The riding tractor needs to be nearby in the summer, but out of the way in the winter. The snow blower needs to be in-reach in the winter, but out of the way in the summer. We have two garage bays, as well as a portable garage in the woods. The riding tractor stays in the backyard shed 365 days/year. It never needs to be in the garage. But in the winter, the snow blower is in the garage. If it were in the backyard popup, we’d never reach it for all the snow in the backyard. Here’s where to store the tractor and snow blower:
- Full size hard-sided shed with room for other equipment
- Medium size hard-sided shed
- Miniature hard-sided shed
- Best Fabric Garages / Popup Tents / Canopies
- Heavy duty tarp
- Tractor cover
- Hanging from heavy-duty wall shelves or ceiling storage
- Fabric awning
- Use a Lift to Store the Equipment
- Use a Lift to Move the Equipment
Quick Links
This article was updated April 18, 2022
When I first wrote this article, the best choices were in stock, and “COVID” was not yet a household word. I updated this article to include new tractor and snow blower storage choices, but left the old descriptions so you could see how I would shop for these items. The links are to the new products I recommend that are actually in stock. You can learn much more about these storage options in our article 13 Ways to Store Your Lawn Tractor / Mower or Blower(opens in a new window to our RebootMyGarage.com article).
#1 Best Full Size Shed
Update April 18, 2022: The Suncast Cascade shed is currently unavailable. This article describes the Cascade, but the links now go to the Suncast Tremont, which is a larger version of the Cascade and is still available to buy. At the bottom of this section you will find a group of shed comparisons to help you choose from large, medium and mini sizes. A large shed will protect both pieces. They will not fit in a mini shed, but you can use it for a walk-behind mower. For medium sheds, measure your equipment before deciding.
The Suncast Cascade is our favorite riding lawn mower shed because it’s the strongest and most attractive of the bigger sheds. There’s nothing wrong with the Rubbermaid sheds. We own a Rubbermaid deck box that’s been holding pool supplies for years. It’s well-built and holding up. The Suncast is just more attractive. The Suncast Cascade is has a 7 x 7 ft. footprint, or 49 square feet of floor space. The blow-molded resin is metal-reinforced and UV protected.Use a padlock if you want to lock the doors. The windows allow in light but do not open. The vent is functional, meaning it will help prevent condensation. I would still blow grass off the lawn mower before storing it, because grass is wet. This goes double if the shed will be in direct sunlight several hours a day. The shed is an enclosed plastic box that will get very hot in the sun, even with a reasonable vent.
I think resin is a super shed material to metal, as it’s not going to rust. The door opening is 5 ft. wide. It will easily fit dirt bikes, motorcycles, and ATV’s. The ceiling is 8.5 ft. at the tallest point. There’s plenty of room for a riding lawn mower, plus any gardening tools you want to store outside. Suncast offers a hook and accessory kit for this shed. It has hooks for hanging brooms and rakes, and a wire basket. View it here. Whether you get this or any other shed, it really should be installed on a proper foundation. Take a look at our generator shed footings. We dug up a garden spot and laid those cement blocks down in a couple of hours. The shed must be installed on a dry, level base. Even if you are handy, some of the parts are big. It’s best to have a partner help you put it together.
The Cascade shed is water-resistant. You can put a bead of silicone where the walls meet the floor and ceiling. This will keep out both bugs and water. It really is a very good seal without doing that, so the silicone is just to be sure. If you live in a really windy area, consider bolting the floor to the cement block base. Customers report the shed standing tall in 60 mph winds. So I’m talking about a really windy area where you know the shed will be subjected to really high winds. The Suncast is both functional and beautiful. It has room for a riding tractor and a push lawn mower, and it’ll hold up for years. Buy it here.
More Full Size Sheds
#2 Best Medium Size Sheds
#3 Best Mini Sheds
#4 Best Fabric Garages / Popup Tents / Canopies
A fabric garage is a tent-like structure with metal ribs holding up a fabric covering. It’s more or less permanent. You’re not going to move it around. You can move a popup tent around. It unfolds and assembles into a single fabric top on four legs. It’s lightweight and easy to move. A canopy can be heavy or light, and therefore more permanent or more portable. The fabric garage I recommended when writing this article is now unavailable. I left the images and description so you can see how I shop for a popup fabric storage garage. I changed the links so they go to the Shelter Logic garage.
The kdgarden 10x10x8 ft. pop up shed is a stable, well thought-out lawn mower storage solution. The kdgarden shed’s white interior is brighter than the average pop up dark gray. Both the interior and exterior are treated with anti-fungal agents. There’s UV and fade protection on the exterior. The walls are 6 ft. 4 inches tall, and the ceiling is 8 ft. at its peak. The steel frame is treated to protect against rust, peeling, corrosion, and chipping. The door is 10 ft. wide by 8 ft. tall. The floor is 10 x 10 ft., which gives you an enormous 100 sq. ft. of space. There’s plenty of room for a tractor, riding mower, ATV, or even a car.
