OT - pole barn

Belcain · Oct 1, 2009

I"ve been clearing a lot of woods on my lot on NH and wonder if its reasonable to make a small(ish) pole barn to cover my tractor and other misc equipment? I would dig holes 4 feet deep or so but should I worry about bugs or pole rot? I think maybe I could coat the part of the pole in the dirt with roofing tar or oil. That along with the concreate to hold them in place would make them last a good long time? Am I way off?

thanks for any advice

OH Boy · Oct 1, 2009

Yeah a barn is a great idea for keeping your tractor out of the weather. Build it bigger than you think you will need or you will be sorry!

Don't use concrete around the posts, it just holds water and will rot the posts out faster. Backfill the post holes with dirt (tamp it down as you go) and they will be fine. Use pressure treated posts, the kind meant to be in contact with the earth.

I built my barn by starting with a 12X16 garden barn, built on skids, which I set on a floating 'rubble' foundation made from some concrete blocks/slabs I had from an old silo I had taken down.

I added a pole barn style lean-to sort of addition on each side of it to keep the tractors out of the weather. Works great for me and did not cost too much. Except its full and now I wish I had built it bigger!

kyplowboy · Oct 1, 2009

Like OH said, build it twice as big as you think you'll need! Also, do what you want about the post, just don't post on here that you are going to use oil, some folks will get all up tight about it. It's a no-no these days.

Never knew any one who built a barn and wished they hadn't.

Dave

ILLEFTY · Oct 1, 2009

Defintly use treated post and make it at least twice as big as you figure you'll need. I figured I needed a 20x30 so i built a 30x50. Now I wish I had built a 60x100.

Anonymous-0 · Oct 1, 2009

Tarring the posts doesn't sound like a bad idea, four feet deep is plenty deep, too. I've set three pole barns on posts with one bag of crete per hole, that goes in first, and then two minus packed on that. The last one was put on peers, because of soil conditions, it was by far the easiest to put up as things were so much more square, and the next one will be put up on peers again, or foundation, because everthing goes together easier when squared and level. The difference is time and money (labor). The next one will be peered or foundation sidewall. Good luck.

paul · Oct 2, 2009

Most wood burried in ground will rot off about 6 inches below the ground in 10 years or less.

If you happen to have one of the few naturally resistant wood types, then you would be good to go.

Home treatments don't often last or help very much, as they are only on the surface, don't really soak in more than a 1/2 inch or so.

If you are going to the work of it, I'd want good poles placed in the dirt.

The rest you can outfit with your own wood.

--->Paul

TimMiller · Oct 2, 2009

We are building one and using treated posts is a must. We also bought a bucket of fence post paint (sold at tractor supply, black bucket) that contains asphault. It drys very black, and kinda sticky. We painted them with that also before putting them into the ground. We are also painting all of our new fence posts with it too.

MarkB_MI · Oct 2, 2009

Your local building department (if they have such a thing in New Hampshire) can tell you the local requirements for post frame buildings.

Posts must be set below the frost line, which here in SE Michigan is 42". Dig your holes 10-12" inches deeper than the post depth, and 10-12" in diameter. Pour a concrete plug in the hole to raise it to the post depth. After setting the posts, backfill the first few inches with pea gravel for drainage. I like to partially backfill the hole with dry ready-mix to lock the post in place.

As others said, don't bother with non-pressure-treated posts.

Anonymous-0 · Oct 2, 2009

Your tractors & other equipment will THANKYOU for keeping them out of the elements, and you'll be thanking yourself as well on windy, wet or snowy days when your house gets to small.
A note on the poles, only use treated or you'll be jacking and putting a foundation under her in 10 or 15 years. Pour a footer under each pole to keep it from settling, dont have to be much, 6-8 inches thick (I've even used large flat stones) and have them below the frost line for your area.
Never coat any wood under the ground, even treated, traps moisture in, wood needs to breathe, even under ground.
Happy building!

kyhayman · Oct 2, 2009

Eastern red cedar or buy treated poles. After that build away. Some places get all excited about permits and such, others exempt ag structures.

thurlow · Oct 2, 2009

or.........Black Locust.

RodinNS · Oct 2, 2009

Just go to the lumber yard and get 6x6 pressure treated posts and be done of it. They'll outlast you.
We never put anything in the hole with them. Just dig the hole to depth, set the post in the BOTTOM, not on fill material you dumped in the hole.... then align and plumb. Pack the ground back in... frame it up.

Rod

JDemaris · Oct 2, 2009

Properly treated poles will last longer that you. Just keep in mind that most "treated" 6" X 6" poles for sale locally probably will NOT be properly treated.

Look close before you buy. Since the new ACQ chemicals became the norm, instead of the prior CCA, treatment is more costly, and therefore, got cut way back. I've bought poles recently in New York and in northern Michigan. At all the lumberyards, any 6X6 "treated poles 10 foot or shorter, were not treated for burial. Most poles over 10 foot were. So, if you needed let's say, four 10 footers, you'd need to buy two 20 footers and cut them in half to get poles worth using. If you bought four 10 footers, they'd be no good. Just read the treatment label and do NOT take the counter persons word for anything.

On a side-note, I checked treated poles at Home Depot and NONE were treated for burial. All the 6x6s were for "above ground" or "ground contact" only.

ncpapaul · Oct 2, 2009

Here in Mississippi concrete just rots the bottom of treated posts in the ground faster. The moisture in the concrete I quess. We just put the treated posts in the hole, add a few inches of dirt and tamp it hard with an iron rod, repeat over and over til the hole fills up to a crown around the pole base. These 6x6 treated pine last about 20+ years. Main thing is: Build bigger than you think. It will fill up in a heartbeat and you will be adding on shortly. Paul in Mississippi

Anonymous-0 · Oct 2, 2009

I built a pole shed a few years ago. Instead of burying the 6 x 6's in the ground, I dug a 15 x 15" hole 24" deep. Fill it with concrete, and while still wet, place two heavy strap-iron pieces several inches in it. Iron piece should extend above the concrete several inches to be bolted to the pole 90 degrees apart. The concrete should extend above the ground several inches. Shouldn't have any rotting problems this way-------

Kevin Schmidt · Oct 2, 2009

Treated lumber will work fine, just make sure you get 0.60 cca treated, that is rated for ground contact. Big lumberyards around here will sell you 0.15 or 0.35 cca as there treated lumber, not as good. There is a tag or stamp on the treated lumber telling the cca

Also, most pole builders anymore use 3 2x6's nailed together for a 6x6 pole. lots stronger and easier to keep straight. Just be sure you put some good construction adhesive between the boards before you nail them together. You can just buy them also.

Put pea gravel in the bottom of the holes 6 inches deep, some even use gravel to tamp in around the pole all the way to the top. Thoughts are if the pole isn't sitting in moisture, it won't rot.

Same logic applies to the ground around the building, grade it so water will run away from the building easily, and everything has a lot better chance of lasting a lifetime

Take what I say for what it is worth, but I have put up dozens of sheds and owned a building co at one time

OT - pole barn

Belcain

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OH Boy

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kyplowboy

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ILLEFTY

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Anonymous-0

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paul

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TimMiller

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MarkB_MI

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Anonymous-0

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kyhayman

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thurlow

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RodinNS

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JDemaris

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ncpapaul

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Anonymous-0

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Kevin Schmidt

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