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Barn to Residence, Slab Thickness Changes, and Home from a Roof

This week the Pole Barn Guru answers reader questions about differences in a barn to a residential structure, how to pour to a slab thickness change, and if a home can be built from an existing pole barn roof.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: What is the difference in building structure from a barn to a residential building. Please list materials, framing etc. The cost difference seems to be a lot. 24×36 $12,000 to 24×36 48,000. LAURIE in CHANDLER

DEAR LAURIE: From: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/pole-barn-prices/

“The pole barn prices shown on this page do not include any optional items. Prices also vary by location due to regional shipping costs and local design requirements.”

Your most recent quote is for a building 28′ x 46′ x 11′ with an 11/12 roof slope. Added features include:

Delivery to your site in Utah
38 psf ground snow load
Exposure C for wind (site unprotected from winds in one or more directions)
18″ enclosed overhangs on all four sides
4′ wide, commercial steel insulated entry door with steel jambs.
factory finish painted including window with grids Wainscot all four sides
Steel offloading service

(1) 5’x4′ sliding window
(3) 3’x5′ sliding windows with grids
(5) 4’x5′ sliding windows with grids
(1) 3’x2′ sliding window
(1) 4’x4′ sliding window
All windows are LowE gas filled
28′ x 46′ attic trussed loft (hence need for 11/12 roof slope, where 4/12 is standard)
Trusses designed with energy heels and ceiling loaded
Omnidirectional housewrap for walls
Vented ridge
Commercial bookshelf wall girts

You are, for practical purposes, comparing a handful of sand to a large gold nugget.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I am building a 40×40 barn in Idaho. Frost depth there is 3 feet. It will have a 16 x 40×12 foot center, if you will, with 6×10,s every 10 foot. I will cut and stack a roof out of 2x8s 24″ oc. There will be 12 foot wings on either side framed the same. The outside walls will be framed walls at 8 feet and a 4/12 pitch roof. I am looking at ways to pour said building 5″ in center and 4″ in the wings. Is there a book out there on this for up to date ideas? I have poured a few hundred yards of concrete but never with a 3 foot frost depth. Any help would be appreciated…SCOTT in SANGER

DEAR SCOTT: To accomplish a change in slab thickness, merely grade your center 16 foot width section an inch lower than 12 foot wide wing areas. As for frost protection, you should consult with whomever provided your engineer sealed building plans. In most instances, you can follow perimeter slab requirements as outlined here: https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2024/07/post-frame-frost-walls-2/. If your building will have in floor radiant heat, then entire area under slab will need to be insulated. Otherwise, it is recommended to at least do under slab insulation within four feet of exterior walls. Do not neglect an under slab vapor barrier.

Your best book for up to date ideas is our Construction Manual. Reach out to Brenda@HansenPoleBuildings.com about obtaining a copy for yourself.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: Can a home be built from an existing pole barn roof? LORENA in YAKIMA

DEAR LORENA: Maybe – if it was engineered to Risk Category II and deflection of all members is appropriately limited. You should reach out to a local Registered Professional Engineer to do an actual physical evaluation of your structure to determine if it is indeed structurally adequate. He or she can then design any needed upgrades or repairs, as well as structurally design exterior walls to be able to support openings (doors and windows) of your choice.

In most cases, it is less expensive to design and build a brand new structure, properly engineered to best meet your wants and needs.

This entry was posted in Rebuilding Structures, Building Interior, Lumber, Budget, Pole Barn Questions, Professional Engineer, Pole Barn Design, Pole Barn Homes, Pole Building How To Guides, Post Frame Home, Pole Barn Planning, Barndominium, Footings and tagged pole barn to residence, construction manual, slab thickness, post frame quote, concrete thickness change, rebuild pole barn, pole barn quote on July 30, 2025 by Rick Ochs.

New Build Features, Concrete Costs, and a Monolithic Slab

This week the Pole Barn Guru answers reader questions about specific features for a new build, possible costs for concrete for a 60x150x12 red iron building, and installing a monolithic slab in an area with rocky soils.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I like a 35′ wide by 45′ deep 18′ high. Ridge running the depth of the barn. I’d like 20′ lean-to’s on each side. 2 14’x14′ doors, one in front and one in back. Want to drive through. I’d like to know if we can have an open floor plan? I’d like all the inside walls to open into the lean-to’s. I was also wondering if we can use roofing panels that allow light through on 1/3 of left lean-to? That area would be used for plants. Let me know if it can be done and we can add some more details to get it done. Thanks. SHANE in BRIDGETON

DEAR SHANE: Provided you have available space, you might want to consider a 36′ x 48′ main building, as it is more efficient in materials usage and will likely be roughly same in investment. Yes, you can have an open floor plan, with no inside walls between main building and lean-to areas. While it is possible to use opaque white translucent polycarbonate panels for portions of roofs, they can prove to be problematic. From a structural aspect, polycarbonate will not adequately transfer wind shear loads, so those area will require steel strapping between roof purlins and sheathing. Below this area, everything will seriously bake – including supporting lumber. All of this lumber (below polycarbonate roofed areas) should be pressure preservative treated to reduce potential incidence of decay.

