Tag Archives: post frame buildings

Glulams Receiving a Precision Finish, video #7

Today’s blog is the 7th is a series of videos from Mike the Pole Barn Guru’s tour of our glulam provider, Richland Laminated Columns. Glulams receiving a precision finish.

Tune in Tuesday the 20th for the 8th in a series of Mike’s tour of Richland Laminated Columns.

Mixed Use Building, Attaching a Deck, and a Flat Roof

This Tuesday’s blog is a Bonus Ask the Guru discussing some mixed use ideas for a gallery and apartment, attaching a deck, and a flat roof design.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I’m looking for a mixed used building, Large open plan space ground floor for an art gallery and two two bedroom apartments on second floor. Maximum height 32 feet x 25 long x 28 wide. Front of gallery space with large overhead door, with glass or polycarbonate windows. SALVATORE in NEW PALTZ

DEAR SALVATORE: I see you have been working with Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer Erik on your proposed project. There are a plethora of options available to you. One challenge is going to be it will be impossible to create a space with two, two bedroom apartments within a 700 square foot area.

Facing reality, you will only be able to have a single (and small) two bedroom apartment.

Let’s work downward from your 32′ maximum height. Ulster County happens to be in Seismic Zone 6A, where 2021 IECC (International Energy Conservation Code) requires R-60 ceiling insulation. Blown in fiberglass insulation will need to be 20.5 inches deep (according to Owens Corning). Allowing for at least a minimum of an inch of clear air flow above, you will need to have roof trusses with 21.5 inch raised heels.

A 4/12 slope gabled roof will rise 50″, so now we are down to 25′ 11.5″. To attain an eight foot finished ceiling will take 8′ 1-1/8″. 25′ clearspan floor trusses and 3/4″ sheathing will be 18-3/4″ thick.

This would allow for a main floor ceiling height as great as 16′ 6″ after allowing for a nominal four inch slab on grade. Obviously it is not a requirement to have this sort of height, but this does provide some ideas.

 

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I’m looking to add a covered deck to my barndo. The interior was built up off the ground so it has a crawl space. I’m just wondering if I can attach a deck to it and what would I need to do in order to do so seeing how my posts are 8 ft on center and I have no rim board like a traditional home to attach my ledger to? I haven’t talked to my building department yet. Just trying to get an idea before I go up there, thanks! MATT in INDIAN RIVER

DEAR MATT: Due to a plethora of deck failures in recent years, building codes have been adopting new and much more stringent requirements for attached decks – this includes making it near impossible to just have a simple ledger/rim board attachment, without some serious Simpson hardware. You could also be creating a situation where existing wall columns and/or their footings become over loaded due to deck weight. My best encouragement is to engage services of a Registered Professional Engineer who can evaluate your current structure and design a deck being both code conforming, as well as safe.

 

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: We have a flat roof 23′-0″ x 27′-1 3/4″. We would like to change to a roof with a small slope ( about 2.8 degrees) Does Hanson do plans? EMILY in BATON ROUGE

DEAR EMILY: Your roughly 0.59/12 roof slope will still be fairly flat, however with snow not being an issue, you should be fine with a built up roofing material or EPDM. We provide plans only for complete building material packages, so your request would be outside of our scope.

Things Hansen Pole Buildings Does Better Than Any Other Post-Frame Building Provider

Things Hansen Pole Buildings Does Better Than Any Other Post-Frame Building Provider

To those of you who have read my previous 13 articles, this will serve as a recap. For you who have not, please peruse when you have an opportunity.

STRONGEST GLULAM COLUMNS

While manufactured from lumber 157% as strong as what is typically found, they have many other benefits. These include (on pressure treated applications) every lamination being completely saturated with preservative chemicals for in-ground portion and roughly 1/3rd weight of a solid sawn 6×6. Glu-lam columns tend to be highly resistant to warp and twist.

SAVINGS FOR BRACKET MOUNTED APPLICATIONS

For bracket mounted application, our same ultra high strength glu-lams are available untreated, helping offset costs of our ICC-ESR code compliant wet set brackets.

COLUMNS NEXT TO DOOR OPENINGS

Not every provider places columns next to every door opening. Not for your doors – either a glu-lam or a bracket mounted kiln dried Douglas Fir timber will support both sides of every door opening!

FOUNDATION RATED #1 GRADE SPLASH PLANKS

Fewer defects, pressure treated throughout and kiln dried after treating for lighter weight.

LUMBER-TO-LUMBER CONNECTIONS

Simpson SDSW16300 screws afford greater strengths and easier adjustments than any sort of nailed connection.

DOUGLAS-FIR WALL GIRT LUMBER

Douglas-Fir is greatly prized for strength and dimensional stability. Less prone to warp, cup, bow and twist than other framing lumber species. 2X8 and 2×10 bookshelf wall girts are PREMIUM graded, minimizing wane (and possible screw misses).

HIGHER GRADED TRUSS LUMBER

No Utility, Standard, Stud or #3 lumber in Hansen Pole Buildings’ trusses. All material is no less than #2 grade.

EASY INSTALL PURLIN HANGERS

Simpson PFDS series hangers slide over pairs of roof trusses and screw to top chords, making for a quick install of hangers as well as connecting chords together at same time.

END PAINTED FRAMING MEMBERS

Wall girts, roof purlins, floor and ceiling joists all have one end uniquely color painted. This immediately allows DIY clients, building erectors and inspectors to quickly identify correct placement of these materials.

EASILY MEASURED SPACING OF WALL GIRTS AND ROOF PURLINS

Spacing has been standardized to fall so measures are evenly divisible into eight (8) feet. Examples are 32”, 24”, 19.2” and 16”, all of these are keyed to markings on standard tape measures. This also matches with applications of 4’ x 8’ sheet goods (plywood, OSB, etc.).

RAISED HEEL INTERIOR TRUSSES

When endwall overhangs are ordered in conjunction with ceiling joists, interior truss heels are greater (raised) in order to have all truss bottoms at same height above grade.

HIGH GRADE RAFTERS

For rafter applications (side or end sheds, monitor building wings) Hansen Pole Buildings has invested in MSR (Machine Stress Rated) lumber 243 to 266% stronger than #2 grades of Douglas-Fir (even greater in comparison to Southern Pine). This allows for greater spans and fewer pieces needing to be used.

