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Metal building / pole barn owners group...

mudnducs

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 14, 2014
Messages
63
Location
Jonesborough, Tennessee
Occupation
retired mech eng
Does anyone know of a website dedicated to pole barns/metal buildings that's not just a sales site?
I live in far east Tennessee. Had an order in for one to be made from an outfit in Colorado....things went downhill as delivery kept slipping.

So I'm looking for a "user/owner" group to see whats going on generally with guys putting up shops. Looking locally it's a horror story of web sites, passwords, and promises.

Any info is appreciated.
 

crane operator

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2009
Messages
8,274
Location
sw missouri
The "garage journal" forum is full of guys building garage/shop/barns and setting them up. Similar to here- in that no advertising is involved. Of course all the info on any forum is worth what you are paying for it.

My personal opinion- drive around your local area, and look at new buildings currently being put up- and find out who's doing it, check with the local lumberyards to see who is putting up their buildings. Local guys plan on building in their local area for years, the fly by night outfits come and go.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/
 

FarmWrench

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Chaffee NY
Occupation
Table Potato farmer
The Pole Barn Guru has a LONG series of articles regarding design, planning, materials and construction.

I'm still learning myself. Had a 72'x80'x18' paid for before the lockdown. Got it up in 2020 didn't get concrete and some wire in it till this fall.

Already discovered a problem with the wainscoting leaking.
 

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Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
Look for a supplier that works directly with an installation crew(s). I put up a 40x60 pole shed and it took 6 days start to finish. Could have been done in 5 if they worked longer days but 6 was still really quick. I went to a big farm show to check out different building suppliers. Because I didn't technically have a farm I required trusses on 2ft. centers and engineers drawings that added to the cost. The farm store I went with had the engineers drawings for about half of what any other suppliers wanted. They also worked with 3 crews to put the buildings up which meant they could schedule everything and I didn't have to find a builder. The farm stores closer to me had the building packages and may have been able to recommend builders but didn't work directly with any builders. I not only got the best price on the building by quite a bit but also got the lowest cost engineers drawings and the supplier arranged the whole process giving me a timeline. I was very pleased. They even had a policy that the final payment (paid in 3 installments) wasn't to be paid until myself and the store buildings manager were both completely satisfied. He came out and did some final adjustments to the man door and set the deadbolt and handle locks. The only thing I needed to supply was the 3/4 washed rock that went around the posts. Holes were drilled 24in. and 7ft. deep with 2 bags of quick Crete poured in each hole to make a bottom cookie. Laminated posts had in-ground preserved wood for the portion surrounded by the washed rock. You don't want to cement the posts in. They will soak up the moisture and rot. I built the area up for my shed and it looks brand new almost 8 years later. Luckily there is a gravel pit adjacent to my property that supplied the washed rock. They actually custom crushed it for me because all they had was 5/8" at the time. Engineer spec'd. 3/4" so incase there were any issues I figured it's best to use the 3/4".
The other thing I found when shopping around is many suppliers specify their way of attaching trusses is better than the other suppliers. They are several ways to attach trusses to walls and it's highly unlikely any of them would ever fail under normal circumstances. You have a tornado rip through all bets are off no matter what design was used. Just remembered a couple other features my supplier provides. The building is wrapped with house wrap and the ceiling has a membrane applied to help stop condensation from dripping under the metal roof. I've only ever seen it drip once and I think it was because of a weird weather pattern right around freezing temp. Never saw any other signs of it dripping. Most of the other buildings I looked at, I don't think used the house wrap or membrane.
 
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FarmWrench

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Chaffee NY
Occupation
Table Potato farmer
Welder Dave has a lot of it figured out. Need an engineer for the cookie or poured in place. Pretty famously a new shop blew across 4 lanes of I90 when it didn't have enough hold down in the foundation.

Ceilings are often aluminum because they are cheaper (Subject to what you voted for) and don't sweat. The big downside is with a fire they hit a few hundred degrees and fail usually dropping cellulose insulation into the hot air and the otherwise winnable/extinguishable fire just went to a total loss. So my third building has a steel ceiling and fiberglass blown in.

A big advantage of wood is the ability to "do-over" and change a lot of things. Need to move or add a door, window? Pole Barn doesn't make it impossible.

Layout is vital. Personal diligence and discipline and their lacking have turned a lot of shops into a mess. I've seen a lot of brilliant and well equipped shops that turned into firewood central because that was the chosen heat source. Insufficient insulation and "cheap" mentally made expensive floor space into firewood storage.
 

aighead

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 25, 2019
Messages
2,541
Location
Dayton, OH
I'm not sure if it's what you are looking for but DIYPoleBarns did me VERY right. They were the lowest cost, at size and height, a treat to work with, and local to me (but very regional, anything this side of the Mississippi River, it sounds like). They had a 2 man crew come out in late February/early March (if I recall) and took about 2 weeks to put up my barn. The crew I had were considered "certified builders" for DIY and it sounds like that is all they use (but that is likely just some marketing lingo), but I could not have been happier.

Here is a link to my whole building experience.
 

colson04

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2016
Messages
2,057
Location
Delton, Michigan
The Pole Barn Guru has a LONG series of articles regarding design, planning, materials and construction.

I'm still learning myself. Had a 72'x80'x18' paid for before the lockdown. Got it up in 2020 didn't get concrete and some wire in it till this fall.

Already discovered a problem with the wainscoting leaking.

