Metal Building Homes

[Croatan_Kid]

My original idea for building a house was to build a rather large metal building/shop and frame in a portion of it and make a house. At first, I thought it was more of a bachelor type thing, so I went ahead and had some house plans drawn up. However, the more I think about it, the more I know I really need a shop/garage. I have way more stuff that would go in a shop than a house anyway and, yes, I'm not married so it's even more appealing to me. Plus, once I got down to the final details of building a house I quickly realized I can't have both. I have thought about a modular or even a nice double wide, but I still keep leaning on my original idea. The house plans we came up with would be about 160k at the very least! I'd like to be 120k or less.

I looked around with a quick Google search and there are a lot of people that have done some amazing things with the same idea! It really seems to be a "kill two birds with one stone" type of deal. With 3 trucks, an equipment trailer, an ATV or 2, a lawnmower, and a tractor, you can see why I need the working area. I don't need (or exactly want) a 1500 square foot house to live in and have to take care of by myself. I figure since I have to clean my piece of land anyway, I'll have to do septic tank upgrades, and then the actual building process....why not do both at once?

Anyway, with all that being said, my builder is all for it and I think he likes the idea of doing something different. Most of the ones that I've seen pictures of aren't recognizable as a metal building when you're in the living quarters, so that's all the more appeal to me. I also feel like it would be extremely energy efficient since the housing area would be very, very insulated. The steel building comes with 3" insulation on the walls and ceiling.

My first thought was a 40x60x14 and frame in half of it which would give me a 30x40 shop area and the same for the "house" and it could very well have a large loft above it to act as an attic/storage area. I like a lean to shelter too as my current shop has one and it's very handy for parking. I'm thinking that I'd do 20 feet out along the 60 foot side and a part of it along the residential area would be used as a covered porch.

Also, I'm sure some of you guys are good estimators and deal with building/concrete on a daily basis. You may also be able to give me some insight on building codes and what sort of fire barriers will be required. This will almost certainly be a monolithic slab. Can you do a raised monolithic? I'd like to get it up in the air a little bit to avoid any water problems that may arise. I also, based on reading some other shop builds, figured a 40x60 slab that's 6" thick would require around 50-55 yards of concrete. I think that's a gracious estimate, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Basically what I'm after here are some suggestions, tips, pointers, concerns, or ideas with this endeavor. Perhaps some of yall have done this or seen it in person. Should I start with a larger footprint? Maybe a 60x80x16? If it's tall enough, I can do a 2 story which, really, wouldn't cost a whole hell of a lot more since we're going up and not out.



I know this is a long winded post, but I've got an idea that I want to get started on and that I think would be pretty cost effective while getting me everything I want/need, but staying within my price range. I have a basic idea planned out in my head. Maybe I'll try to draw it up, this post needs pictures. Thanks in advance guys, hopefully yall can get me headed in the right direction with a good plan!

 

[XJfreakHO]

My father and I have been talking about doing this for a very long time, large building, with a 2nd story apartment in it on about 1/3 to half of the building.

We figured about the same dimensions as you but never went any further. Consider me subscribed.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

Oh, this is going to happen. I just need to figure out the best size for the building and how I want it laid out. I'm thinking I will want at least a 40ft length on the garage part, so I may inquire about a 40x70. I'd have a 40x40 work area and a 40x30 living area. Everyone suggests an upstairs living arrangement, but I don't want to walk up and down stairs to carry furniture in the house.

 

[XJfreakHO]

Eh, unless you plan on changing furniture frequently, or moving quickly... why the worry? Move it in once. Leave it forever.

 

[powerstrokin04]

I would check your local laws.. my exs family had a 50x100 steel building horse barn/shop. When we got married we was going to build a apartment inside the barn but local laws prohibited it. I figured they wanted more tax money. We were in sc and that was 6+ years ago. Just something to think about.

 

[Wwildman]

A friend of mine had a second story apt in his shop and almost died because of fumes seeping up from the shop.

 

[Hokie_YJ]

I live in one. I LOVE it! I was planning to build something just like you're talking about, large shop with a small apartment. I was looking for some land and stumbled across the listing for the place I ended up buying.

It's a 30'x100' pole barn style building. 30'x45' is living area with 2 (possibly 3) bedrooms, 1 bath, full kitchen, and living room. The shop area is 30'x55' with 10' eaves, ideally I would like taller, but I can deal with it.

As far as I'm concerned it's the most efficient way to build a house. You can get a whole lot more for your money going this way. My house is pretty plain jane, but while I was researching I saw some beautiful metal building homes. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

My mortgage payment is <$600/month for 15 years. That's taxes and insurance included. You can't hardly rent a crappy apartment for that. My most expensive power bill in two winters that I've lived there was $98 last month. I'm sure part of that is because I live alone and the thermostat stays on 66 in the winter. But I also attribute a lot of that to how well it's insulated. The exterior walls of the living area are 2x6 framing fully insulated plus the roll insulation under the metal siding. And the attic has two layers of r-19 on top of the ceiling plus the insulation under the metal roof.