FABULOUS FLOOR TRUSSES

By utilizing higher strength lumber, your second floor can be clear-spanned with roughly one inch of truss depth per 18 inches of truss span. Eliminate a profusion of interior columns and bearing walls, HVAC and plumbing can be run through, creating a flat finished ceiling.

MILL DIRECT BUYING

We have cut out middleman wholesalers and retailers buy going direct to mills for multiple truck and rail car loads of lumber – passing these savings on to you!

SHARED TRUCKING

Our shipping expediters consolidate buildings being shipped geographically to minimize freight investments for our clients.

EXTRA SAVINGS FOR STANDARD DIMENSIONS

As lumber comes in two foot lengths and steel roofing and siding in three foot widths, there is already savings to be found in multiples of six feet (less waste). Choose a width in six foot multiples (12’, 18’, 24’, 30’, etc.) and a length of a 12 foot multiple and receive an extra 5% discount!

THE ULTIMATE POST FRAME BUILDING EXPERIENCE

No one does post frame better than Hansen Pole Buildings – and if you are not yet convinced, watch subsequent articles for even more benefits for you!

Don’t rely upon a builder to look out for your best interests in materials’ selection – take control by ordering from us and pay an erector to assemble,

13 Can Be Very Fortunate

13 Can Be Very Fortunate

Thank you for participating (hopefully) in my past dozen articles about our “NEW” Hansen Pole Building. If not, I would greatly to encourage you to peruse them. I believe you will find them useful in being able to know you are getting greatest value for your hard-earned building dollars.

In just a moment, I will peel back a curtain to reveal an overly well kept secret….. Hansen Pole Buildings has been automatically giving a background FIVE (5) % DISCOUNT for rectangular buildings with economical width and length dimensions.

But 1st, please humor me about 13. Our youngest daughter Allison, doesn’t get much press from me, certainly not by intention. Allison’s birthday happens to be November 13 and as an athlete (we did something like eight years of some combination of club or school volleyball and basketball) she always wanted and usually got #13.

I had always had an ideal Friday the 13th was unlucky due to it being tied to Knights Templar eradication on Friday, October 13, 1307. Before I wrote further, I wanted to confirm my belief. It appears there are both Norse and Christian associations long predating 1307.

My new thing learned for today.

Now your turn…..

Lumber comes in two foot multiples and steel roofing and siding three foot. Meaning multiples of six or 12 feet would be one’s most efficient combination.

In our system widths of 12’, 18’, 24’, 30’, 36’, 42’, 48’, 54’ and 60’ are most cost effective. For lengths, 24’, 36’, 48’, 60’, etc., providing building length is no greater than three times building width. Heights – even number multiples of two feet (10’, 12’, 14’, etc.).

Why? They can go rapidly through our system – everyone who touches your project can do so more expediently. This drastically saves on drafting time, circumventing other shapes and/or dimensions.

Now you can have some custom features – windows, doors, wainscot, eave lights, sidewall eave and/or endwall extended overhangs, ceiling loaded trusses, ceiling joists.

I lay awake at night with ideas popping into my head. Last night it was, “given our new, stronger columns, how greatly is price affected?”

I took a 42’ x 60’ building, steel roofed and sided. Ground Snow load (Pg) of 60 psf (pounds per square foot), Roof truss top chord live load (TCLL) of 40 psf. Roof truss top and bottom chord dead loads both five psf. 115 mph design wind speed, Exposure C, 4/12 roof slope. Up to and including 20 foot eave height, each two feet of height added under 34 cents per cubic foot of space (or under 68 cents per square foot). Any ‘penalties’ for taller eave heights, at least to 20 foot tall, within this design load set, appear to have disappeared.

No one else can fully engineer buildings like a NEW Hansen Pole Building, because they do not have materials readily available to our exacting quality and strength standards. Call 1.866.200.9657 TODAY to participate in “The Ultimate Post-Frame Building Experience”.

And, don’t forget to watch for our next article!

NEW Hansen Pole Building Roof Supporting COLUMNS

NEW Hansen Pole Building Roof Supporting COLUMNS

Since Hansen Pole Buildings’ inception we have primarily provided solid-sawn timbers for roof supporting columns. Due to cost and availability challenges, we have only included true glu-laminated columns, when required by structural necessity or as a request from our clients.

Now solid-sawn columns have not come without their own set of challenges.

Pressure treatment: go visit your local big box store or lumber dealer and take a gander at treatment tags on their 6x6s. In order to be used structurally in ground, Building Codes require them to be UC-4B rated. In most instances, what is ‘on hand’ is only UC-4A and has 1/3rd less treatment chemical retention than what is mandated by Code. Usually UC-4B has to be special ordered (along with ‘special’ higher pricing) and results in lengthy delays. Cut off an end of a pressure treated 6×6 and not treatment chemicals do not penetrate completely. In an ideal dream world, where lumber does not check or split, this would not be an issue – however we do not live in such a world.

Strength: bending strength is a product of Sm (Section modulus – depth squared x width divided by six) multiplied by Fb (Fiberstress in bending). Sm for a 6×6 is 5.5 x 5.5 x 5.5 / 6 = 27.729. Fb for #2 SYP (Southern Pine) posts and timbers is 850, while #2 Hem-Fir (found in Western states) is 575 x 0.8 (this is Ci, incising factor read more here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2014/08/incising/) = 460.

27.729 x 850 = 23,570, while 27.729 x 460 = 12,755. More about this later in this article.

Weight: Pressure preservative treated timbers are not kiln dried after treatment. They have been thoroughly saturated with water borne chemicals. It is not unusual for a pressure treated 6×6 to weight 15 pounds per lineal foot (making a 20 foot long timber 300 pounds)!

Dimensional stability: as these timbers naturally dry, they tend to do things like warp, twist and split. None of these make for an ideal end use product.

What about glu-laminated columns?

Pressure treatment – each individual 2x member (or ply) is treated completely through. As SYP is being treated, wood does not have to be incised. All treatment meets UC-4B requirements and kiln drying after treatment makes each member capable of being FDN (Permanent Wood Foundation) rated.

Strength – most glu-laminated column producers have 3ply 2×6 columns rated at a Fb of 1900. Hansen Pole Buildings felt, if we were going to provide all glu-laminated roof supporting columns to our clients, we wanted to offer absolutely strongest columns, without question. We negotiated n exclusive contract with Richland Laminated Columns, LLC of Greenwich, Ohio, to produce our columns from ultra high-strength MSR (Machine Stress Rated read more here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2012/12/machine-graded-lumber/) lumber. This results in an end product with a Fb value of 3000 or 157% stronger in bending than what is typically found elsewhere!

