Pole Barn Advice

[ssuesens]

That's a beautiful looking building. Any chance of some pictures of the inside?

 

[6sunset6]

I assume you mean me. I can get some tonight. But it's full of stuff.
I built it in 1989 and moved all my stuff from a barn where I used to live. I still have not put some of it away. Embarressing. I have 3 books full of construction pictures on film. I have to scan some other stuff soon so If I remember I will pick out some. The roof was built in sections on the ground and lifted in place with a crane. So two of us did the whole thing.

 

[6sunset6]

Inside shots Dragline probably does not run 4 cyl Murphy resleeved when I got it. You can see the ceiling big trusses on 8' centers built the trusses on site per Cornell Ag plans. joists and perlons dropped into hangers.
So on the ground a two truss assembly build complete with plywood . I did not lap the plywood . Picked it up and put it on top of the framed walls. Then put the next one 8' away and dropped in all the perlons and joists in between. Lifted all the plywood up on a skid with the crane. So two of us build the whole roof , one section a weekend in the winter. The ceiling insulation is the same stuff used in tennis courts . 4' wide as long as you want it 6" insulation. Rolled out 16 rolls over the perlons and I was done.
Lights are high intensity cold start . No flicker or warm up for those guys.
Any one want more detail just ask

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Did you use the dragline as a crane to set the trusses?

I like old draglines and the one gravel yard has a nice one they still use to dig out the gravel. They are making a nice lake over there in Sinclairville with it

 

[6sunset6]

yes I did but the brake and clutch drums did not work well under load. But the boom drive worked great . I used the clutch and brake to position the hook and then used the boom lift to get it all up. Of course it threw a tread at the beginning so I did it all with out moving the machine. Picked up a truss assembly swung it onto the walls and then used two comealongs to pull it down the wall into position.
The tread took me 8 months to get back on. I kept jacking all the support timbers into the ground. I finally had to buy some steel plates 3/4 x 24 x 24. they worked great. Still have them waiting for a project.

 

[weldingisfun]

Thank you 6sunset6. You provided the perfect example to illustrate why I always advise folks who are getting ready to build a barn to make it bigger once they have decided what size they think they need.

All you folks getting ready to build a pole barn, look at this picture and then make it bigger!

Gee, I wish I had taken my own advise. Twice!

 

[LBrown59]

1*Ifin I had it to do over I would have went 30 x 56 instead of
30x52.
I'm thing about adding 50 feet to the end of my 22x76 building.
2*Sounds more like an OWT than factual to me.

== L B ==

SIR,
1*i suggest you build larger, because it will fill up
quickly.
i do not know much about the sprayed in insulation, but
2*i have been
told if there is fire, you only have a few seconds to get
out of the building, before the fumes kill you.

 

[jimmysisson]

Back to the foundation/posts fer a minute. You don't need a frost wall, even in our fairly cold neck of the woods. Dig holes for your posts (I like PT 6x6s) pour concrete footers in the bottom. Set the posts, braced, and backfill with bank run gravel. Don't pour concrete around the posts. Then, PT 2x10s spiked onto the outside of the posts with the tops at slab height.
From there in, place a foot to 18" of porous gravel on undisturbed soil and 3-4 inches of washed stone on top of that, staying X inches below your final floor height. Add perimeter drains if necessary.
I like to keep the slab several inches above the rest of the grade around the building, so there's no chance of water inside. One inch xps foam and a 5-6" slab on top with wire, and with radiant if you're able. Run the foam out flat at the door cutouts a foot or two. You can fasten the siding to the perimeter 2x10.
Even though these buildings have no perimeter foundation, the gravel (and the foam) keeps the frost from pushing the slab, at least on the several we've built.
Jim

 

[turbopiper]

Thank you 6sunset6. You provided the perfect example to illustrate why I always advise folks who are getting ready to build a barn to make it bigger once they have decided what size they think they need.

All you folks getting ready to build a pole barn, look at this picture and then make it bigger!

Gee, I wish I had taken my own advise. Twice!

I thought the same thing as I looked at the picture showing the inside. He did say he hasn't gotten around to organizing... yet.
I'm in the process of thinking out a 30x50 building, but when I look at all th building plans with all those huge trusses, I think of most of that space wasted. Granted I can probably reclaim some of that space, but I wanted all of that space I could get. I even went as far as drawing out my own trusses to utilize a second floor.

When I look up at my building that's 20 plus feet to the peak I want to use it all. This is wasted space up here.

I'm not exactly a cheap "bastich" but I look at all that space as storage. For most of the shelves like 6sunset6 has, which looks like he has access from both sides, I would put all the non bulky items upstairs.

I was planning on collecting the material for the trusses until I found this website, and I like their system better because I figured out the materials cost was less on the budget going their route. And it would be easier to erect, especially as I might have to do most of the work myself. Now I have to figure out if I want a gable or gambrel style roof. Right now I'm leaning towards gambrel to utilize all of that upper space. Which comes out to be 13 foot ceiling 1st floor 8 foot 2nd.

I'm also in the situation of whether to just pour a post and beam footing now and the rest of the slab later. Just getting a concrete company to have 3 trucks drive out to the country is gonna cost $$$.

One particular thing that caught my eye in 6sunset6's barn was the chain hoist I-beam..... NICE

Ted

 

[6sunset6]

uuuhhh The rear bay has a second floor and the is a deck on top of the trusses. with lights. My air compressor is up there as well as the tanks
That why there are vents over the big door. I do have stuff up there but not enough. Just too much stuff. Then my parents passed away and I got their stuff. I feel bad about my kids when it is their turn. And I got heavy stuff.