Pole Barn VS Red Steel building - Need some more advice

[747driver]

You need to actually draw up exactly what you want. Size,windows,doors,roof pitch,concrete,insulation etc. Then ask for quotes so you can compare cost. Otherwise you are just throwing darts at a board.

 

[ultrarunner]

If it is any consolation... I recently received a quote to rebuild a 12 year old deck with stairs for 80k in Olympia...

When I question the contractor... the only one that put in a bid he said they have more business than they can handle right now... so I called a few and was told maybe fall to come out and take a look.

It's going to be rough getting old where I was use to doing everything myself... roof, concrete, drywall, electric, plumbing... etc...

 

[747driver]

If it is any consolation... I recently received a quote to rebuild a 12 year old deck with stairs for 80k in Olympia...

When I question the contractor... the only one that put in a bid he said they have more business than they can handle right now... so I called a few and was told maybe fall to come out and take a look.

It's going to be rough getting old where I was use to doing everything myself... roof, concrete, drywall, electric, plumbing... etc...

X2 ! Thats why I gave in when the DW said....let someone else build the barn. I am not fond of going up on roofs anymore. Plus I have a house addition to do and new kitchen cabinets to build. Morton will have the barn up in 5 days...weather permitting !

 

[woodlandfarms]

747 you are correct, except you are not in the PNW. As Ultra so wonderfully put it, I cannot even get a quote. It has taken me 3 months of nearly daily pestering to get numbers. These contractors are booked out 6 months or more. The permit office is saying 6 to 8 weeks minimum for an initial permit, and good luck getting someone to check in a timely manner. I have seen houses sitting for days because they can't get someone out to look at it.

Supply and demand. Only good news (for me) is that Portland is seeing a major slowdown in new construction. Hopefully we have enough houses and jobs to level out. When I was in Seattle last year I was told by a major contractor that seattle had the most construction cranes in the US going at once. That other cities are having to wait years to get a crane in because seattle is booked out so far.

Also, we have been looking for a "modern" design. When we did get a quote for a modern design, and it came back crazy high, we would go back to the drawing board and try again. And the final story. We finally found a spot that worked, we got a design for the space and a quote we could live with, and I thought, better get the county out to check all of the utilites that run accross our property (40 acres and our property has some sort of tie in with anothe section of homes). Turns out our building was right on top of a major telephone line. So much for that idea.

 

[747driver]

747 you are correct, except you are not in the PNW. As Ultra so wonderfully put it, I cannot even get a quote. It has taken me 3 months of nearly daily pestering to get numbers. These contractors are booked out 6 months or more. The permit office is saying 6 to 8 weeks minimum for an initial permit, and good luck getting someone to check in a timely manner. I have seen houses sitting for days because they can't get someone out to look at it.

Supply and demand. Only good news (for me) is that Portland is seeing a major slowdown in new construction. Hopefully we have enough houses and jobs to level out. When I was in Seattle last year I was told by a major contractor that seattle had the most construction cranes in the US going at once. That other cities are having to wait years to get a crane in because seattle is booked out so far.

Also, we have been looking for a "modern" design. When we did get a quote for a modern design, and it came back crazy high, we would go back to the drawing board and try again. And the final story. We finally found a spot that worked, we got a design for the space and a quote we could live with, and I thought, better get the county out to check all of the utilites that run accross our property (40 acres and our property has some sort of tie in with anothe section of homes). Turns out our building was right on top of a major telephone line. So much for that idea.

Thats what we went through here in Tenn. We live in a remote mountain area which really diminished our choice to find a builder. Endless phone calls and emails with bare response ! I knew Morton cost alittle more and thats why I put them on the back burner. After frustration I elected to go with them as they do the little things in the way they build. Most polebarn builders like home builders have their buildings sized to a basic standard to keep cost down. When you go custom like you want then building and materials are more expensive. Sadly I believe there is a lack of construction builders in this country, No one wants to do skilled trades anymore hence the backlog of getting something built. I have to wait until late June to get it built. We like the Portland area, will be out in Sept. for my military reunion !!

 

[GSVette]

It probably won’t help you much however I had a 40x60x14 pole building w/ 6” concrete slab, commercial girts, 65 ps ground snow load, bottom loaded trusses done last year in Spokane for right around 45k.

I went with a ‘ cookie cutter’ box since that eliminates the need for specialized engineering for permitting. Any customization adds $$. Much of this had to do with the ‘kitting’ of the buildings-the ‘pre-designed’ buildings are effectively standard kits that the building supply company virtual pulls off the shelf. Customization results in unique building material requirements.

I did leave in some simple provisions for future customization-rough framing for a 12x12 rollup next to my 16x12 roll up, additional mandoor rough framing, additional window framing , etc- these added virtually nothing to cost of build.

Good luck with your build.

 

[WM75Guy]

Morton's commitment to quality is outstanding and for us was worth the price and wait. Morton has factories where they build their own components including trusses so they have consistent quality. Our Morton building arrived on 2 of their 18 wheelers. They have forks on the back of the tractor so they unhitched and unloaded the trailers next to the pad site. Everything needed was there inventoried, neatly wrapped, and bundled with ID numbers so the construction crew knew which bundle contained what item they needed.

When the construction crew had the frame up they put up chains and boomers in all directions so they could square the building before they put up the X bracing. When they put on the roof insulation and metal they had to trim about 1/2" off one end because they had the building so square. I needed some 2"X6" added the length of the building to hang my lights on. I was talking to the foreman about my plans and asked when I could get in to hang them as it was not part of the Morton contract. He told me to get them delivered and insisted that they be allowed to put them up so I would not have to take a day off from work to do it.

They cover every possible spot with metal to prevent a cribber from getting to the wood. They use 2"X8" tongue and groove with metal bracing to add strength to the walls. Our stables have been up since 2009 and I have not had one issue with anything loose, warped, or broken. More importantly I have not had one injury caused by the stables. And believe me our 1500# warmblood horses have tried to tear something up or hurt themselves by kicking or bumping up against the walls. As a horse owner that would be what I would be looking at for my stables.

 

[EddieWalker]

Oh, my location is just north of Portland on the WA side. About 20 miles from the bridge and more or less just off the 5.

Probably too far for my friend Darin Thomsen. He is close to Eureka in Northern California. I used to date his wife's sister for a few years and would hire him in a second if I needed something built. You never know, maybe he knows somebody in your area that he can recommend, or give you some advice in who to avoid?

Here is his website. www.dtcbuildings.com ~ Darin Thomsen Construction

Feel free to mention my name. I keep in touch with his wife on FB, but haven't seen him in person since the 90's.

 

[EddieWalker]

If it is any consolation... I recently received a quote to rebuild a 12 year old deck with stairs for 80k in Olympia...

How big is an $80,000 deck? WOW!!!!

 

[flingwing1969]

That is a shame, because although Morton may not be the cheapest, they are truly a class act in everything they do.

Exactly correct - many repair options much cheaper than a new build.