Because finished dimensions are after planing, our 3 ply glu-lams have a Sm of 18.058. Take this value times 3000 = 54,173 or 229% greater in bending strength than a 6×6 #2 SYP and 424% greater than #2 Hem-Fir. Rather than having to use 6×8, 8×8, 6×10 or even 6×12 columns, these 3ply 2×6 columns will often replace them and STILL BE STRONGER!

Weight: a 3ply 2×6 glu-lam, having been dried to 15% or less in order to be able to be glued, weighs just over five pounds per lineal foot. This makes a 20 foot long column nearly 2/3rds less in weight than a 6×6!

Dimensional stability: with proper storage and handling, glu-lam columns remain straight without warp or twist.

But aren’t these glu-lams going to be EXPENSIVE?

No, we found by contracting to purchase a minimum of a quarter-million board feet of glu-lams, we were able to cut costs by as much as 75% or more (depending upon market) below what we had been paying for them previously. Our cost is now even far below what we had been paying for solid-sawn 6×6 columns! In fact, what we saved on columns alone, more than pays to have entire building packages shipped to most continental United States locations!

By investing in huge quantities, we now have inventory on hand to fulfill most building orders immediately and even custom dimensions in a matter of weeks.

Call 1.866.200.9657 TODAY to participate in “The Ultimate Post-Frame Building Experience”.

And, don’t forget to watch for our next article!

Introduction to Post-Frame Buildings

Introduction to Post-Frame Buildings

Rather than me chewing up a portion of your life you will never get back, I am deferring to Chapter 1 of NFBA’s (National Frame Builders Association) Post Frame Design Manual. Here is my overview when it was first published: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2015/03/post-frame-building-3/

Please take a few moments to read this first chapter, if you are considering building, as it will put you a leg up on most providers and builders, as they are unlikely to have read it and know this terminology. https://associationdatabase.com/aws/NFBA/asset_manager/get_file/371354

Converting a Traditional Framing Plan to Post-Frame

Converting a Traditional Framing Plan to Post-Frame

Hansen Pole Buildings’ client SHAYNA in PHILADELPHIA writes:

“Hello, I am looking to convert my traditional; framing plan to post-frame framing to get my walls up quicker. I would like to know what requirements need to be followed. The information I already have is that it’s best for the post to be 4ply 2×6 for anything higher than 10′. The girts are to be 24″ on center. I will also be using the post frame with concrete block basement walls. I will wet-set the column brackets. I just need to know what other factors need to be addressed to get the plan reapproved. thanks so much for your help!”

You are correct about post-frame’s speed for getting dried in. Post-frame is extremely material efficient, eliminating redundant members found in prescriptive stick framing. This makes for both quicker assembly and better insulated exterior walls.

Our post-frame engineers have provided code compliant structural designs for thousands of buildings in all 50 states. They will determine column sizes based upon your building’s dimensions (width, length, height and slope of roof) and climactic conditions at your specific site. You will find they will specify either solid sawn or true glu-laminated columns, rather than nailed up (or nails and construction adhesive joined) as an appropriate design solution for long-term best results.

In order to minimize construction steps, material usage and create a deep insulation cavity, expect to see a design using commercial bookshelf girts. These will be placed horizontally 24 inches on center between columns. (Please read more here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2011/09/commercial-girts-what-are-they/).

Bookshelf wall girts also provide an excellent design solution for obtaining optimum finishes on interior faces of exterior walls https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2019/09/11-reasons-post-frame-commercial-girted-walls-are-best-for-drywall/


We have provided a plethora of fully engineered post-frame homes utilizing ICC-ESR Code approved wet set brackets mounted to concrete, ICF and CMU (concrete block) walls and your engineer sealed plans will include design of these walls.

Your Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer will be reaching out to you shortly to further discuss your family’s wants and needs to assist you in ending up with your ideal dream home.

Can You Provide Me With Engineer Sealed Blueprints

Can You Provide Me With Engineer Sealed Blueprints?

Reader PARKER in PORT SAINT JOE writes:

“I’m looking to get a pole barn built and for my county I need engineer stamped prints before i can pull a permit, can you provide me with blueprints for the size I am wanting?”

www.HansenPoleBuildings.com is America’s leader in providing fully engineered, 100% custom designed, post frame building and barndominium kits, with multiple buildings in all 50 states. Your deliveries come from one or more of our thousands of shipping (minimizing delivery costs) – so chances are excellent we are ‘close’ to you (as well as supporting your local economy)!

Your new building kit is designed for an average physically capable person, who can and will read and follow instructions, to successfully construct your own beautiful building shell, without extensive prior construction knowledge (and most of our clients do DIY – saving tens of thousands of dollars). We’ve had clients ranging from septuagenarians to fathers bonding with their teenage daughters erect their own buildings, so chances are – you can as well!

Your new building investment includes full multi-page 24” x 36” structural blueprints detailing  location and attachment of every piece (as well as suitable for obtaining Building Permits), our industry’s best, fully illustrated, step-by-step installation manual, and unlimited technical support from people who have actually built post frame buildings. Even better – it includes our industry leading Limited Lifetime Structural Warranty!

Our engineers will only seal our plans when we are providing your materials, as otherwise they cannot guarantee materials specified by them will actually arrive onsite.

About Hansen BuildingsFor those without time or inclination, our plans will lead any building erector you may select who will actually follow them and utilize our Construction Manual, to a successful outcome.

A CAUTION in regards to ANY erector: If an erector tells you they can begin quickly it is generally either a big red flag, or there is a chance you are being price gouged. ALWAYS THOROUGHLY VET ANY CONTRACTOR https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2018/04/vetting-building-contractor/

We would appreciate an opportunity to participate in your new pole building. Please email your building specifics, site address and best contact number to our Design Studio Manager Caleb@HansenPoleBuildings.com 1(866)200-9657 Thank you.

Hart and Home YouTube Part I


Is a barndominium in your future? Considering building D-I-Y to save tens of thousands of dollars, but afraid you might not be able to pull it off?

You’ll want to watch Kevin and Whitney’s journey beginning at www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMUi9B78GDs. This series is truly excellently done.

