Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued laminated

[woodchipper]

Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued laminated

Hello builders of all kind!
I am in the planing stages(as are others...) of a Pole Barn construction. My particular build will be 24' wide x 60' long, with a pole spacing of 10' on center. In order to have something built strong and durable, the poles that we use are therefore somewhat critical in the construction process.
So, I am doing a sensus, for all of you who DID have previously built a Pole Barn. When did you erect your building(year), which pole method did you use, why did you chose such method, how well is it holding today, and if you would do it differently today, what would you do, and why?????
So thank you to our experienced builders who will take the time to share on this Specific subject.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

I used 6x6 marine grade PT posts, because that is the way the barn kit came (5 or 6 yrs ago). mine is 30w x 48l x 12' h, with poles about 8' oc because of 16' material. My doors are on ends, not side. Course I bought an RV afterwards that won't fit inside, with 10' doors, not that I'd have room inside for it anyways. No major regrets, except should have built it sooner, except for that pesky money issue. I'd use laminated posts if I was using concrete base with the anchors, or permacolumns. I concreted the floor after about 3 yrs, again $$$ issue, wish I had done it at the beginning.

 

[QRTRHRS]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

First off, I would look into the methods commonly utilized in your area. What has worked, what has not. Gluelams have the advantage of not warping as some 6x6 or 8x8's can. I hauled polebarn materials for a builder/retailer that had plenty of warped poles laying in the yard and they were from a quality source. They also had a Permacolumn franchise/plant. When they sold Permacolumns with posts, they were always hand (air nailed) laminated 2x stock, never glulams. As I understood it at the time (2005-2006), these columns were engineered to hold up as well or better than solid or glulams.

You need to educate yourself about the types of treated material available today (latest issue of Fine Homebuilding has a short but informative article) and what type of hardware will not corrode.

My current barn built by others about twelve years ago has 20 plus foot 6x6 posts that are straight as an arrow and seem solid in the ground. It also has some 4x4's that are warped but still solid from what I can tell. Last barn I had built in 2003 had gluelams set on precast concrete round blocks then had ready mix poured around to ground level. While you will hear that this method will lead to rot, this particular builder had alot of buildings in the field with this method. He said that the seam between the precast pad and the ready mix would allow drainage. Of course if you built in a swamp with ground level water laying, all bets would be off. Though I no longer own that building, the feedback I get is that it is holding up just fine.

 

[Buppies]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

Mine 30 by 40 is built using three 2 by 6s nailed together. Personally prefer this method to 6 by 6. As treated boards go all the way thru vs the 6 by 6. Clearance with doors 13 feet or 14 when closed backhoe or dump truck fits nicely. Floor is 5in concrete with wire 5000 psi concrete.

 

[WVKubota]

I built my building, and a couple for neighbors using 3 2x6s nailed together. One of the buildings even had 16ft ceilings. I've never seen any problems with doing it that way. They were all embedded in concrete.

 

[woodchipper]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

Thank you folks for your testimonies. Good to know that no one has experienced failure with either method. So far, both seem to be proven. Reassuring to say the least. I will look at the article written on the subject, in "Fine Homebuilding" when i get a chance.
For those of you who went for the laminated aproach, what direction did you orient them? Are the top girders sitting on the outer two boards, or bolted on t their side, with scabs underneath?

 

[SIMassey]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

Hello builders of all kind!
I am in the planing stages(as are others...) of a Pole Barn construction. My particular build will be 24' wide x 60' long, with a pole spacing of 10' on center. In order to have something built strong and durable, the poles that we use are therefore somewhat critical in the construction process.
So, I am doing a sensus, for all of you who DID have previously built a Pole Barn. When did you erect your building(year), which pole method did you use, why did you chose such method, how well is it holding today, and if you would do it differently today, what would you do, and why?????
So thank you to our experienced builders who will take the time to share on this Specific subject.

Wick uses 3 2x6s . Truss is sandwiched between outside layers then bolted. Center board was left short and did not extend to top of post, when truss elevation was established, center board was cut to length, sandwiched between outside layers and truss was set on top of center board. Posts on 10 foot centers, 30 foot truss, 16 foot under truss. Finished size 30 x 50.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

Wick uses 3 2x6s . Truss is sandwiched between outside layers then bolted. Center board was left short and did not extend to top of post, when truss elevation was established, center board was cut to length, sandwiched between outside layers and truss was set on top of center board. Posts on 10 foot centers, Iowa30 foot truss, 16 foot under truss. Finished size 30 x 50.

That's how I've seen laminate done.

since I used solid 6x6, I left mine above the header and lagged the truss to the side of the pole.

just went and looked at my pics, it almost 9 yrs ago when I built my barn, wow time sure does fly.

 

[stingray1]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

Wick uses 3 2x6s . Truss is sandwiched between outside layers then bolted. Center board was left short and did not extend to top of post, when truss elevation was established, center board was cut to length, sandwiched between outside layers and truss was set on top of center board. Posts on 10 foot centers, Iowa30 foot truss, 16 foot under truss. Finished size 30 x 50.

I haven't seen this done,but it sounds like the way that I may try to hopefully build.

 

[Jim Timber]

Re: Pole construction census: 6"x6" PT post, VS: 3x 2"x6" PT glued/or not glued lamin

If laminating in place, are you just using PT on the first courses, or are you still using them for the entire post?