This model has a peak roof. If the shed will get a lot of snow on top, the round roof might be better for you. Same price, just a better design for snow. There’s no floor with this pop up tent. We put our shed in our woods for our pickup truck and lawn tractor. We had our landscaper prep the area with a mini-version of how they prep the ground to put in a patio. They tamped it and put some gravel down to make the area nice and hard. We also found an elevated area and dug a few ditches to allow rain to run off. This pop up shed will get your lawn equipment out of the garage without exposing it to the rain and snow. You can get the kdgarden pop up shed on Amazon.
#5 Best Tarps
Just as happened with the hard-sided shed and the fabric popup garage, the tarp I chose to recommend is now unavailable. I kept the descriptions so you can see how I shop for a tarp. The links now go to an extra heavy duty tarp that will protect your lawn and snow equipment even if you store them outside. The Trademark Tarp is 20 mil ultra heavy duty and you can view it here.
We keep our lawn mowers either in the garage or in the back yard pop up shed. We do use a lot of tarps to cover piles of fire wood. It’s pretty easy to spot a good tarp versus a lower-quality one. The good tarps are thick; even the smaller ones are heavy in your hands; they deflect water and they get a little stiff when it’s very cold out. Northwest Tarp & Canvas offers a beautiful 4 x 5 ft. tarp that I think is perfect for covering a riding lawn mower, tractor or push mower. It’s an 18 oz. vinyl with rugged, reinforced edges and solid grommets spaced every 16 inches. This tarp is specifically designed to handle freezing, heat, snow and dust. Hook bungee cords through the grommets to tie the tarp to the machine you’re covering. Don’t let wind get underneath. This tarp will protect your tractor. Just remember to let the machine cool off before covering it. This is the tarp to get to protect your lawn mower or tractor. Get it on Amazon.
Some Amazon Tarps
#6 Best Tractor Covers
A tractor cover is a tarp with a shape and pull ties. Tractor covers tend not to be as thick as heavy-duty tarps. You can get the same effect with well-placed ties on your heavy-duty-tarp grommets. The advantage of a cover is that it is fitted to wrap under the machine. Moving a tarp onto a tractor and tucking it underneath can be annoying and time-consuming. The tractor cover solves that with proper-sizing, fitting, and closures.
- find a tractor cover
- find a lawn mower cover
- find a snow blower cover
#7 Best Hooks for Hanging Under Shelves
The Rhino shelves I originally recommended are currently unavailable. I changed the links to point to the Fleximounts ceiling shelves because they’re just as strong as Rhinos. Hanging equipment under shelves only works when you install the shelving into studs using proper hardware. Hanging heavy equipment is dangerous. Be careful.
Hammock Hooks
Hammock hooks are strong enough to carry 1,000 lbs. A Cub Cadet is on the high end of tractor weights and it’s 600 lb. The strength of your installation is only as good as your hardware and studs.
Heavy Duty Shelves
Each four foot section of a Rhino Shelf can hold 600 lb. That’s why there are people sitting on the shelves in Rhino’s marketing images. Maximize the space by hanging more storage under the shelves. Even hanging the biggest lawn mower under a Rhino Shelf is no problem. The secret to this shelf’s strength is in the brackets. That’s what you’re actually buying from Rhino: it’s a kit that creates an incredibly strong frame for the 2×4’s you add to create the shelf surface. There’s no point in you paying shipping for the shelf part when that’s just wood you can buy at a home center. The important part is the never-fail aluminum bracing you install into your garage studs. Add lumber for the shelves and then a couple of hooks to hold the lawn mower underneath the shelves. You’ll get a ton of strong storage and a new home for your push mower. Learn more about Rhino Shelves in our Products section, or go straight to Amazon to buy them now.
#8 Store Yard Equipment Under an Awning
Fabric awnings are usually installed to protect from the sun. They make shade on sunny days. You can store your tractor under an awning for a little bit of protection. It won’t stop sideways rain and snow from getting everything wet. Put a cover or tarp around the equipment for more protection.
Video: Storage Caddy for Lawn Mower and Yard Tools
Video: Lawnmower and Snowblower Storage
Video: Winter Mower Storage
#9 Use a Lift to Store the Equipment
You can get a car lift to store a tractor, snow blower or any other heavy piece of equipment. Car lifts are engineered for much heavier weights than found in lawn and garden power equipment. The lifts below carry 8000 and 9000 lbs.
#10 Use a Lift to Move the Equipment
If you have an attic or garage loft, you can use a VersaLift to store heavy equipment. This machine is a hydraulic elevator for up to 250 lbs. .
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