Today, I am going to skip forward months from their beginnings to their in-depth review of their Hansen Pole Buildings’ barndominium kit (www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYGF1YY_yZQ). Kevin has graciously done one thing we wish all of our clients would do – provide us with actual feedback!

For over 20 years Hansen Pole Buildings has provided thousands upon thousands of fully engineered post frame buildings for our clients in all 50 states (yes – even Alaska and Hawaii). Our buildings have evolved dramatically over two decades, thanks in part, to feedback from clients. We constantly search for ways to provide The Ultimate Post Frame Building Experience™ for each of our clients. If you (whether client, potential client, vendor, professional builder or vendor) have suggestions on how we can provide a better valued product (where any added investment is seen as being well worthwhile), more affordable or easier to assemble (without a sacrifice in quality) please Email me (Mike The Pole Barn Guru™) at PoleBarnGuru@HansenPoleBuildings.com.

Moving forward – Kevin reached out to me with this on a recent late Friday afternoon:

“Hi! This is Kevin Hart from the Hart and Home YouTube channel. I’ve got some content that’s in various stages of development and I was wondering if you guys might be interested in working with us on a couple things.

The first is just some commentary on a kit review video that is coming out on Sunday. I go through a bunch of stuff that I liked about the kit and some things that I think I would do differently next time. Of the things that deviate off the beaten path I’d really love to have your response to those ideas in regards to why someone may or may not want to do that or possibly what your reasoning was as to why you recommend doing it the way you have in the plans. I would take your response and make a follow up video in the near future.

The second idea I’m kinda kicking around is an execution post mortem. My hope here is that maybe we can take a look at how I interpreted your plans and instructions and the systems/methods I used to achieve them and then possibly create a video together or just give me some notes I can relay to my audience about how I could have done things better and faster or correctly. The aim here being to point out errors and possibly some good things that I did that might be helpful to your future kit buyers and diy post framers generally. I’ve got a 15 minute time lapse video out now that you might have seen that I think we could probably use as a starting point of discussion.

Would you guys be interested in anything like that?”

Pole Barn Guru BlogMike the Pole Barn Guru says:
When I returned to work Monday, I was instantly all about working with Kevin on this, precipitating this article!

I will be reacting to points brought up by Kevin in his review video (in order of them appearing). So gather up your friends and family, some popcorn and take a watch for yourself, in our next thrill packed installment!

Not Quite an Acme Hole Kit

Not quite an Acme Hole Kit

I grew up in an era where we (as children) could watch cartoons such as Road Runner and not immediately go out and try antics as pictured on our screens. Somehow our generation understood this and used common sense.

One of my favorites is Acme’s “Hole Kit” where a floppy black disk is thrown down to dive into or to have Wile E. Coyote fall into.

Now Acme, as a company, is never clearly defined in Road Runner cartoons, but appears to be a conglomerate producing every product type imaginable, no matter how elaborate or extravagant – most never working as desired or expected (some working very well, but backfire against our friend Mr. Coyote).

Acme did have a second to none delivery service. Wile E. can merely drop an order into a mailbox and have product delivered within seconds!

It is this quick delivery where Hansen Pole Buildings’ newest offering comes into play, “Rafter-span Structural Roof System”.


Having spent a fair portion of my adult working career in management or ownership of prefabricated metal plate connected wood truss manufacturing facilities, I can vouch for how little of a profit we ever could make on orders of very few small span roof trusses. When someone wanted four or six trusses 24 foot span or less, no matter what we were to charge them, our profits would rarely cover paperwork needed to process.

Truss trucks are also not cheap to operate. Get a key even close to their ignition switches and dollar signs start to spin like watching slot machines in a casino – except in this game there are no winners.

Our “Rafter-span Structural Roof System” began way before today’s current shortages of things like metal connector plates for trusses. Our (America’s) International Residential Code (IRC) devotes an entire section of Chapter 8 to rafter span tables, providing tables for various spacing of rafters (12 to 24 inches), four choices of lumber species (with four grades in each), as well as options for roof live and dead load combinations. Pretty much a recipe book for residential stick framed roofs!

I often wondered why a similar system could not be developed for post frame buildings, especially where our current design solution was a pair of prefabricated trusses spaced every 10 to 14 feet. We started in on this process a year ago, using structural computer models to test out our theories. Sure enough, this system worked as we had anticipated!

Now, instead of waiting three, four or even six months (or maybe told to try another manufacturer) for prefabricated trusses – most clearspans of up to and including 24 feet can have their components delivered as a portion of a building’s lumber framing package. And – be built onsite from as little as seven pieces of dimensional lumber (Heavier roof loads may require nine pieces)!

As an added bonus – rather than having a roof truss horizontal bottom chord hanging usually six inches below eave height (reducing head room), this system allows for a ‘rafter tie’ to be placed horizontally at a height equal to rise of frame divided by 7.5 ABOVE eave height!

Need to get a taller overhead door centered in an endwall? This may very well be your solution.

P.S. I may have failed in not emphasizing how this system not only gets on jobsites quicker, it is also LESS EXPENSIVE!

CAUTION  – DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS  without all member sizes, grades and connections having been determined by a Registered Professional Engineer. ALL Hansen Pole Buildings are 100% engineered including our “Rafter-span Structural Roof System”.

Why You Should Install Post Frame Roofing Before the Walls

Over roughly 40 years of post frame construction, I have seen photos of one or two (or perhaps thousands) of post frame buildings under construction. I can pretty well tell from these photos if those doing assembly are (or were) stick builders.

I grew up as a framing contractor’s son (and later working for dad and my uncles stick framing), where we built walls with sheeting (and often siding) on them and tipped them up into place. This is all fine and dandy for ‘conventional’ stick frame construction, however not necessarily easiest or best when it comes to post frame.

In post frame construction, trusses extend from column outside to column outside (plus any overhangs). If walls have been framed (girts, headers and door jambs placed) trusses will have to be jockeyed around to be lifted in place from inside the building. This is especially true in applications with bookshelf (inset) style wall girts.

Most post frame buildings have one or more columns out of perfect placement along building length. Accept it, this is just going to happen no matter how perfect you or your builder might be. Most buildings have a far greater roof purlin quantity per bay, than wall girts per bay. By framing the roof first, all purlins (assuming they are inset) can be cut to the same length in each bay, this is determined by engineered plan column spacing, less truss assembly thickness. When trusses are in place, column tops will easily move forward or backwards so all truss supporting columns end up spaced per plans. This also aids in an overall building roof length creation matching expectations.

