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Trail Maintenance Buildings

All across America old railroad beds are being converted into trails for uses such as walking, running and biking. According to www.railstotrails.org over 30,000 miles of trails now criss-cross our country.

My personal favorite is the Hiawatha Trail (www.ridethehiawatha.com) which begins in Western Montana (near what was once the boomtown of Taft) into Northern Idaho. It is 15 miles long with 10 train tunnels and seven sky high trestles. The 1.66 mile long St. Paul Pass Tunnel, also known as the Taft Tunnel, is a highlight of the trail which follows the crest of the Bitterroot Mountains near Lookout Pass Ski Area.

The history of this trail is fascinating. In August of 1910 one of the most devastating forest fires in recorded American history burned much of the natural forests in Northern Idaho and Western Montana. The fire burned up to three million acres! It was so huge a massive cloud of smoke spread across Southern Canada and the Northern U.S. all the way to the St. Lawrence River. The darkness from the smoke was so great, artificial lighting had to be used for five days as far east as Watertown, New York!

The fire completely devastated the St. Joe River valley of Idaho and destroyed all of the towns except Avery and Marble Creek, many of which were never rebuilt.

There were numerous stories of very heroic actions by railroad employees who drove engines and box cars filled with people through the flames to safety of the longer tunnels. Reportedly over 600 lives were saved in this manner alone!

These trails do not take care of themselves.

Roaring Run Trail in Pennsylvania users may enjoy the simplicity of taking a walk through the woods, but it takes a committed core of volunteers to maintain it.

“I think a lot of people don’t realize how many volunteers it takes to maintain this trail,” said Chelsea Walker of Kiski Township.

B.J. Bellotti of Avonmore, treasurer for the Roaring Run Watershed Association which oversees the trail, said they organized an informal event both to attract new members as well as to display a recently completed storage building.

Bellotti said many trail users wondered what was being built when land was cleared for the building, so they wanted to open it up to the public.

She said the new, larger pole building will allow for more practical storage of the tractor, Kubota multipurpose machine, brush hog mower, trailers and other equipment used to maintain the estimated 18 miles of trails on the association’s 650 acres of property.

The main Roaring Run Trail is about 6.5 miles long, extending from Third Street in Apollo to the Edmon section of Kiski Township along the path of the 1800s Pennsylvania Main Line Canal. There also is the 1.5-mile Rock Furnace Trail which branches off the main trail and follows the Roaring Run creek to Brownstown Road.

If your trail’s maintenance equipment needs a new home – a post frame (pole building) is most likely the ideal structure. With reasonable upfront costs and the ability to be constructed by volunteers, post frame buildings are the ideal solution – just as one was for the Roaring Run Trail!

This entry was posted in Pole Barn Design, About The Pole Barn Guru and tagged storage building, pole barn maintenance equipment building, pole barn storage building, Roaring Run Trail, Hiawatha Trail on November 17, 2016 by admin.

4 Tips for Using a Pole Barn as Bulk Storage

Of course the lofty ceilings and long, tall skeletons of pole barns are wonderful for breathable living spaces and roomy storefronts. But the endless customizability of pole barns also lends storage utility for goods produced and delivered in bulk. If you want to turn your pole barn into a world-class storage facility, just follow these 4 tips:

Know What You’re Storing

No matter what industry for which you’re storing, you’ll need a fairly detailed concept of what you want to put inside your bulk storage pole building. Try to create a working idea of what you’ll be putting in your barn by considering the following:

The dimensions of the items you’re storing
The volume of items you’re likely to be storing
The weight of individual items
If your items are stackable
If your items need containers for storing

The items you store will determine the layout of your bulk storage building and its final dimensions, so make sure you have a fairly clear picture of what will be inside before you build the outside.

Choose a Design Conducive to Storage

After you know more about what you’ll be storing, consider how it will be stored inside your pole barn storage shed or barn.

Bulk agricultural products like food and grain may require specialized equipment to be installed, and you’ll need to make sure your pole building has the capacity to handle that equipment. Bulk storage of commercial products may require you to build up rather than out, and you’ll need to leave room for heavy moving equipment to navigate to and lift to carry your goods.

