Building Your Own Pole Barn

[ecard]

Haven't posted in a while - good to see TBN is strong as ever. I am considering building my own Pole Barn to save money maybe 30 by 60 with 14 foot side walls. I have read and studied the construction and as far as I can tell there doesn't seem to be anything real complicated to pole barn construction as long as the posts are set correctly and with 14ft sidewalls I think I would need some lifting help for the trusses.

But is it really worth the savings and pain to try to build one myself when I can have one built in very little time by one of the local contractors (obviously not Morton /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif). I am interested to know where other TBN'ers fell out on this topic?

As always - thanks for the great advice!

Eric in Indiana

 

[BWa]

I am going to be starting my own pole barn myself very soon . It was out of stupidity and ignorance that I thought the local building Inspector would be a help ????? what was I thinking /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif..DUH!,
After he told me , No telephone poles , no building it yourself if you want a permite , approved plans , and plot plans /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif I should have known something was up when he did not have a clue as to what a pole barn was .. ,,, Well I stepped back and then went to the Farm Bureau and got a copy of the state laws on farm buildings ,,,, Well he is in for it , they state if the sturture is for farm use the only thing I have to compley with is set back ,,,, the permit is a given and only needed for taxing the size of the structure .... it can not be used to enforce any other building codes as for a residental/ commercal buildings ,,,, round two will be fun /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif, on top of this he is leaving office with in week or two , so I am not sure as to putting this in by him or wait for the new guy to deal with ,....
I am build mine only for the fact I can do it a little at a time basic start will be 20x16,,, and add as I go and can afford to ....
Bill G ,
Learning to do the home work before starting a project .... /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[DUMBDOG]

Do not know what they mean by farm use, but knowing how the law works, farm use means farm use and unless you qualify as a farmer you may be out of luck using that angle.

 

[WVBill]

Eric: From one who has done it (see the story on My Web Page ) I highly recommend building it yourself.

It is a very satisfying experience and not all that difficult. With my father-in-law and three uncles we put up the basic structure and mostly dryed-in my 40' x 32' pole barn in one week. Yes, you will need some piece of equipment to help with the high work lifting. I used a self-powered scissors lift and it was well worth the $350 weekly rental.

When you say "build one myself" - yes, you can (See Spencer's posts here on TBN where he chronicles his project) - but just one or two more pairs of hands, maybe even just occasionally, will make things go much quicker and easier.

Best of luck.

 

[Chuck52]

Eric,

I built a 32x24 pole shed by myself, with help from my son setting the trusses and from a couple of friends putting on the metal roof. I did it myself to save money, but a neighbor, a farmer, came by while I was working on it and commented that the local builders would never have done as good a job or used as much cross-bracing and such as I did. Sure made me feel good about saving the money. I built it over about a month, mostly on weekends, with a few days off from work here and there. The only major mistake I made was in the siding. I used the inexpensive rough "cedar" siding with vertical grooves because I didn't want a metal building where it was going. The siding would have been fine, but I should have hand selected all the sheets instead of having the lumber yard deliver a bundle. I rejected several sheets, which they replaced at no cost, but I used a few towards the end when I got anxious to finish which I should have rejected. So now I'll probably have to replace or patch some areas in a year or so. Live and learn. I would still do it the same way, just be more selective on the sheets of siding.

Chuck

 

[cowboydoc]

A couple things. One is how valuable is your time. It will take you quite awhile to do one if you haven't done one before. You just about have to have another set of hands for alot of the work. That tall of a building a scissor lift will be very helpful. If you can work at another job and pay someone else to hand you the keys to it when it's finished it will save alot of headache and time. By the time you consider special tools, renting equipment, your time, etc. it usually doesn't pay much to do one yourself.

On the other hand if you enjoy doing something like this then the above doesn't apply. I would say you are looking at 4-6 weeks to finish this project with another person. If you're just doing it to save money though and this isn't your thing hire somebody and save yourself the headache. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

 

[BWa]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Do not know what they mean by farm use, but knowing how the law works, farm use means farm use and unless you qualify as a farmer you may be out of luck using that angle. )</font>
Well the land is part of 61A here in MA, that means it is used in / as agriculture farming that and a full copy of the current laws I now have ,will and does cover me here ......next stop pay my money for the permit ,,,,
Bill G.

 

[ecard]

Thanks for all the useful information. It is my understanding that in the county I live in (Hendricks) if you have 20 acres you do not have to obtain a building permit to construct a Pole Barn for agricultural purposes - at least that's what the building code says - too bad I only have 11 acres. I think I am going to give it a try.

 

[rancar]

<font color="blue">"...when I can have one built in very little time by one of the local contractors (obviously not Morton)..." </font>

Eric,

Why not Morton??? Have you heard bad things about them? I see their advertisements all the time and have heard from others that their buildings are generally well built.

...Bob

 

[cowboydoc]

Morton is certainly one of the best out there, both in quality and in building. The only knock about Morton is their cost but you certainly get what you pay for.