During the truss placement process (regardless of method used) there will come times when it is highly convenient to be able to walk ‘through’ a wall. Girts in place means having to fit through girts or walk around – either of which slowing construction processes.

It is far easier to square up the roof without wall framing member resistance. Once roof sheathing or roof steel is in place, it makes it simpler to plumb building corners.

With roofing in place and walls open, a concrete slab may be installed if desired. This helps protect concrete pour from weather elements, especially heat in summer or rain. Pre-mix trucks can access and chute through any accsessible sides or ends. This can eliminate the need to pay for a pump truck.

Want your new post frame building as perfect as possible and completed quickest? Then roof first, walls after is most probably your route to success.

SIPS for Barndominiums

It has only been five years since I first opined about using SIPs for post frame building construction: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2015/02/sips/. Since then, post frame homes (frequently referred to as barndominiums) have become quite the rage. Easily half of Hansen Pole Buildings’ inquiries are now for some combination of living space!

I had recently done some further research on SIPs and actually acquired pricing, reader STEPHEN from RAPID CITY was evidently thinking on a like-minded path when he wrote:

“I am a CAD student at Western Dakota Tech in Rapid City, SD and have been thinking about a way to use post-frame buildings as a cost-effective way to create very energy efficient (essentially passive house level insulation and airtightness) residential housing.  What do you think of the possibility of attaching appropriately sized SIPs to the outside of the posts instead of other sheathing and using their strength to do away with girts all together? I have seen SIPs advertised as being used this way with timber framed or post and beam construction (neither are cheap) but not with post-framed buildings.  The idea would be to have thick enough SIPs to not need internal dimensional lumber in the SIP thereby removing thermal bridges, but having it still be strong enough for racking and wind loads.

I know that the costs for SIPs mostly comes from the manufacturer having to essentially custom make each piece.  In this application the SIP panels could be made as rectangles that are as wide as your center to center post distance and as tall as is convenient. Any angled pieces for gable ends and any fenestrations could be cut on site, reducing SIP manufacturing costs.  The SIPs also would likely not have to have much dimensional lumber built into the SIP because it is just holding up itself and windows, not the whole building thereby drastically reducing your thermal bridging. You could also foam seal between the SIP panels to provide air sealing (which I believe is standard for SIPs anyway.)

I would think that you could either use thick enough SIPs to provide all of your insulation and just leave the posts exposed on the inside, or you could use a SIP that was just thick enough to, structurally, take the place of girts and sheathing and frame the space between the posts with 2x4s 24” o.c. flush with the inside of the posts and use fiberglass batts in that space.  

The first technique has the advantage of not needing to do any extra internal framing, but you do have to deal with the posts in your living space.  In addition, if you want to run any electrical to the inside face of any of those walls you either have to be ok with running it in conduit on the face of the wall or you are getting back to specially made SIPs with electrical chases.  The advantages of this technique over your suggestion of bookshelf girts and sheet insulation on the interior is that it doesn’t require interior framing (girts or traditional) and no need to glue drywall but the cost of the thick SIPS, even generic ones, might outweigh those advantages.

The second way of doing it does require extra framing and if your outside SIPs are air sealed you would have to be careful about using a moisture barrier on the inside of the wall (like you normally would in a heating climate) as you wouldn’t want to trap moisture in that space.  The advantages of this system over your bookshelf girts and sheet insulation is, again, no gluing of drywall, normal attachment systems for electrical boxes and cables, and the internal framing being slightly cheaper than full 2×6 girts. Again, the cost of the SIPs might make those advantages moot.

Finally, with either style, you could use a traditional (for post-frame buildings) ceiling with blown insulation above and a vented attic space or you could have full roof panel SIPs built with internal structure to span between your trusses, leaving them exposed inside, and get rid of your purlins as well (for both purlins and girts you would probably have to have some temporary bracing while the building is being built.)

What do you think? Have you heard of anyone doing something similar? Does this sound like it would be a viable way to get very high insulation and air sealing on the cheap?”

Mike the Pole Building Guru responds:

Thank you for your well thought out question, it is evident you have read some of my articles. I hope they have been informational, educational and/or entertaining.

I am usually a guy who jumps all over some brand new technology. My construction business had a website back in 1995 when there were only roughly 23,500 world-wide. This was not long after I had erected a post frame shouse (shop/house) for myself, not realizing there was such a thing as a barndominium. My first attempt utilized ICF blocks on two walls and a portion of a third to compensate for digging away a 12 foot grade change.

Getting on track, I have always thought SIPs would be “cool” as in neat, fun and interesting. It has only been recently I have been able to get some solid costs back on their use.  I approached this design solution from an aspect of eliminating all except columns, roof trusses, essential truss bracing and steel skin. I looked at this as applying SIPs to column exteriors and used a 36 foot wide by 48 foot length with 10 foot high walls. In order to span 12 feet between columns and trusses I was looking at R-52 panels. Wholesale raw cost difference (after eliminating typical wall girts and roof purlins) would add nearly $30,000 plus freight to this building. It would also require a crane onsite to place panels and some sophisticated fastening systems to attach SIPs to the framework.  It is relatively easy to achieve similar insulating values and air sealing for far less of a cash outlay.

Can it be done? Yes. Should it be done? Not if return for investment is a consideration.

Anyone who can design an overall cost effective post frame building design solution with SIPs, I am all ears and eyes to hear and read about it. Until then, for those who just want to be neat and different without cost as a factor, it might be a great system.

Tornadoes Reek Havoc

Tornadoes Reek Havoc, Don’t Let Them Wreck You
Excerpts in italics below are from an article first appearing in SBC Magazine June 3, 2019:
“In the past few weeks, weather systems throughout Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Indiana and Ohio have had a significant impact on the built environment. As is well known, tornadoes cause severe stress on buildings where the high localized wind loading conditions find the weak point of the structure quickly. This usually is at the location of a wood nail, wood connector or anchor bolt connection, or in our testing experience, a knot or slope of grain deviation in a lumber tension member. An interesting point is that most studs in wall systems are meant to see compression forces not tension, where studs in tension may also be a structural weak point.

As the pictures herein attest, finding the key building material weak point that caused the structural performance to be a debris field is challenging, if not impossible, to do.

