Anyone have experience with metal building kits?

[EvilRhino]

If everything goes right, we'll be closing on a house Dec 30th. 5 acres in Franktown. Currently, it has a greenhouse that has electrical and gas. My plan is to build a shop. Could be 30'x40' and use the utilities to the gh.

Does anyone have experience with metal building kits? That area appears to need 40" snow load rating. Most of what I've seen is only rated for 20"

I do a lot myself, so I'd probably grade the area and prepare the concrete area, footers, rebar, mesh. Any insight on the best way to do the concrete? I did our hot tub pad 12'x 16' in 2 days with a mixer 2 bags at a time. Is it worth it to hire trucks and finishers? Looks like $2500 just for the concrete myself vs $6-7k+ to have someone else deal with it.

Thanks

[Great-Kazoo]

DO NOT BUILD IT ON CONCRETE. Put the building up, then pour the concrete, inside. Put up on a pad your taxes are $$$$, it's now a permanent structure.
A steel building / pole barn is considered a utility shed here in weld cty. Check what the permit cost difference is, also look in to taxable difference.

Pouring yourself 2 bag at a time you'll run in to issues, that big an area. See what cost is for a mixer to drop off what you need. Don't forget to include sq footage for the pad and entry door.

You going to use some tinted fiberglass panels on the roof for illumination? When you do the numbers for wiring, otulet boxes, etc. Don't forget a security camera or two in the budget.

[Ah Pook]

I did a pole construction about 10 years ago. 24'x30'x11' building. Snow load was 54" and wind was 120 mph, as per Boulder County. I laughed but the specs are not out of line.

Double/triple check the measurements before ordering. If you know a PB builder, show them the plans.

I did fiber mesh re-enforced concrete floor. Not bad but their are cracks. The floor went in after the building was up. 2x12 pressure treated at the bottom level to hols in the concrete.

Too many details to put in one post. I can answer questions...

[Bailey Guns]

Interested in the info that comes out of this thread. I'm in the same boat. Demanded a house w/shop. Found the perfect house with no shop...given a budget to build a shop as a consolation prize from the Marriage Manager. Now we get to argue about where the shop will be built. But we have plenty of time for that since we don't close til the end of Jan at the earliest.

[Great-Kazoo]

Interested in the info that comes out of this thread. I'm in the same boat. Demanded a house w/shop. Found the perfect house with no shop...given a budget to build a shop as a consolation prize from the Marriage Manager. Now we get to argue about where the shop will be built. But we have plenty of time for that since we don't close til the end of Jan at the earliest.

That the place you looked at?
The first thing to do is check building codes & permits. Will it be cheaper building and over all tax wise to do metal or frame construction?

For anyone considering a metal building / pole barn. INSULATE IT. Consider some opaque fiberglass panels, as part of the rood for indirect lighting. Pour the interior floor AFTER the building is up. Look in to heated floors or other means of keeping it warm in winter.

My roof was done like any other roof, with a minimum overhang off the sides. How it's constructed, when it rains we get water under the roof / down the sidewall as the water follows the slope then drops.
Next building we do. Going to request the roof have a 6-8" overhang. Yes i have gutters, still an issue, ONLY when there's high winds coming in from the NW. It's not an issue for all metal ones, just something we have had a minor one with.
Do the building on a raised area, at least 6-8" above ground level. Helps with water / snow run off

Windows... Smaller ones up high, to keep unwanted visitors out. I have a nice 4x slider with a security bar across, from the inside. What ever you think you want for outlets, add more. Bigger electrical panel. I used the take off from the home upgrade. Had to split 3 of the 20A 110's, so i could run 3 separate 25A? 220 outlets for hobby items as i upgraded over time.

Phone , water and CAT 5 (what ever the current designation is) Phone line just in case your cell doesn't work inside, OR you're in an area that cell service isn't available.
Water for cleaning (on demand heater) If you do metal fab, or engine work (for rinsing sand / bead blasting off) and A CRAPPER. The spouse and i wish we ran water / sewer when ours was done (no extra $$$) This way i could live out there and come in for food and "adult entertainment" ;)
The cable line, again if cell is non-existent or real weak. For security cameras, one must have items are security camera[s]

One more item. Build it bigger then you planned, everyone wishes they did after the fact. BUT............. price out everything you'd like before hand.
This way you can get the building you want, with the conveniences you'd like and stay in budget.
Ours has a few items mentioned, no budget when built, or room now to add improvements. Luckily i was able to barter for a lot of the interior upgrades once the building was up.