 

[BrianGreen]

I had thought about this same thing back before I got married. What I planned was getting a red steel building and putting 1/2 of it as a house. I was planning on leaving a 2' space between the "house" part and the walls of the building. All of my plumbing would be on the outter walls so I would have easy access to it. Insulated shop and insulate/vaporbarrier the house part. Sheet the "roof" of the house to use it as a loft.

FWIW, build the building with power, water, and septic. Once it has passed final inspection, build the house inside.

 

[mommucked]

If you want to raise it for drainage or possible flooding have a grading contractor put in a raised pad to put the slab on.

 

[ManglerYJ]

Do you have a hill you can dig out to have the shop as essentially a "walk-in/drive-in basement" and the main floor be at ground level so that you drive around back to get to the shop/garage and the house appears to be a ranch from the approach? That way, it keeps your shop a little more secure since it's hidden and you have your ground floor living area so you can move furniture in easier?

 

[77GreenMachine]

Subscribed!

 

[Loganwayne]

The estimates for concrete aren't to far off I don't think I'm sitting at work watching a slab we poured this morning it was 4 yards close to 10x10 six inches thick , but that includes the footers and one side had to be formed up 18 inches

 

[jeepinmatt]

It's a 30'x100' pole barn style building. 30'x45' is living area with 2 (possibly 3) bedrooms, 1 bath, full kitchen, and living room. The shop area is 30'x55' with 10' eaves, ideally I would like taller, but I can deal with it.
View attachment 144517

You sure its 30' wide? To me that looks like more than 30' of space on the width, but I could be wrong.

 

[Hokie_YJ]

Honestly I haven't pulled a tape on it, but that's what it's supposed to be. Lol. That's a 16' trailer in the background of the shop pic. It's backed in almost to the back wall.

 

[jeepinmatt]

Yeah, I guess the ceiling height is messing with my perspective.

 

[77GreenMachine]

I would be all for something like this and actually dreamed of it back in the day. But I'm sure my other half wouldn't go for it. I can't even convince her to sell our house and rent a descent double wide for a year or two to save money for our dream house.

 

[Macdaddy4738]

Might run in to trouble if you try and build this without disclosing the house portion. I wouldn't write a permit for it here, as we do not allow for accessory buildings on parcels without a primary, however if I knew that part of the building was for living purposes then it would probably be okay. That is fairly standard where ever you go if the jurisdiction has zoning regulations. Disclose everything at the beginning and the process is a lot easier.

We also have a 10% maximum size limit on accessory buildings, so the accessory portion couldn't be larger than 10% of the total size of the lot. That's fairly standard as well. Metal buildings come with their own set of building standards as well. I believe we would require a full set of engineered drawings here for a building with a size mentioned in a few other posts (30x100, etc). We had a guy come in the other day for a 30x40 and had to get a set of engineered drawings before a permit was written. The set up company wanted 6k for those plans...

 

[Hurdt299]

Something you may not have thought about is putting a fire wall and fire rated doors between the living quarters and the shop. That would be an absolute must for me. I don't know what it would cost, but in the event of a fire in either area, it would be well worth it.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

From what Heritage Buildings told me, I'll get 3 sets of stamped blueprints, so I should be good there. For a firewall, I'm sure they'll require at least a double layer of sheetrock. I figure whatever they want, I'll cover it with metal siding just like the outside of the building so it's easier to keep clean and somewhat durable. I'll definitely do a steel door rated for fire. I may even block the face of it. That would surely solve any fire issues. That's what they required between our lunch room at work and the main portion of the shop.

I'm definitely not going to try and sneak the house part in to it, I'll just tell them that's what I want to do. I'll just have to see what they say I can or can't do.

 

[RatLabGuy]

As mentioned above, if the house part is above, proper ventilation will be key.
I'd think from a heating/insulation standpoint you'd be better off w/ the house on the side anyway.

 

[Croatan_Kid]

Ventilation is PART of the reason I want the house on ground level; the other reason is not wanting to walk up and down stairs every day.

@Macdaddy4738 : I don't think there's a problem with an accessory building without a primary. I know several people that have them. I'm also not in any city limits, which is great and should make things a little easier on me. However, the city of New Bern does still have me by the balls with electrical. My piece of land is 2.34 acres, not quite as much as I'd like, but it was free...so I'm not bitching. We've got 9.75 at my parent's place and it's so nice to have!

@Hokie_YJ : That's badass! Will you take some more pics for me? Particularly, inside the shop and looking back towards the house. Maybe some showing how well the framed walls meet up to the insides of the building. Are the floors framed up or just like a slab house and flooring on the concrete? Is there anything above the house? Attic space or a loft or anything?