Tornado damage in Jefferson City, Mo. as seen on Thursday, May 23, 2019. Photo by David Carson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Questions that need to be sincerely addressed follow, which include but are certainly not limited to:
What were the as-built conditions?
Was the building built to code?
Which aspects of the structure were built to code?
Which aspects of the structure were not built to code?
What is the cause/effect analysis for each code compliant and each non-code compliant condition?

It is obvious that proper construction implementation is key to satisfactory building material performance. Paying close attention to all connecting systems that make up the load path is essential.

The most important outcomes of poor building performance in a high wind or seismic event are that no one gets hurt; the construction industry continues to learn and evolve; and design and installation best practices improve.

The entire construction industry can greatly benefit by staying focused on providing framer-friendly details that are easy to understand and implement. It’s critical that we come together with the goal of fostering innovation, using accepted engineering practice, creating installation best practices, working closely with professional framers and assisting building departments to focus inspections on key load path elements. We all are educators. By working together, we will significantly improve the built environment.”

 

Mike the Pole Barn Guru adds:
Readers will note, these failures are in stick frame construction. Certainly there were also pole barns failing in tornado areas as well, however it is my opinion post frame buildings, engineered to withstand appropriate wind speeds, and assembled according to engineering documents would survive these storms – preventing both loss of property and life.

Code requirements are merely minimum design standards and often do not address severity of real life events. My recommendation is when in doubt, design to higher loads than minimum, in most cases these higher design loads involve a nominal investment and your family and expensive possessions deserve this type of protection.

Talk with your Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer today at 1(866)200-9657 to find out what a lifetime of protection will involve.

Decks and Exterior Balconies of Post Frame Buildings

Decks and Exterior Balconies of Post Frame Buildings

Post frame buildings and residential construction have finally met and the marriage happily looks to be a long term one! Along with this marriage, post frame has to familiarize itself with structural areas which were previously unfamiliar. Amongst these are decks and exterior balconies.

The 2018 IBC (International Building Code) addresses these areas in Chapter 23:

2304.12.2.5 Supporting members for permeable floors and roofs.

“Wood structural members that support moisture-permeable floors or roofs that are exposed to the weather, such as concrete or masonry slabs, shall be of naturally durable or preservative-treated wood unless separated from such floors or roofs by an impervious moisture barrier.”

In layperson’s terms – decks or balconies which are exposed to the weather should be constructed from pressure preservative treated lumber. Pretty simple.

At Hansen Pole Buildings, we design a fair number of residential decks which are cantilevered off of the main enclosed structure.

Why?

Because those columns below are a target waiting to get run into by something big enough to cause “fall down, go boom”. We prefer once something has been constructed, for it to continue to remain standing.

 

The floor joists which will cantilever out will need to be pressure preservative treated, as will the blocking between the joists where they cross the beam in the exterior wall.

What about the transition between interior and exterior walking surfaces in a cantilevered situation?

The floor joists on the interior portion of a building are normally sheathed with ¾” underlayment grade T & G OSB (tongue and groove oriented strand board), while most decking material is either 2×6 (1-1/2” thick) or a composite product (which normally is 1-1/4” thick). To compensate for the differences, the floor joists in the bay closest to the wall only are lowered 1-1/2” below the balance of the floor joists. 2×4 is then placed flat at 90 degrees to the joists, spaced every two feet within the building interior, to bring the top of the interior framed surfaces to the same level.

The cantilevered floor joists have their strength characteristics adjusted downwards due to being in a wet use condition. If these joists are a species other than Southern Pine, they were probably incised during the pressure preservative treating process, further reducing their load carrying capacities. This may require the cantilevered joists to be spaced closer together than their untreated, building envelope treated counterparts.

All of this appear daunting?

The best solution, if your new post frame building will have a deck or balcony, is to invest in a custom designed post frame building kit package which includes plans which are specific to your building signed and sealed by a RDP (Registered Design Professional – architect or engineer).

 

Salt Bagging Pole Barns

Salt Bagging Pole Barns
I would imagine most of us do not give much thought as to salt, which is rather surprising considering 255 million metric tons were produced in 2016 alone (over 20% from China)!
The first time I ever really thought about salt (other than at the supper table or in a water softener) was in 1985 when I first visited the Caribbean island of Bonaire. Bonaire, located not quite 100 miles north of South America near western Venezuela, was originally claimed for Spain in 1499 by Alfonso de Ojeda and Amerigo Vespucci.
In the seventeenth century war broke out between Spain and the Netherlands. The Dutch captured Bonaire, which they were interested in due to the island’s salt deposits, as salt was needed to preserve the cod caught by the Dutch fishing industry in the Atlantic. Dutch sailing ships would carry roofing tiles to nearby Curacao as ballast, then return to Europe with their holds full of salt!
Fast forwarding a few centuries, near Browns Valley, on the western side of Lake Traverse, in South Dakota, Jeff Medbery owned a 96 foot by 96 foot pole barn known as “The Salt Shack”. Jeff would buy both bulk salt as well as pre-bagged salt, truck it in from Utah and then redistribute it. The bulk salt was used for de-icing roads in winter, while the bagged salt went for water softening. Eventually Jeff sold the land and building, in order to retire, and it is now the home of the Hansen Pole Buildings’ Productions building, where components for post frame building kits are shipped to locations all over the United States.
Well, those salt bags don’t just occur naturally. It takes people, machinery and – a building to do the processing in. Here is just one example:
The New Castle Planning Commission on Thursday approved a land development plan to construct a building in Mahoningtown, PA.
Mark Taylor of RAR Engineering, representing Sweet Water Developers, said the company plans to construct an 80-by-100-foot pole building to be used for equipment and a bagging operation at 915 Industrial Street in the M-2 Heavy Industrial District of the Seventh Ward.
Taylor said the site is in the flood zone but the floor will be above flood stages. He said the building will house a salt bagging operation.
“Bulk salt will be delivered to the plant and it will be repackaged,” he said.
Whether bagging salt, or other materials – post frame (pole building) construction is probably the ideal design solution. Post frame offers rapid construction, a variety of exterior finishes and is highly affordable.

It Can’t Be a Pole Barn!

If Ignorance is Bliss…..

Then these folks are truly happy.

From a July 21, 2015 article in the Salina (KS) Journal by Tim Horan, “City approves exterior plaza for field house”…….

Salina Mayor Jon Blanchard said he wants the appearance of the field house to be unique.