Didn't lap the wainscoting trim seam, did they? Or any other measures to prevent moisture intrusion at the seam.

The last pole barn I built for a customer, I pushed for housewrap under the steel and synthetic roofing underlayment under the roof steel. We sheeted ½" osb over the roof purlins, then synthetic underlayment, then steel. The osb provides sound dampening for the interior workspace during rainy weather. It definitely works. Yea, it adds some cost up front, but part of that barn was kennel space for some working dogs and sound reduction was important to the owner.
 

ianjoub

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 22, 2018
Messages
1,437
Location
Homosassa, FL USA
I have done 2 from Barn Kits of America. One is 36' x 84' with walls. I did spray foam insulation with 3/4" foam board over the top of that as well as a poured slab. The 2nd is 40' x 40' and only the roof, ie. a carport. I am happy with the product I was sold.

DSCF0001 (3).JPG DSCF0007.JPG 172.jpg
 

FarmWrench

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Chaffee NY
Occupation
Table Potato farmer
Colson04 that was where Friday hit. They were a little bit short of getting it done and I guess they didn't caulk the overlap on Monday morning.

I put a ceiling in and fiberglass even if I have no intention of heating. Birds, noise, lights in addition to temp moderation. From here on out I'll do WRB between steel and wall girts. Until I have it destroyed by raccoons or something.
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
Didn't lap the wainscoting trim seam, did they? Or any other measures to prevent moisture intrusion at the seam.

The last pole barn I built for a customer, I pushed for housewrap under the steel and synthetic roofing underlayment under the roof steel. We sheeted ½" osb over the roof purlins, then synthetic underlayment, then steel. The osb provides sound dampening for the interior workspace during rainy weather. It definitely works. Yea, it adds some cost up front, but part of that barn was kennel space for some working dogs and sound reduction was important to the owner.
That sounds like the membrane under my galvanized steel roof. OSB under the steel is a good idea if you'll be in the shop in bad weather quite a bit. I was in my shop when a freak rain and hail storm came through. It was so loud a friend and I couldn't hear each other talking 10ft. away! 5 minutes later it starting to get sunny. The quick Crete is basically the same as poured in place but dries much faster. 2 bags were dumped in and then a pail of water. By the time they finished all the holes they could could go back to the 1st one and set the post. The concrete cookies prevent the posts from sinking over time but need to be below the frost line so they don't heave up. The house wrap is beneficial if you want to insulate now or at a later date. Another thing to compare is the metal gauge of the roof and walls. My 40x60 was quite a bit cheaper per square foot than a 30x50. $6000 more but 16ft. walls instead of 14ft. and a 14x14 overhead door instead of a 12x12 overhead door. Overhead door is far better than a sliding door unless you're parking a wide combine or something in the building.
 
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aighead

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 25, 2019
Messages
2,541
Location
Dayton, OH
Yup, higher building seems to increase price quick!

I couldn't afford overhead doors on mine, another thing that saved me about 2500 bucks, if I recall. Sliding kind of sucks (and I damaged a lower rail when I was grading outside, I still need to fix, giving the door a hitch in its getalong).
 

FarmWrench

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
168
Location
Chaffee NY
Occupation
Table Potato farmer
Combine won't fit in a 14' door without dropping the bin extensions. That was a mistake I made on a 60-80' in 2008. 20'-14' door and you can't just drive in!

New building is 18' ceiling with 28'-16' door and I had the jib on my forklift almost on the ceiling to pull the rotor drive gearbox. Wouldn't have fit if I had a gantry crane that would clear the lights. (much grumbling and regretting not going to 20' ceiling). I can see the same situation with a dead excavator or payloader.
 

Welder Dave

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2014
Messages
12,257
Location
Canada
Yup, higher building seems to increase price quick!
Over 2000 Sq. ft. the price per foot comes down. $36K for 14ft. wall 30x50 vs $42k for a 40x60. $6000 more for 900 more Sq. ft., higher walls and a bigger door seemed like a no brainer to me.
I couldn't afford overhead doors on mine, another thing that saved me about 2500 bucks, if I recall. Sliding kind of sucks (and I damaged a lower rail when I was grading outside, I still need to fix, giving the door a hitch in its getalong).
 

Spud_Monkey

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2018
Messages
6,436
Location
Your six
Occupation
Decommissioned
Well I wouldn't
The "garage journal" forum is full of guys building garage/shop/barns and setting them up. Similar to here- in that no advertising is involved. Of course all the info on any forum is worth what you are paying for it.

My personal opinion- drive around your local area, and look at new buildings currently being put up- and find out who's doing it, check with the local lumberyards to see who is putting up their buildings. Local guys plan on building in their local area for years, the fly by night outfits come and go.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/
They banned me within a week of being there, they said I was too wound up :rolleyes:
Screenshot 2022-12-10 at 09-07-06 Oops! We ran into some problems.png
 

joe--h

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2009
Messages
1,259
Location
Utah
I got banned too when they changed form formats. Told them the new one sucked and who complained about the old format?

Didn't like that at all, criticizing the master. Old format was much better than the new one, which sucks by the way.

Joe H
 

Spud_Monkey

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2018
Messages
6,436
Location
Your six
Occupation
Decommissioned
I got banned too when they changed form formats. Told them the new one sucked and who complained about the old format?

Didn't like that at all, criticizing the master. Old format was much better than the new one, which sucks by the way.

Joe H
Seems the don't want to compete with who is more wound up, seems they are more wound up than me from that statement.
 
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