Steel Roofs and Fire

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/14/2013
Steel Roofs and Fire

When the problem isn’t the problem…. Two recent fires in Chautauqua County, New York involving steel roofs have raised a potential problem for firefighters. Fire officials say the durable material used in roofing is becoming more common as building owners turn to alternative options. However, as highlighted with recent blazes in Sinclairville and Westfield, N.Y., […]

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Superstorm Sandy

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/13/2013
Superstorm Sandy

Project Superstorm Sandy For more than 30 years the trade group at F+W Media has served the construction industry. Now they are coming together to serve the Red Cross and those communities most devastated by Superstorm Sandy by creating the website www.projectsandy.net. The companies listed in this guide (including Hansen Pole Buildings) are well established […]

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Andersen Windows in Pole Buildings

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/12/2013
Andersen Windows in Pole Buildings

Hansen Pole Buildings is excited to be a stocking dealer of Silver Line® Windows manufactured by Andersen. Andersen Windows, Inc. is a part of Andersen Corporation; the largest window and door manufacturer in North America. The flagship Andersen® brand is the most recognized and most used brand in the window and patio door industry.  Andersen […]

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Pole Building Prices: When the Apple is a Rock

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/11/2013
Pole Building Prices: When the Apple is a Rock

  In September of 2011, one of the Hansen Pole Buildings Designers – Steve, quoted a proposed pole building to be built in Oakland County, Michigan. To be used to cover four indoor baseball batting cages, the building quoted was to be 50 feet wide, 80 feet long with a 20 foot sidewall. Among its […]

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What does 2×6 Lumber Weigh?

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/08/2013
What does 2×6 Lumber Weigh?

Is 2×6 lumber heavy? This is actually fairly important, not just to determine how many boards can be toted around a jobsite by one person, but also in calculating the dead loads which must be carried by structural members such as roof trusses and rafters. Like most things played around with by engineers, and other […]

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Farm Buildings and the Fiscal Cliff

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/07/2013
Farm Buildings and the Fiscal Cliff

First – my disclaimer, I am not a tax professional of any kind. If you feel any of the information in this post may be helpful in your circumstance, please share it with your tax advisor,  The educated advice of a professional may be utilized to make an educated decision if you are planning to […]

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Made in the USA

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/06/2013
Made in the USA

Made in the USA? I am a member of a LinkedIn discussion group, where the question was recently posed, “What are the challenges of selling “Made in the USA” products? After three plus decades and around 15,000 pole buildings, I can count on one hand with fingers left over, the number of times I’ve heard […]

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Wood Preservative

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/05/2013
Wood Preservative

What I Learned Today – Wood Preservative Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer Rachel had an interesting story today. She reported, “A builder says he uses Borax around the bottom of the steel.  I thought this was strange and he didn’t say why he was using it.” Being the naturally curious sort, Rachel started researching on the […]

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Pole Barn Guru’s Roof Rules Part Two

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/04/2013
Pole Barn Guru’s Roof Rules Part Two

From Friday – Nothing is worse than a roof gone wrong. Leaks frustrate everyone involved, and are usually avoidable. Poor design and poor installation are equal factors in the roofs which just are not happy. If you missed my blog Friday –you may want to review it as the first part of my Rule for […]

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Mike’s Roof Rules

Posted by polebarnguru on 02/01/2013
Mike’s Roof Rules

Nothing is worse than a roof gone wrong. Leaks frustrate everyone involved, and are usually avoidable. Poor design and poor installation are equal factors in the roofs which just are not happy. Avoid Valleys Designing the roof of a pole barn? Then try to design a roof without any valleys. Valleys concentrate water and often […]

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Roof Leaks: Another Case for the Barn “Detective”

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/31/2013
Roof Leaks: Another Case for the Barn “Detective”

The story you are about to read is true, only the names have been changed, to protect the innocent. Now my name isn’t Friday, and today is Thursday. A busy Thursday, just like most, with the phones ringing and everyone scurrying to assist with clients. An incoming caller reported a “crime”. They had purchased a […]

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Roof and Gutters Warming up to Ice and Snow

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/30/2013
Roof and Gutters Warming up to Ice and Snow

Warming up to Ice and Snow Ice and snow build up in pole building rain gutters and along eave lines can cause ice dams. Ice building up along roof and gutters can cause water to back up under roofing, causing serious damage to the building’s interior. In some instances, ice buildup along eaves can put […]

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Setting posts: Postsetaphobia