“It is going to be a building designed for the downtown environment that it is in,” he said. “It can’t be a pole barn. That block needs to be done in a fashion that it looks good. If we’re planning to build a pole barn, I’m wanting out of doing the building.”

(The full article can be read here: https://www.salina.com/news/city-approves-exterior-plaza-for-field-house/article_1fe85791-6e3c-5275-9f83-51fb94255243.html)

Commercial Pole BarnWhat the good (yet uniformed) mayor is missing is a “pole barn” (more properly referred to as a post frame building) can look just like any other building.

The term “post frame” comes from the major structural supports for the building being wood columns (or posts) typically embedded into the ground (although they can be bracket mounted to concrete, or similar, foundations). The “post frame” becomes the structural skeleton of the building.

No different than any other structural system – whether stick framed (stud walls), steel frame, block, etc., the exterior of a post frame building may be sided and roofed with any materials. Any materials can be T1-11, board and batten, vinyl – wood or cement siding, stucco, log look, masonry….need I say more? The difference – post frame construction happens to be the most cost effective permanent structural system for low rise buildings (generally up to 50 foot tall walls or three stories).

This particular project in Salina is budgeted at $9 million for a 69,000 square foot building, or just over $130 per square foot. From my somewhere beyond 17,000 post frame buildings of experience, is money that could have been saved had a more open minded approach been taken towards a structural design solution.

Regardless of the end use – post frame construction should be a consideration to be examined for any low rise structure.

All Steel Buildings Propaganda Part II

Yesterday I started a 3 part series. A simple typographical error on the Internet got me to “hansonsteel.com” (Hanson versus Hansen-which is the company I work for) where I found an interesting page on “Steel vs. Pole Buildings”.

To continue the story….

(For sake of ease of reading, words in italics are those from the all steel building website.)

Insurance

Property insurance for a pre-engineered steel building is generally 30% lower as compared to wooden pole buildings. This is due to the increased fire hazard with wooden buildings.

Insurance rates are based upon the replacement costs of the building. As pole buildings are less expensive than all steel buildings, the insurance on them is less expensive as well.

Assembly

All Hanson Steel Buildings include extensive assembly documents, plans and engineer certifications. All plans are engineer stamped and ready for submission to the local building department. Parts are numbered to enable easy and rapid construction.

Generally assembly instructions and plans are not as thorough for pole barns/buildings. Parts are normally not numbered or sorted. All of this can cause delays in obtaining permits and in overall construction.

Steel Building ConstructionWhat they do not tell you about all steel buildings, is the need to obtain (from yet another engineer) foundation designs. As long as the foundation bolts are placed absolutely perfectly, all steel buildings assemble fairly easily along with the use of lots of expensive heavy equipment (such as forklifts and cranes – neither of which is required for post frame construction).

Hansen Pole Buildings include detailed full sized 24” x 36” blueprints of seven or more pages which detail every component of the structure. Complete engineered calculations and seals are available for any of our designs. Every Hansen Pole Building kit package includes complete installation constructions with “live” pictures and diagrams in a fully illustrated construction manual.  We also offer technical support 7 days a week for assistance.  Does this all steel company provide technical support?  If they do, they don’t advertise it.

Come back tomorrow and I’ll finish my story…

All Steel Buildings Propaganda Part I

A simple typographical error on the Internet got me to “hansonsteel.com” (Hanson versus Hansen-which is the company I work for) where I found an interesting page on “Steel vs. Pole Buildings”. Let me deflate their ego, by blowing holes in their misinformation.

For sake of ease of reading, words in bold italics are those from the all steel building website:

The most frequently-asked questions are about the differences between pre-engineered steel buildings and pole barns/buildings. The benefits of pre-engineered steel buildings are significant.

Foundation

Hanson Steel Buildings bolt to a solid concrete foundation, Base angle or sheeting notch with closure strips to ensure the building will be frost-free and water resistant.

In comparison, pole barns/buildings are set directly into the earth and offer little or no resistance to water or frost heaving.

All steel buildings require either a concrete foundation or significant concrete piers. What the all steel people do not say is, the foundation design is NOT included with the building purchase, and a local engineer must be hired to provide the design. Neither a base angle or a sheeting notch are going to have anything to do with preventing frost heave. A “sheeting notch” actually places the steel wall sheeting in contact with damp concrete, accelerating the rate of deterioration of the wall steel.  Bottom line – this notch is going to hold water with the steel sitting directly in it…causing it to rust.

Our company has an older pole building where the previous owners errantly put “fill” up to the bottom of the steel – see how it rusts the bottom to be in contact with water?

Steel Building Rust

Pole building design accounts for frost heave in the location of the base of the building foundation below the frost line. The top of a concrete slab in pole buildings is at least 3-1/2 inches above the highest point of the grade outside of the building – it would take a deluge to get water above this point.

Using the foam closures and base angle may prevent water moisture from getting into their building, but it’s not going to have any effect upon frost heave.

Again from their website:

Framing

Hanson Steel Buildings are made with solid steel framing that is coated with a highly protective primer applied after cuts and drill holes to ensure complete rust protection. We offer a lifetime product that does not warp, twist or decay like wood. Steel is a more sanitary product when used for livestock purposes. Steel is also preferred for permanent installations.

The pressure-treated wood used in pole barns/buildings can warp and shrink. It is not recommended for permanent installations. The foundation frame shifts and requires straightening every 5-7 years – a process that costs thousands of dollars! Clear-span capabilities are very limited with wooden construction.

An engineered Hansen Pole Building comes along with a Limited Lifetime Structural Warranty. Post frame buildings are certainly permanent – the millions of them existing everywhere in America are a testament to their durability. Many of them have been around for well over 100 years and I expect them to be used and useful long after I am gone from this earth.

With the use of dry lumber, it is dimensionally stable and won’t shrink.  If they are using green lumber, which never should be used on pole buildings, then yes, this could be an issue. Hansen Pole Buildings only uses dry lumber.

I’d like to see verification of any properly design and constructed post frame building having a foundation shift, or ever needing to be straightened! This is one I’d dearly love to see documentation to support their claim.  With adequate footings, (meaning the foundation was done right), in over 14,000 buildings and 30 years, I’ve never seen a building shifting or having to be straightened – whether it’s all steel or a post frame building.