Avoid low ceilings and make sure that ventilation is plentiful. Dust, dirt, and bugs will accumulate in spaces that are too small, too moist, and not well ventilated. Poor conditions may compromise the safety of the goods you are trying to store and deteriorate your pole building.

Prepare for Shelving

Especially if you plan to store commercial goods, take advantage of the space between the walls and your goods with shelving. Choose materials for your pole barn storage design that are strong but easy to manipulate so you can improve storage options that take up minimal space.

Make sure your shelving is properly supported to avoid damage to your stored items as well as the building. Choosing a dense but pliable material for your walls is key to creating lasting shelving.

Maximize Temperature Control

In the modern manufacturing and agricultural worlds, most products need to be stored in conditions with strict temperature control. Enhance your pole building’s natural climate control abilities by ensuring that your pole barn is insulated and has a vaulted roof if necessary.

Insulate: A variety of insulation options can be used in post frame buildings. Common methods are batt insulation, rigid foam and spray foam insulation. Rigid foam insulation is much more effective than fiberglass insulation at holding temperatures level in an indoor environment.

6-inch fiberglass insulation can be used with interior framed walls on pole buildings. The thick fiberglass beats 1-2 inches of rigid foam in insulative effectiveness, but is a snap with the thick wall cavities that pole buildings offer.

Use a Vaulted Ceiling: Vaulted ceilings can actually make temperature control more difficult if they are not used properly. Prepare your vaulted ceiling for all seasons – winter through summer – with the help of plentiful ventilation. Install ceiling fans across the length of the vaulted ceiling.

Use the extra space to help push warm air up and away in high-heat conditions. Include vents and ducts in the spare space to direct air that is too hot or cold away from your goods before they can be damaged. In the winter, use your fans to push hot air back down into the room where the goods are being stored.

With a little bit of foresight and research, you can work with your pole building construction company to create a long-lasting, affordable solution to create a pole barn for bulk storage of goods that will minimize risk and maximize profit – and look good while doing it.

This entry was posted in Sheds, Commercial Buildings, Pole Barn Design, Pole Building Comparisons, Building Styles and Designs, Pole Barn Planning and tagged pole barn storage building, commercial pole barn, commercial pole building, bulk storage pole barn on November 1, 2016 by admin.

When Should You Build a Larger Garage?

Maybe you’re currently parking your car on the street or struggling to get enough storage space out of your single-car garage. If you have the space on your property, you may be thinking about expanding your current garage or even adding something totally new like a pole building garage or pole barn carport. A garage can add value to your property if and when it comes time to sell; depending on the market and garage size, it may add as much as $15,000-$30,000 to your home value.

Of course, increasing your home value isn’t the only reason to expand or add a garage: you may simply want the practical benefits of this storage space. Below are a few situations in which building a larger garage may be worthwhile for you.

You Need to Park an Additional Vehicle

If you’re currently leaving a car, motorcycle, or ATV out in the open, you could be leaving it vulnerable to the weather, falling tree branches, or even theft. And if you live somewhere with four seasons, you know that parking your car on the street can leave you with a blisteringly hot vehicle in the summer and a snow- and ice-coated windshield in the winter.

Going from a single-car to a two-car garage may be the best option if you’ve recently gotten a second vehicle. However, if you’re just looking for a covered space for your vehicle, you could also purchase a pole building kit for a carport, which has a roof but no walls.

You Want to Set Up a Workstation

If you’re someone who likes to tinker with your car or work on DIY projects that can’t easily be done inside the house, you may be daydreaming about having a designated workstation. Building a larger garage will give you enough room for a counter or table, workbench, and additional tool storage. This workspace can be particularly good for projects that might be too messy for the house—such as painting or woodworking.

You Need Additional Storage Space

Home starting to feel cluttered? Installing a pole building garage is an inexpensive way to get more storage space without having to perform home renovations. You could use your new pole barn garage to store bikes, kayaks, Christmas decorations, or other items that are currently taking up space in your basement or a storage unit. You could also move your washer and dryer to the garage, freeing up more space inside your home for additional storage.

You Want a Multi-Use Space

A pole barn garage doesn’t just have to be for car storage. Maybe you want a place to set up a ping pong table, contain your kids’ messy arts and crafts projects, or even set up a home office (after all, Apple, Amazon, and Google all began out of garages). Whatever you need additional space for, a pole building garage can provide a cost-effective solution.