Pole barn design and build

[grweldon]

Hello Everyone,

Been a while since I've posted here.  Been out in the country with extremely limited internet access.  I broke down and ordered HughesNet, which I also consider limited...  I still consider this website to be one of the best places on the planet to find information!

Anyway, I just got a killer deal on 16' 6x6 ground contact treated posts...$18.03 each on clearance from Home Depot in Montgomery, Alabama.  Regular $81+

I have been thinking about building a pole barn for drying wood storage and to keep more of my equipment covered.  I'm thinking a 30'x50' (or 60') and I'm undecided about the post installation method.  I am in an unregulated area as far as agricultural buildings are concerned.  The ground is sandy clay...more sandy than clay and it drains well.  We have zero snow load for all intents and purposes.  Being as the post are only 16', I guess the building will be about 12 or 13 feet tall at the eaves since I think the posts need to be buried at least 3' deep. The steel trusses I'm going to purchase are intended to be spaced 10' apart.

I guess I'm looking for opinions (and facts if we can work them in!) About the best method for post erection.  I know that there have been endless discussions here (I've been reading them for over and hour) about mounting posts to concrete piers with embedded steel brackets.  I understand the reduced lateral stability that bolted posts would create.  I would like to know if the lateral strength could be equaled to embedded posts if angle braces were used on the poles when attaching them to the headers at the top of the post.

I suppose burying the post 3' deep with sufficient footing material at the bottom of the hole to support the post and keep it from sinking would be the easiest and least expensive method, but I'm unsure of the resistance to updraft.

If anyone could help me to try and bring this into better focus for me, I would be grateful!  Thanks y'all...

[Don P]

That would help in one direction but you need to brace up into the trusses as well, and the truss manufacturer needs to be aware of that and detail accordingly.

You can attach either to a footing or to boards down in the hole to prevent uplift, essentially force the post to remove a cone of soil in uplift. Generally soil doesn't provide great bracing and it usually starts at 5-7' of embedment.

[WV Sawmiller]

   I think you are going to be at greater risk for wind damage than anything else if you are like the rest of Ala. Are you basically in tornado alley country? I'd keep that in mind more than anything else and build and brace accordingly.

[mike_belben]

They just handed out another round of stimulus today.  Id consider pouring a slab before the price of concrete inevitably rises, and sitting the posts on lag chairs.


Youre gonna want a concrete floor, everyone does.  Why go without it and then pay more later when the place is already full of stuff. 

[Walnut Beast]

They just handed out another round of stimulus today.  Id consider pouring a slab before the price of concrete inevitably rises, and sitting the posts on lag chairs.


Youre gonna want a concrete floor, everyone does.  Why go without it and then pay more later when the place is already full of stuff.

Spend the extra money and do a concrete floor. You will be glad you did. Put plastic down and use rebar. I went 8” thick in mine. 

[Don P]

Also check the level of treatment on those 6x6's, in the fine print on the tag you should see a "UC" number from 1 to 4, basically interior to ground contact. For ground contact you're looking for UC4.

[grweldon]

Youre gonna want a concrete floor, everyone does.  Why go without it and then pay more later when the place is already full of stuff.

Yeah, I already have a 40 x 80 hybrid steel/wood building (AKA Perka) with a concrete floor.  This barn (actually just overhead cover) will be mostly for air-dryed wood stack storage and to keep my tractor and a couple of lawn tractors out of the weather.  Stone floor will be the ticket.

[grweldon]

  I think you are going to be at greater risk for wind damage than anything else if you are like the rest of Ala. Are you basically in tornado alley country? I'd keep that in mind more than anything else and build and brace accordingly.

We do get tornados here, one took my in-law's house about 15 years ago but that was about 10 miles east of where I am.  The geography where I am isn't very conducive to tornado formation but they aren't unheard of.  The last hurricane that went through about three months ago(?) was packing 75mph sustained winds with gusts up to 90.  My Perka building survived unscathed.  The Perka is bolted securely to the 2' square footings with 7/8" wedge anchors, two per frame. Of course uplift is what I'm most concerned about with putting posts in the ground.

[Corley5]

Snow load isn't an issue