Pole buildings can easily clear span 80 to 100 feet using wood trusses. Rarely are larger clearspans needed for any type of building.  When they are, (such as roping and riding arenas) – we are quick to tell folks they may want to check out an all steel building.,

I don’t have a problem with all steel buildings – quite the contrary. But they have their limitations in use, which you can check out by going to the search field and typing in “all steel buildings”.

Come back tomorrow for more….on all-steel building propaganda.

 

Interior Walls: Not in My Inside

Pole buildings afford one of the great luxuries of buildings, without a premium price – large, open clearspan spaces. Without the need for interior walls to support roof systems, walls, if needed, can be placed anywhere.

In stick frame (stud wall) construction, interior walls often become load bearing points to carry roof loads to the foundation. In the event of future alterations, which involve these walls, structural headers and advanced structural design must be incorporated to prevent possible failure situations. Not so with pole buildings. Non-structural interior partition walls can be installed, removed and replaced as needed – creating a far more flexible long range design.

Having been raised the son of a framing contractor I saw a multitude of situations where building owners (both residential and commercial) would decide a space just wasn’t “right”. In order to make things right after the fact, redesigns, rework and costly change orders entered the picture.  Moving walls is easy if they aren’t holding up the roof!

As providers of post frame (pole) building kit packages, Hansen Buildings is often requested to show non-structural “interior walls” on plans. While we can do so, keep in mind if they are shown on the plans to be in a specific location, they had better end up there in the finished building.  Your Building Official will insist upon this.  This takes away the inherent flexibility of the pole building design.  And redrafting the plans to match what you actually built is not the cheapest solution.

Another caution – do not order the framing materials for interior walls to be delivered with your kit building package. I know it sounds like a great idea to have all of the lumber delivered at the same time.  Saves time and probably is cheaper, right?  Not in the long run. Because interior walls are constructed only after the building shell has been completed and concrete floors are poured, materials which are ordered to be used for partition walls tend to have “bad” things happen to them. Whether the concrete finisher “borrowed” the material to use for forms, someone walked away with the lumber, or it has been so long since delivery the material has warped, twisted or is no longer usable because it was improperly stored, or some unforeseen happenstance prevented immediate construction…. all represent an unneeded cost to the building owner.

I’ve seen building owners with great intentions purchase their interior wall materials with the building “shell” kit, only to have up to 4 and 5 years elapse before they got to use those materials.  As much as I’d love to sell more “pieces” for your building to you, I’d rather you waited and purchased the interior materials from someone else…if only to save you untold grief further down the line.  I grew up with a hammer in one hand and a couple of 2×4’s in the other, and I know firsthand the perils of “buying too far ahead”, especially when it comes to lumber.

Take advantage of the pole building difference, get your new building up and sealed in from the elements, before deciding where to locate any interior walls. Your patience will be rewarded by cost savings and usefulness.

All Steel Buildings are Better Than Wood Pole Buildings: Really?

When considering a new building, end users often debate whether to use an all steel or wood framed pole building. Steel has the perception of strength and endurance. Research and independent studies show pole buildings have several advantages over all steel.

Wood is unquestionably the most environmentally friendly building material on earth. It has better insulation, better fire resistance and better strength.

Wood is constantly growing and is sustainable. Trees in forests absorb carbon dioxide, making a growing forest an efficient carbon sink.  As older trees are harvested, younger trees can grow more rapidly, allowing for a healthy and everlasting wooded area. Statistically, for every tree harvested, five are planted.

Other building types do not use renewable materials; they use materials such as cement and plastic, which severely impact the environment. Lumber does not need to be mined. Forestry practices adhere to rigid codes which have been instituted to not only balance, but improve our forests. Foresters are conscious of maintaining the ecosystem by replanting the trees, utilizing the whole tree and by leaving virtually no solid waste behind. The forests available for timber harvest are large enough to grow enough wood products to build millions of buildings each year, endlessly into the future. Wood is the greenest construction material on the market.

Wood is more workable than steel, so it’s easier for a building owner to construct it themselves. With all steel buildings, many components are far too heavy to be moved and placed without expensive material handling equipment, like forklifts and cranes. All steel buildings require hiring expensive engineers to design foundation plans.  With pole buildings, the foundation plans are part of the drawings. The foundations of all steel buildings must be absolutely, perfectly square and level and anchor bolts precisely placed, otherwise the bolt holes of the steel frame components will not align.

Wood buildings have longer life spans than steel buildings. Steel “sweats,” causing moisture to get into insulation and steel connections. This provides conditions for mold to grow, which leads to corrosion and rust, shortening the longevity of the entire building. Once installed in a building, dry lumber will rarely warp or twist, it remains dimensionally stable. The steel building wall girts and roof purlins provide excellent nesting places for birds.

It takes nine times more energy to produce a steel stud compared to a wood stud. Wood, a naturally more efficient insulator than steel, can cut costs on heating and cooling by 30 to 50 percent. Steel is an excellent thermal conductor, creating a pathway for the transmission of heat and cold.

Comparing rack load capacities on different wall panels, the shear walls of a Hansen Pole Building outperform the tie-rod braced and cable-braced walls of typical all steel buildings.

All steel buildings, due to having roof purlins spaced generally every five feet and wall girts every seven feet, require steel sheathing which is thicker than on a typical pole building (the difference in thickness being approximately equal to a sheet of notebook paper). This minimal difference in thickness does not provide for more strength or durability of the building. The quality and warranties on the steel and paint systems vary widely, from none to “lifetime”. However what is available on one, is available on the other.  They are not exclusive.

Wood is Safer in a Fire. While it sounds hard to believe, it’s absolutely true. Wood retains its structural strength at temperatures higher than 2000°F, while steel loses 80 percent of its strength at 1000°F. As it’s melting during a fire, steel bends and twists. According to many firefighters, it is extremely difficult and dangerous for them to stop a fire in a steel building and for people to escape. After a fire, while structural steel may appear intact, there is no way to effectively determine the remaining strength of the frame. The all steel building needs to be knocked to the ground, rather than being able to repair a wood framed pole building.

Over the years I’ve been offered opportunities to sell all steel buildings, either in combination or separate from wood framed pole buildings.  Each time I’ve gone back and done the research to compare the two.  People who know me…..know I do “due diligence” when faced with a decision.  I want to know not just the facts, but the whole story. Each time what convinces me to say “no” are the stories from past clients of all-steel buildings.  I just can’t endorse what I don’t believe in.