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/29/2013
Setting posts: Postsetaphobia

I recently spoke with a prospective client in California. This particular gentleman is an electrical contractor, and fancies himself as being fairly handy. He is considering doing the construction of his new pole building kit himself, however was terrified by the prospect of having to set the building columns. Being honest, we all have our […]

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Moby Dick Was Not the Great White Swale

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/28/2013
Moby Dick Was Not the Great White Swale

Call me Ishmael. Some years ago—never mind how long precisely—having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on shore, I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen and regulating the […]

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Knox Box

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/25/2013
Knox Box

Before I constructed my first commercial pole building, for myself, I would have had no idea what a Knox Box  was. Prior to then, if I would have had to venture a guess, I would have assumed it was the container for Knox® Brand gelatin. A Knox-Box®, known officially as the Knox-Box® Rapid Entry System, […]

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Pre application Conference

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/24/2013
Pre application Conference

Considering construction a post frame building for commercial use? If so, many jurisdictions offer a pre application conference which will greatly ease the overall permit process, as well as providing a total view as to all of the requirements necessary to be met. Why should I go through a PAC? In my humble opinion, if […]

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Repainting Steel Building Panels

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/23/2013
Repainting Steel Building Panels

Considering repainting steel panels? Steel roofing and siding is designed to provide decades of maintenance free use. There are cases where clients feel the need to change colors, which can be done, following the process outlined below for repainting steel panels. Any building panel surface to be repainted must be prepared and treated properly to […]

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Shifting Piers: Building Blooper or Blunder?

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/22/2013
Shifting Piers: Building Blooper or Blunder?

This is a true story, about the construction of an all-steel building; however the events could spell the doom of any building project – regardless of the structural framework. Shifting Piers Geo-technical engineers were called out to a jobsite to investigate why it was the concrete piers supporting an under construction all-steel building were unstable. […]

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How Secure is your Building Contractor?

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/21/2013
How Secure is your Building Contractor?

Construction is a Complicated Business The conditions always change – different clients, different materials, dealing with workers, subcontractors and vendors and a myriad of different governmental agencies each doing the push-me, pull-me with incomprehensible mountains of paperwork and requirements. Contractor High failure rate Those who are not prepared or capable of meeting these demands may […]

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Pole Buildings and Extreme Weather

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/18/2013
Pole Buildings and Extreme Weather

The nation is getting hammered by extreme weather beyond what builders imagined, leaving states and cities searching for ways to brace for more catastrophes like Superstorm Sandy. Even as they prepare for a new normal of intense rain, historic floods and record heat waves, some planners find it too politically sensitive to say aloud the […]

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Lumber Prices to Hit All-Time Highs?

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/17/2013
Lumber Prices to Hit All-Time Highs?

Lumber prices are expected to soar in 2013 before hitting all-time highs the following year, according to a report by the Vancouver consulting group International Wood Markets. Wood Markets president Russ Taylor said the dynamics have been in place since 2008 for a so-called “supercycle” which will push lumber prices into the stratosphere. The only […]

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Pink 2×4 Studs

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/16/2013
Pink 2×4 Studs

In December I had the opportunity to call on one of our “partners” in the southeastern United States. One thing I began to notice with regularity, as I went from location to location across Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana was “pink” 2×4 studs. Using my limited mental facilities, I could only associate these with some sort […]

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Pole Barn Remodel: Bulldoze It?

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/15/2013
Pole Barn Remodel: Bulldoze It?

I live in a 103 year old home most frequently referred to as, “Our Home of Perpetual Remodel”. Between this and my inherent Norwegian frugality, I’m usually the last one to recommend knocking something to the ground and starting from scratch again. When I started working on “the house” back in 1990, the first order […]

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LVL: Laminated Veneer Lumber

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/14/2013
LVL: Laminated Veneer Lumber

What is an LVL? Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) is an industry standard in framing of new wood frame buildings. LVLs are used to replace solid wood beams and joists. They are made in a process similar to plywood, where rotary peeled wood veneers (usually pine or fir) are dried then laminated together with glue and […]

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Pole Barn Flood Insurance

Posted by polebarnguru on 01/11/2013
Pole Barn Flood Insurance

The Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 requires flood insurance to be purchased for properties in SFHA (Special Flood Hazard Areas) prior to the owners receiving any type of direct or indirect federal financing assistance. According to the insurance industry, the term “improved real estate” would be defined as a building with walls and a […]

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