@mommucked : I'm definitely going to grade it off around it, possibly raise the pour area. I'll see what it looks like once I get the trees out of there and everything cleaned up.

@ManglerYJ : Nope, no hills out my way to speak of. My property is pretty flat. I'm thinking about ways to disguise the shop area. However I decide to do it, I'm going to have the lean to off the back of the shop so my trucks will be parked around back. I try to keep my business out of plain site. Unfortunately, the road I'll be living on is known for high traffic since it's a cut through from New Bern area/Hwy 70 over the Jacksonville and Hwy 58 and Hwy 17. I may be a little more selective on clearing trees to keep a little privacy. I'm not worried about either neighbor. My grandma is on one side and I've got 2 cousins on the other side. Hell, I'm not worried about anybody that lives on this road, it's just people going up and down the road that bother me. There have been a few thefts in the area, but it's only a little over a mile from where I live now. Down the road and around the corner basically.

@powerstrokin04 : From everything I've heard, SC won't let you do it. That much I've gathered, but it seems like NC is a little more lenient about such things. We shall see! I know inspectors can shut down the whole show, so I'm going to be doing it by the books for sure. I don't have a problem doing whatever needs to be done, as long as I can get the end result I want and it'll appraise well enough for the bank to be satisfied.


Thanks for all the replies yall. I've gotten some good ideas so far.

 

[Macdaddy4738]

Ventilation is PART of the reason I want the house on ground level; the other reason is not wanting to walk up and down stairs every day.

@Macdaddy4738 : I don't think there's a problem with an accessory building without a primary. I know several people that have them. I'm also not in any city limits, which is great and should make things a little easier on me. However, the city of New Bern does still have me by the balls with electrical. My piece of land is 2.34 acres, not quite as much as I'd like, but it was free...so I'm not bitching. We've got 9.75 at my parent's place and it's so nice to have!

I would still check. I get that ALL the time here. You wouldn't have the problem anyways if you're putting the house in there. I think this is a great idea. I'd be ready for whatever negative complaints you'll get from your NIMBY neighbors though!

I used to be into those Dirk Pitt books by Clive Cussler. He lived upstairs in a giant aircraft hanger. Always thought that would be awesome.

 

[rodney eppes]

I was making notes, & reading post, by the time I got here, seems like all the concerns have been covered! Someone did quote low insurance; seems odd, since they charge more for attached garage, than un-attached.
Fire issues. That being said, I'd want a block fire rated wall, & door, instead of double Sheetrock. And make sure it goes to the roof! 6" floor, seems extreme; most house slabs are closer to 3.5, as are many standard garages. Maybe if your looking at lifts & anchors, do 5-6 in the shop, & cut back to 4" in house area. It's your money. Make sure the roof has proper insulation, & I suggest a reflective heat barrier,against that steel roof.
The shop, as in any space, heat rises, so you want heat & or fans, that blow down! Carbon Monoxide detectors, & don't skimp on the size of electrical boxes. You always end up adding things!
Will you be running a business, or just your personal shop? There's zoning on that,too. Some get by, running a business, with No posted signs, & not visible to the road. Best of luck!

 

[Croatan_Kid]

Not worried about any neighbors. I'm related to both of them

Planning to have a lift in the shop, so that's one reason I figured I would do a 6" slab. Plus, one thing concrete is going to do is crack. Not the substance, hopefully. Hahaha! Don't you worry about electrical! Depending on feasibility, it may get a 400 amp service installed so if I decide to build a house or something later we can pull off of this box and still have 200 amps for each, but not have to get screwed by having two meters. They charge a higher rate just for having an extra meter. My parent's shop has a separate one and it sucks! I also hate having marginal electrical systems that trip breakers. There's going to be a lift, air compressor, welder(s) 110 and 220 most likely, and the household stuff like the dryer, stove, and HVAC.

 

[Lizooki]

First thing you need to do is THOROUGHLY go through state, county and local laws and zoning ordinances.
Half of the people I know who did this, didn't disclose and that was the only way they could do it.
( Big "garage" with a big "office area" and a rudimentary bathroom ..... "remodeling" started as soon as the inspector got in his car.)
I used to build the steel buildings and I know for a fact what you want is impossible to do in some locations due to legalities.

Shop around on the building and builders (for the building). Deals can be had .... and some manufacturers can save you money on the erection (Beavis voice - huh, huh I said erection).

Plan on adding more insulation .... that 3" crap is just one step above a broken beer bottle.

Matt

BTW- If you make it to the building process, don't let any inspector give you any crap over the structure ..... these things are basically pre-fabbed, pre-engineered buildings and must be accepeted by state inspectors before being sold in NC.