Insulating My Pole Barn - need help

   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #1  

steveessie

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Joined
Feb 13, 2013
Messages
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Location
duluth
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Hello Guys
I am new to this forum. Here is my situation. I live in Northern, MN. I have a 30x60 pole barn. It is not insulated. I am in the process of insulating the walls and need a little help. I am on a very tight budget and the building is not something that I will be using all the time, only an hour here or there in the winter. The walls are built like this:
1. Outside - Metal Panels -
2. Wood framing (girts? horizontal) attached to 4x6 posts

That's it. I am thinking of simply fitting Expanded Polystyrene Insulation (sytrofoam) inbetween the horizontal girts and then finishing it with drywall. I am wondering if I will have a problem with moisture as the insulation will most likely be in contact with the metal. I do not have the money to buy foam or framing to put up batts.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Steve
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #2  
I just have the 1" foam.. I covered it with drywall around where my wood stove is. On the walls, I have a strip of treated decking or 2 X 4, depending on the foam spacing off the floor, down on the concrete. Then a 7/16" chipboard covering the lower 4' between the posts. This protects the foam from damage and keeps the chipboard from getting wet. Any type of batting is just gonna be nest material if you ever get critters in your barn. The foam is nasty stuff if you ever get a fire, but the barn will go up pretty quick with just the wood framing. In my work area in the center of the barn, I have an added layer of 1/2" DOW foam under the drywall.
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help
  • Thread Starter
#3  
I just have the 1" foam.. I covered it with drywall around where my wood stove is. On the walls, I have a strip of treated decking or 2 X 4, depending on the foam spacing off the floor, down on the concrete. Then a 7/16" chipboard covering the lower 4' between the posts. This protects the foam from damage and keeps the chipboard from getting wet. Any type of batting is just gonna be nest material if you ever get critters in your barn. The foam is nasty stuff if you ever get a fire, but the barn will go up pretty quick with just the wood framing. In my work area in the center of the barn, I have an added layer of 1/2" DOW foam under the drywall.

Did you use any vapor barrier? When you say "foam" are you referring to the styrofoam or something else?

Thanks for the input...do you have any pictures of this?
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #4  
If you're planning on putting some heat in there (and I would imagine you do) I'd start with the ceiling. Before I insulated my ceiling, you'd have to stand right next to the woodstove to get any warmth. Got a deal on some 1" Styrofoam, nailed it to the purlins with those plastic cap roofing nails, taped the seams with builders tape and notice an immediate difference. The sidewalls just got plastic to keep air out and make a dead airspace, then nailed up OSB and pegboard. That also made an immediate difference.
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #5  
I have 1" 4X8' stryrofoam screwed onto the layer of 2X4's that the outside sheetmetal is nailed to. This is done with 1 5/8" drywall screws and IDEAL 1" plastic washers... Some of it was done with the Grip Rite nails/plastic washers you can get at Lowes or HD, but those are hard to remove if you need to take the panels off for some reason. The entire ceiling is striped with 2X4's on 2' centers that the ceiling foam is attached to. Here is a picture of the washers. The green are the old Grip Rites [ they sell red now ] ....
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #6  
:welcome:Good luck with your project.:thumbsup:
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #7  
does the styrofoam act as its own vapor barrier?
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #8  
Here are a few pictures... First one is next to where I park my current vehicle in use in the winter. Second is where the trator sets with an extra kickboard trying to protect the wall/posts. Walls to left still need to be covered. Third is the front part of the barn with one of the ceiling access doors. Last is the workshop area.... Barn is 40X80 with 10.5' ceilings.
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help #9  
I had the blanket type insulation installed during the build. As you can see in the picture they left me quite a bit of insulation. Before I finished the interior I cut another layer of insulation and stapled it between the girts. Then I put osb on the bottom 8' of the walls and drywall above that. To finish off the insulation I had 6" of cellose blown into the attic space. Stays toasty when I am working, I have the thermostat set to 40 when I am not in the pole barn.
P9080159.JPGPA010006.JPG
 
   / Insulating My Pole Barn - need help
  • Thread Starter
#10  
I had the blanket type insulation installed during the build. As you can see in the picture they left me quite a bit of insulation. Before I finished the interior I cut another layer of insulation and stapled it between the girts. Then I put osb on the bottom 8' of the walls and drywall above that. To finish off the insulation I had 6" of cellose blown into the attic space. Stays toasty when I am working, I have the thermostat set to 40 when I am not in the pole barn.
View attachment 303075View attachment 303076

love the Isaiah 43:2-3 quote...amen!
 
 
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