Pole barn planning

benmack1

benmack1

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 13, 2010
Location
USA
I am planning to buy a 5th wheel camper soon and need to build a higher building to shelter it when not in use. I thought about carports for RV's but I think I'm leaning toward a pole barn or at least a pole barn-shelter (not sure about closing it in yet). I'll need a 14ft clearance to be safe so this will be fairly tall. I'm thinking something like 20X40 or 24X45 as a general size. Might go narrower and do a lean-to.

I had a couple questions about trusses and posts if anyone can chime in. My goal would be to do this myself (with some help here or there from my buddies).

1) Anyone ever use these metal truss'. Spacing is somethiing like 10ft on center so much less poles in the ground. http://bestbuildingkit.com/ There are several versions of this available in NC I see. I worry about snow load and winds.

2) Concrete the posts or not?

3) Where to buy pressure treated 6x6's (treated for in ground use that is, not the crappy stuff just for outdoor use)?

4) Anybody got experience with laminated poles (3-2/6's glued/nailed).

5) With the laminated poles, I see morton uses an in ground PT laminated post and then connects to regular laminated lumber (non-PT) above ground through a staggered 3-board joint.

6) What about using concrete piers and setting/connecting the posts on top of those?

7) Maybe the ultimate solution to non-rotting in ground posts https://www.permacolumn.com/. Anyone know anything about these or have experience.

Just in the planning stages so wanted some thoughts from anyone with some experience.
 
benmack1 said:
I am planning to buy a 5th wheel camper soon and need to build a higher building to shelter it when not in use. I thought about carports for RV's but I think I'm leaning toward a pole barn or at least a pole barn-shelter (not sure about closing it in yet). I'll need a 14ft clearance to be safe so this will be fairly tall. I'm thinking something like 20X40 or 24X45 as a general size. Might go narrower and do a lean-to.

I had a couple questions about trusses and posts if anyone can chime in. My goal would be to do this myself (with some help here or there from my buddies).

1) Anyone ever use these metal truss'. Spacing is somethiing like 10ft on center so much less poles in the ground. http://bestbuildingkit.com/ There are several versions of this available in NC I see. I worry about snow load and winds.

2) Concrete the posts or not?

3) Where to buy pressure treated 6x6's (treated for in ground use that is, not the crappy stuff just for outdoor use)?

4) Anybody got experience with laminated poles (3-2/6's glued/nailed).

5) With the laminated poles, I see morton uses an in ground PT laminated post and then connects to regular laminated lumber (non-PT) above ground through a staggered 3-board joint.

6) What about using concrete piers and setting/connecting the posts on top of those?

7) Maybe the ultimate solution to non-rotting in ground posts https://www.permacolumn.com/. Anyone know anything about these or have experience.

Just in the planning stages so wanted some thoughts from anyone with some experience.
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1. I did on my building. 34ft span, 10ft center to center with 2x6 purlins and they worked great. Theres a couple places around here that sell them, but getting wooden trusses built is still cheaper. Mine survived our 10" of snow a couple months ago with no problems, no sagging, and no leaks.

2. Yes. There's a lot of debate about that, but I'm of the opinion that if you have proper drainage, a post directly in concrete is your strongest and best bet.

3. Lowes/Home Depot/any lumber supply will sell ground contact rated 4x4/4x6/6x6's. Thats about all you can get in those dimensions. I'm not aware of any differences between the Lowes ones and Lumber supply ones other than generally Lowes pays extra to ensure their customers can get curved and twisted boards.

4. Not me.

5. Haven't seen that, but I don't like extra joints in a structure that relies on the cantilever strength of the posts for the wall strength, ESPECIALLY if you aren't adding walls to it.

6. See #2 and #5. The posts work like a lever, and if you have 2ft of post in the ground, that's how much lever there is to prevent collapse from wind/snow/backing into it/etc. The shorter that is, the less strength there is. The metal trusses provide a little more strength and tie in better in the direction of the truss because of the bolt spacing and added structure. This is really where walls give it tremendous strength (while adding wind load of course). Thats not to say that concrete piers are bad, they just need to be properly engineered to work with the type of building.

7. No personal experience, but same comments as 2, 5, and 6.

tknopp said:
I (with the help of some friends) just put this up. All stick built. Posts are 4x6's and concreted in. It took a couple of days to do.
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Did you burn the old one down?
 
jeepinmatt said:
1. I did on my building. 34ft span, 10ft center to center with 2x6 purlins and they worked great. Theres a couple places around here that sell them, but getting wooden trusses built is still cheaper. Mine survived our 10" of snow a couple months ago with no problems, no sagging, and no leaks.

2. Yes. There's a lot of debate about that, but I'm of the opinion that if you have proper drainage, a post directly in concrete is your strongest and best bet.

3. Lowes/Home Depot/any lumber supply will sell ground contact rated 4x4/4x6/6x6's. Thats about all you can get in those dimensions. I'm not aware of any differences between the Lowes ones and Lumber supply ones other than generally Lowes pays extra to ensure their customers can get curved and twisted boards.

4. Not me.

5. Haven't seen that, but I don't like extra joints in a structure that relies on the cantilever strength of the posts for the wall strength, ESPECIALLY if you aren't adding walls to it.

6. See #2 and #5. The posts work like a lever, and if you have 2ft of post in the ground, that's how much lever there is to prevent collapse from wind/snow/backing into it/etc. The shorter that is, the less strength there is. The metal trusses provide a little more strength and tie in better in the direction of the truss because of the bolt spacing and added structure. This is really where walls give it tremendous strength (while adding wind load of course). Thats not to say that concrete piers are bad, they just need to be properly engineered to work with the type of building.

7. No personal experience, but same comments as 2, 5, and 6.


Did you burn the old one down?
Click to expand...


Got any pics of the building?
 
Look in GCC on pirate and search for a thread by Tundra01. He recently built a blacksmithing shop and used a technique for preventing rot on the poles you may find interesting.
 
We built a pole barn similar down at my grandads for the same purpose.

He has friends everywhere, but 92 years will do that for ya.

I got 12 decommisioned power poles and cut about 12" off the bottom of each and then trimmed the top to length...
 
benmack1 said:
Got any pics of the building?
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Not really. I've got some in process pics and a bunch of pics of it stuffed full of junk that I haven't sorted out and turned into a shop yet.
 
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