DEAR POLE BARN GURU:
Can you estimate concrete cost for a 60x150x12 building? Red iron.
WALTER in FORT WALTON BEACH

DEAR WALTER: For a red iron building, I would need to see engineer designed foundation plans in order to estimate required concrete for foundation, it will take a significantly greater amount of concrete than would a fully engineered post frame building. For a similar size post frame building, expect to use roughly 11 yards of concrete for footings and bottom collars for columns – this is based upon a 2000 psf (pounds per square foot) soil bearing capacity, Vult (Ultimate design wind speed) of 150 mph (miles per hour) and a Wind Exposure C. https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/2022/06/wind-exposure-and-confusion-part-iii/

DEAR POLE BARN GURU: I am working with Jackson on a quote for a 40x60x16 pole barn. The plan was to install the barn on a monolithic slab as our soil up here in Rhode Island is rather rocky. My town building inspector informed me that I would need to submit an engineering/stamped plan for my concrete work. Jackson suggested I reach out to you to discuss if there are any alternatives to a monolithic slab and what your recommendations would be. ALEX in WEST GREENWICH

DEAR ALEX: If a monolithic slab on grade ends up being your best alternative, we can provide engineer seals for it within our drawings. Anticipate having to dig a trench 24″ deep around perimeter and having to insulate slab edge.

There are alternatives – least invasive and most affordable will be to excavate square piers at column locations, slab itself will pour on grade.

Either of these would require wet set brackets (included in quote Jackson provided) and insulation requirements would depend upon if building will be heated or not, as well as if radiant heat will be used in slab.

This entry was posted in Pole Building How To Guides, Pole Barn Planning, Pole Barn Structure, Concrete, Footings, Professional Engineer, Skylights, Roofing Materials, Barndominium, Constructing a Pole Building and tagged new build, rocky soils, post frame quote, concrete costs, monolithic slab on May 31, 2023 by admin.

Materials List: Scary Disclaimer

From time-to-time our potential clients will send us a quote from another provider to compare. Often it includes a materials list. Typically this happens when Brand X is “thousands” of dollars less expensive for what is supposed to be (but rarely is) the same building size, quality and features.

One such company, provides only a list of pieces, and nowhere on the materials list does it state the dimensions of the building, or the load carrying capabilities (wind, snow, seismic).

At the bottom of these lists is the following disclaimer:

“You may buy all the materials or any part at low cash and carry prices. Because of the wide variation in codes, Xxxxxxx cannot guarantee the material list will meet your code requirements. These post frame buildings are suggested designs and materials list only. Some items may vary from those pictured. We do not guarantee the completeness or prices of these buildings. Labor, concrete flooring, some finish materials and delivery are not included. Some special order truss sizes may be jobsite delivered. Delivery is extra. This post frame may have been altered from the plan’s original design.”

Personally, I find this statement to be seriously disturbing, if not totally misleading.

Provided the potential client has verified the loading requirements with their permit issuing jurisdiction, any competent provider should be able to guarantee to provide a building which will indeed meet the given loading requirements as well as clearly stating on the quote, what those loads are.

Amazingly this particular company runs advertisements for buildings, and includes prices. How is it then they can say in good conscience, “We do not guarantee the completeness or prices of these buildings”?

Regardless of who might be quoting a given building, it would be my strong encouragement to run, don’t walk away from any prospective provider who will not clearly state on their quote the dimensions, full code and load information. There also should be an explicit guarantee to fully provide the required materials to complete the building, per the plans. Any not included items should be clearly stated and all price quotes should include jobsite delivery.

Don’t become one of those horror stories where thousands of dollars of materials had to be added because they were left out of the original materials list. Carefully read every word on the quote you are given, and if you don’t understand it, ask questions. The one question you didn’t ask may well be the one which cost you thousands of extra dollars “out of budget”.

This entry was posted in Pole Barn Planning and tagged building materials, code requirements, pole building package, post frame quote on May 9, 2012 by admin.