x 5′.
The door width is 1,420.00mm (5′) wide which is 29% or 319.31mm (1′) wider than the average 8′ x 5′.

Read full analysis for doors.

You Might Also Consider

We found 8 8′ x 5′ sheds with comparable specifications. The 8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed has an Expert Score that is 13% lower than average and is £59 more expensive than average. If you are looking for the best value or highest expert scoring sheds out of the 8 with comparable specifications the following might be of interest.

Best value – If you are looking for something comparable that costs less, then you could save £719 with this 8′ x 5’3″ Saffron Plastic Vinyl Apex Shed. It is priced at £600, this is 120% less than this and has an Expert Score of 75, 5 points higher than the 8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed.

Highest Expert Score – With an Expert Score of 90 vs 70 for this product, the Rowlinson 6′ x 8′ Skylight Plastic Grey Deco Shed is the best 8′ x 5′ shed with comparable specifications, and is priced at £669, that’s £650 less than the 8′ x 5′ Lifetime Special Edition Heavy Duty Plastic Shed.

High Wind Area – If you live in a particularly exposed or high wind area then having a shed with a thicker cladding and higher than average frame thickness can be preferable. We found at least 3 sheds that have a combination of features that can make them more suited to higher wind areas.
Oren 8′ x 6′ Shiplap Pent Bike Shed
Oren 10′ x 5′ Shiplap Pent Bike Shed
6’x6′ Tiger Shiplap Windowless Apex Shed

Coastal Consideration – If you live in a particularly wet or harsher environment such as by the coast then you might want to consider something with a more robust pressure treatment or something made from metal or plastic, both materials that are particularly suited to such harsh environments. We’ve found at least 3 sheds that have a combination of features that can make them more suited to higher wind areas.
6′ x 7′ Yardmaster Castleton Anthracite Metal Shed
6’8 x 6’6′ Yardmaster Green Metal Shed 66GEYZ
6′ x 6′ Lotus Anthracite Grey Apex Metal Shed

Public-Facing – Extra security measures might be more of a concern if you’re placing your building in an area that is more public-facing than a garden. Features such as security windows or even having no windows at all, and the ability to lock all opening doors are usually much more important when you have something that is more public-facing. We found at least 3 sheds that have options that you might find a better fit if this is a concern you have.
6’8 x 7’2 Yardmaster 67GEYZ Green Metal Shed
6′ x 6′ Sapphire Apex Green Metal Shed
6′ x 6′ Lotus Anthracite Grey Apex Metal Shed

More Child Friendly – If you have children and you are looking for something that has that little extra in terms of durability then tougher glazing options might be a better option. Here we have at least 3 other options that will fill those needs.
Oren 6′ x 6′ Shiplap Modular Custom Pent Shed
Oren 8′ x 6′ Shiplap Modular Custom Apex Shed
Oren 6′ x 6′ Shiplap Modular Custom Pent Security Shed