Roll Up Barn Door

[GGB]

Good Morning, TBN'ers.

On our home place (wife's family's farm), we still have what is thought to be the original barn, which is was part of the farm when it was purchased by the family in 1903.

We've been trying to get the barn back in usable shape, which is as the old saying goes, "Like trying to turn a pig's ear into a silk purse!". We decided to try to get it back into better shape, although we questioned the sanity of the effort.

(I know, I know! Pictures-will get them next time I'm up...)

For what we are spending, it would have been cheaper to tear down and put a new pole barn, but it's awfully hard to just destroy what has been there for that long. The barn was set on limestone rocks, but not even secured to the foundation. Somehow, shear weight and more luck have kept it upright. Many years ago, a tornado twisted the southwest corner about a foot off the foundation, but it stayed intact.

We still use it for shelter for the cattle herd in the lean to section, but no longer store hay-big round bales vs. small square bales. So we had the lean to section rebuilt (was not part of the original structure, but interestingly was in the worst shape), and had the south and west walls straightened as much as possible, which means still out of plumb-a lot of character! (Our contractor stubbed in poles on the inside to secure it to the ground, so it will at least stand normal winds, but certainly not tornados!) Then we had a new white metal roof and the proper barn red color metal siding put on. It looks so much better-hardly perfect, but now looks like it will stay up for a while longer.

When we were trying to figure out the changes, we knew we would use the end the cattle are not in for extra storage for small tractors and a truck. The original door wasn't large enough, so we had it reworked into a 10' x 10' opening. A sliding door wouldn't work without having a rail stick through the overhang and then be in the way of our combine, and a two section door isn't easy to use for my 80 year young MIL! So an overhead door seemed to be the answer. I really didn't want a track door hardware interfering with the interior, so am thinking that a roll up door is the best solution.

Can you TBN'ers with experience with roll up doors tell me what brands you've found which have worked well? Have electric openers been worth the extra money? Again, the opening is 10' x10'. Thanks in advance for your responses.

GGB

 

[grnspot110]

My only experience is with a six foot wide (from Menard's), good for my purpose. But I've heard the wider ones rattle a lot in the wind & I would be leery of the sturdiness of a wider one. ~~ grnspot110

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Tell me again why you need a door? A tractor and truck will suvive just fine in an open shed. My tractor lives in an open shed, and has never complained.

However, if you want to match the door to the period, double swinging doors are the way to go. For a barn door, a heavy full length piano hinge is the best, with about a 1/2" steel rod for the hinge pin. If you have a forge, you can bend up your own straps out of 3/16" or 1/4" flat bar. For a 5' x 10' door, I would space the straps about 12" or 16" apart, and anchor them with through bolts, not lag bolts. Plywood covered with siding will make a solid gusset that will keep the door square. The latch is simply 1 or 2 2x4s horizontal in hooks. You will have to open or close the door from the inside. I would tack the doors together and hang them both at the same time to simplify alignment problems, maybe fudging the crack at the top a little wider to compensate for slack in the hinges.

It's a lot of work, but the materials are dirt cheap. That's how they did things when that barn was built.

Good for you for preserving this old barn. I like to see them, but there aren't many left. They weren't designed for equipment access, and generally aren't very practical for modern farms. I once priced a 40 x 60 modern gambrel roof barn with a loft, and it was going to cost me over $50,000 just for the shell, with the loft space not really that usable.

 

[GGB]

grnspot110,

Thanks for the input. I hadn't realized that the roll up doors could rattle in the wind-we definetly get wind, so it sounds like we may need to rethink. My BIL just checked locally with a supplier, and he also noted the issues with wind. Found out that we might be able to go with a regular overhead door, but with tracks that go straight up the wall rather than turn 90 degrees. Can even turn slightly out at a small angle if needed to clear the roof line in that area. It sounds like that may be a better way to go than the roll up.

Larry Caldwell,

Thanks for the compliment about trying to keep the old barn rather than just tearing down and putting up a new one. I sometimes questioned our sanity, but I still like the look of a traditional barn on a farm. Also, my wonderful MIL didn't want a new barn, since the old one had been there longer than she had, even though she was born on the farm!

(At the rate she is going, she will probably outlive me, and since she is the mother of my beautiful loving wife, this really wasn't a hard decision. I'm one lucky guy, and definetly want to stay in good graces!)

I agree-you really don't need a door to cover a tractor or truck, but we will still be using the other end to get the cattle out of the weather in the winter, and don't want the wind to just blow through. Also, we sleep better when our things are out of sight-I know a door won't stop a thief, but might cause one to look elsewhere first. We've never had a problem, but you never know.

My first choice was also going with double doors, but we found that the best we could do with our budget was still going to have the southwest corner of the barn still out of plumb, and would probably make it difficult for my MIL to use. I still love the traditional barn doors, in fact have them on my barn/shop at the home place, but they are a pain sometimes, especially in the winter with snow in front. I have to clear the doors to get the tractor out to clear the snow. (Wish that was my biggest problem!)

What I'm thinking about for my own situation is to put an overhead door behind the double doors to cover the overhead door. That way I can still keep the look, but open the double doors before the snows or when I'm in and out frequently at other times. I'm not as young as I used to be, and am realizing that someday I may also want an electric opener on it, too.

Again, thanks for the pointers. This is a terrific forum with great folks. Can't believe how much good information I get from all of you!

GGB

 

[6thgpSF]

GGB,I've got a 100yr.old barn that I put a 9x7garage door on .Once I got elec. to the barn I put a garge door opener on it.I park my truck in it.I roofed it myself using corr. steel,screwed down.I ran water to it because I built a greenhouse onto it.I'm finishing up a 16x16 add on to park my grasshopper in.My tractor is kept in another part.Every opening has doors and is locked for piece of mind. russ

 

[2458n]

The 10x10 is a standard garage/commercial door size. Track can follow straight up or follow the roof slope. A jack shaft electrical door opener is a good addition for a older person. With the door springs adjusted properly it would open without an opener just as easily as any other garage door. This is nothing special to a garage door installer. Many doors are used to keep peoples "eyes" off your stuff.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I don't understand why your contractor can't get the barn plumb. I've seen a few of these century old barns re-habilitated and all were straightened up as good as new.

To answer your first question about roll up doors, I have had experience with them... both interior and exterior. (I work in a food plant.) I can't add much that hasn't already been said. They do rattle in the wind, and if I had another option I'd take it.

I appreciate your idea to preserve the ambiance by adding some additional doors that would cover an overhead door. I think a better idea, though, is to add paint or facade to the overhead door that accomplishes the same look. Paint the overhead door red and add the traditional "X" or "Z" to the door with strips of wood painted white. Cut the facade strips wherever there's a hinge in the overhead door. Same look. Less work.