For the O’Connor’s, the journey to Dutch Home began with a vacation.
Little did Joe and Miriam O’Connor realize when they started traveling to the
Meshach Browning Cabins on the Casselman River that they would end up with
both a welcome storage solution and an esteemed friend.
Miriam O’Connor actually started it; she and her friends began visiting the
Grantsville, MD, area three hours northwest of the O’Connor’s Edgewater, MD,
home for ladies’ weekends, and she fell in love with it. She persuaded Joe to join
her, and they began making pilgrimages there for Memorial Day (also Miriam’s birthday), their anniversary in August, and for the renowned Octoberfest in October.
While on one of these vacations, the O’Connor’s visited a local furniture store,
where they were shown through the store by the owner’s son, Zack Byler, as he
answered all of Miriam’s questions about the furniture displays and other
household items. They appreciated his helpfulness.
The O’Connor’s continued to make the journey to the cabins and on subsequent
visits to the store, Zack always greeted them with a smile and a “Hello” and asked
them what they were looking for when he met them. The O’Connor’s grew to
develop a high regard for the Byler family.
Need for a Shed
The O’Connor’s home in Edgewater, MD, a western suburb of Annapolis, MD.,
comprises just over an acre. This is typical for their suburb but is fairly generous for
the Washington environs. One benefit is plenty of room for additional outside
storage.
And that was a good thing. The O’Connor’s had an existing 10×12 shed that was
almost completely filled up. They also had a room in the house that they wanted to
refinish to put in a pool table, but it had gradually disappeared from view under a
slow wave of … STUFF. Their garage was also feeling the strain.
“We just needed more space,” Joe said. “I wish someone would have told me when I
bought my first shed that when you park a lawn tractor in a 10×12, it’s full! We
hadn’t seen a lot of the stuff in that room in our house in years. I needed more
space for garage supplies, electrical items, nuts and bolts, furniture, Christmas
lights, and other seasonal items.”
One additional constraint was the need to build onsite. “My previous one (shed) was
smaller; plus, there had been 17 years of growth on my trees,” Joe shared. These
two things meant that no shed company was going to be able to bring the larger
size of shed that he wanted to his chosen site.
The Search for a New Shed
Joe described the beginning of his search in mid-2024. “I went to back to the local
location here in the Edgewater-Davidsonville area where I bought my previous shed,
but they don’t build on-site. I also went to the place they recommended in Crofton,
MD, and that company gave me a price, but they were expensive – at least $600-
800 more than I ended up paying. They didn’t do foundations, and the foundation
guy they recommended was again more expensive – by $200.”
Joe needed some more options.
Here is where their friendship with Zack Byler proved unexpectedly valuable.
During one of their visits to the furniture store, Joe shared that he was looking for
a quality, affordable storage shed. As it turned out, Zack was shortly relocating
much closer to the O’Connor’s to the Middletown, DE, area to take up a new job
with a company called Dutch Home. “And Zack told me that Dutch Home did
that (built sheds).” Joe was elated.
“So I checked out Dutch Home and they laid it all out on their website. I really like
their website; it was easy to go through. And Dutch Home was cheaper than either
of the other options. Their foundation guy was also cheaper.”
Joe had no worries about quality. “I trusted that Zack wasn’t going to be associated
with a bad product. I have a high regard for him and his family.”
Contacting Dutch Home, Joe talked to a guy named Chris since Zack hadn’t started
there yet. He found Chris easy to talk to and order from.
“They invited me up to Middletown, DE, to look, but since I only wanted a basic
shed, I didn’t need to see all of the options. I didn’t have any unique requirements.
I just needed a well-constructed shed that would keep the weather out.”
Joe placed his order for a 12×16 Gable style shed with double doors in fall 2024.
Joe placed his order for a 12×16 Gable style shed with double doors in fall 2024.
Preparing the Site
On Joe’s property, the first step was preparing the foundation site. “I had to make
sure I had the space cleared. I took down 2 baby trees but that was pretty simple.
Once I had the space cleared, I notified the foundation guys.”
“I have a good friend who owns a landscaping business and he recommended a
gravel foundation and that’s what I put in.”
Joe chose to work with the crew that Dutch Home recommended and he was glad
that he did. “The crew showed up when they said they would. They put up a
perimeter and put the gravel in the perimeter. They brought a Bobcat and 2 guys
and they didn’t waste time.”
The permitting and code process for bringing in a new shed offered a welcome
loophole. Joe explained, “One of the things I did was to check the code, and if you
were over 10 feet high, you would need a permit. So I asked Dutch Home to make
sure it was under 10.’ It was probably about 9’ 10” high when they delivered it – to
keep it under 10’.”
Building the Shed
There was one small problem during the build process. Dutch Home had planned to
put the doors at the end of the shed rather than in one of the longer side walls. Joe
realized it after they began building the shed and called them, and Dutch Home
quickly changed the building layout. “Doors at the end wouldn’t work for me,” Joe
explained. “I would be walking into trees. But they (Dutch Home) were very
workable.”
Dutch Home delivered and set up the shed in one day. The crew traveled about an
hour and 20 minutes, coming down Highway 301 on the Eastern Shore. “Everything
that they needed was on one load,” Joe said, “They were able to roll the pre-built
sections from the street to the jobsite. They had no problem doing it.”
Joe found himself very impressed with the crew of 2-3 men from Dutch Home who
worked to assemble the shed. “When they built it, the crew just worked. There
wasn’t any lollygagging around or taking breaks.”
But they weren’t carelessly fast either. “They took their time,” Joe said with
satisfaction.
The work progressed well. “I looked at it before they left and told them that
everything looks great, “Joe shared. “And then the crew left.”
Unfortunately, the day wasn’t quite over yet. Miriam, of course, wanted to see the new shed.
A Problem With the Sun
When she came out 30 minutes later, Miriam took one look at the new shed and
said, ‘It’s two different colors!’
An electrifying silence and a careful inspection followed. But it was true. In the
gentle evening sun, the siding on the two sides of the door certainly appeared to be
two different colors!
Joe picked up the story. “I took pictures and called up Zack. Zack said, ‘Whatever it
is, we’ll fix it.’
“Zack checked with his siding guy and the guy told him to tell me to look at it in the
morning.
Joe continued, “In the morning, I looked at it and said, ‘It’s the same!’ It must have
been the angle or the trees. The Dutch Homes guy must’ve run into that before.”
Joe can still see 2 different colors when only half the shed is in the sun in the
evening. But he doesn’t even notice it anymore.
Zack later told him, “We checked with the people who got the siding and the siding
came out of the same box.”
It’s easy to feel ridiculous when he looks back. Joe says, “I’m so glad that I took the
pictures so Zack wouldn’t think I was an idiot.”
But what Joe remembers is the respect with which Dutch Home treated his
concern.
Joe related, “Dutch Home never walked away and said, ‘You’re wrong.’ They didn’t
say, ‘That can’t be.’
“I’d already paid them and I’m down in Maryland and they’re in DE. They could’ve
just said, ‘It’s not our problem.’
“I really appreciated their attitude. I really appreciated the way they handled it.
Fewer and fewer companies are like this.”
The Shed Today
So what features of the Dutch Home storage shed are most appealing?
Joe didn’t have any hesitation. “The large size and (the fact that) it’s a wide-open
shed in which I can do anything that I want to do.” He is especially glad to know that there is plenty of space for the tools and equipment that he might acquire in
the future.
Joe went on, “It gave me more space in the house. We went through the room in
our house, and we said, ‘Why do we have that?’ It allowed our home to be fully
used.” The story is similar with the yard. “That part of my yard was wasted space
but now I’m able to actually use it.”
The quality and integrity of the shed didn’t disappoint. “It’s well-constructed and
looks good. It’s given me a safe place to store my stuff. I don’t lock it but I could. “
“It’s increased my property value since I now have 2 outbuildings and could sell my
home as having plenty of outside storage.”
And the O’Connors aren’t the only ones to be impressed with the shed. Joe said, “My
neighbors come over and say, ‘This is really nice.’”
“Would You Recommend Dutch Home to Others?”
Joe was quick to respond, “If you’re thinking of doing business with them,
take the risk. They’re worth it.”
Joe was surprised by the friendliness of everyone from Dutch Home. “They were
easy to deal with. It just felt as though I were dealing with someone I knew. They
were just really nice people.”
Looking ahead to the future, Joe isn’t forgetting them. “My wife and I want to go
visit their store and see what else they have besides sheds. My daughter is buying a
house, and she may need some furniture. So, we would like to go visit DH and see
what they have.”
And Joe isn’t sorry that he faced the outdoor lighting phenomenon that he did,
because he discovered something: “They have a good product and they stand
behind it. There were no problems that weren’t addressed.”
Wrapping It Up
The shed arrived at Joe’s property partly built, and Dutch Home completed the shed
in one day. The only big thing that Joe added was inside shelving.
Due to this, the shed cost was very affordable; Joe estimates that it cost him about
$10K overall.
Combined with his great experience with the Dutch Home personnel, the entire
transaction has left Joe with a big smile on his face.
In fact, he’s so happy that he’s willing to show anyone around who would like to see
his new shed and see Dutch Home quality for themselves. Contact Dutch Home for arrangements!
Ready for a Great Buying Experience and Storage
Solution?
In need of an outdoor storage solution and want the same experience as Joe and
Miriam O’Connor?
Give Dutch Home a call today or explore our website today!