The Most Important thing when doing a garage / shop. Build an overhang off one side for outside parking. This way when the spouse complains "There's no room to park my vehicle in there. Because you're taking up the space" You point to the over hang , mentioning why yes there is room for you car honey. It just happens to be out said parking ;)

Then duck, Or remove the firing pin from her pistol. Second thought, remove the firing pin any way. After 4 decades together, you'll thank me.

[Ah Pook]

It's like a safe, build it bigger then what you think you will need.

Ditto on the insulation. I didn't and now wish I did.

Another consideration is heating. I really like radiant floor heat but don't use my shop enough to justify it. Gas or propane need piping. I'm going to a wood stove in mine because wood is plentiful and cheap/free.

[zulu01]

DO NOT BUILD IT ON CONCRETE. Put the building up, then pour the concrete, inside. Put up on a pad your taxes are $$$$, it's now a permanent structure.
A steel building / pole barn is considered a utility shed here in weld cty. Check what the permit cost difference is, also look in to taxable difference.

Pouring yourself 2 bag at a time you'll run in to issues, that big an area. See what cost is for a mixer to drop off what you need. Don't forget to include sq footage for the pad and entry door.

You going to use some tinted fiberglass panels on the roof for illumination? When you do the numbers for wiring, otulet boxes, etc. Don't forget a security camera or two in the budget.

What is the advantage to pouring the floor after the building is up?

[Wulf202]

Tax assessment is reduced

[Wulf202]

You've got utilities and the knowhow. Do in floor heating.

[Great-Kazoo]

What is the advantage to pouring the floor after the building is up?


Tax assessment is reduced

This. On a slab / foundation, it's considered a Permanent Structure.

[Irving]

Kazoo, sounds like you need drip edge. I'll check next time I'm up there.

[EvilRhino]

This. On a slab / foundation, it's considered a Permanent Structure.

So I'm looking at caissons to start?

[Great-Kazoo]

So I'm looking at caissons to start?

The question is. Are you doing an actual steel building where the frame is steel, or steel as in pole barn using pressure treated lumber for the frame and trusses? Steel frame gets put on foundation or footers, so i gather from the one's i've seen.

If wood, the 6x's are sunk x feet in the ground with concrete, everything else ties in to them. I'd get with the contractor doing the job to see how they do it. My building is 12-15 yrs old. Things have changed construction wise since then. Looked at some impressive "pole barns" since then. Everything comes down to money for the building you end up with.

[EvilRhino]

Well, I pulled the trigger and put a deposit on a building last week. 40x60x16. I've come to terms with the fact that it is literally 2x the original planned size so I'm going to have to contribute more than the wife's budget.

I was a heartbeat away from ordering from a company called strat-o-span. They have ads on Craigslist and list their prices (though it was more for higher snow load, wind). My neighbor built a 30x50 built in the time I've been here, but from what I understand he had quite a money windfall and a totally different budget. I did talk to the erector he used and got some industry insight. From both him and the neighbor, Armstrong sucks. The neighbor literally tossed me the price book for them stating he will never use them again. The erector said Armstrong and General Steel are in a race for last place.

Pretty much anyone I talked to and mentioned StratoSpan went to their website while I was talking to them and basically said...it's not the best option. The biggest issue being how the beams come together. http://www.strat-o-span.com/images/Photo0158.jpg They say they ship out of Longmont, but that is actually Metal Sales who you can't order directly through. I talked to one of their customer and he mentioned that the vertical beams are 2 C channels bolted together which you can also see in that pic.

In my estimate from Strat, it said it could be built on a simple concrete pier design. Supposedly that would have been $150 for stamped concrete plans. Since then, I have learned there is no such thing as a "simple pier", and structural engineers pretty much take offense to the term. Between weight and gravity trying to pull the building down and wind trying to blow the building away, it's not simple. A local search was unanimous that they needed soil samples, $900 for 2 for the size of my building and then engineer stamped plans would be an additional $1400-1600. That wipes away the savings of concrete to do a stem wall per the county approved plans that don't require engineering. In addition, the building requires an 8" skirt wall to close it in, so going with a stem wall is making more sense but I still have to get an idea of how to do it or how much it will cost to have someone else do it.

I still need to get the ground leveled and I'm getting bids but everyone is busy. I can rent a backhoe for $400 a day and get it close.

The strat guy must have been out of the office on the day I tried to ask a question and that lead me to wander other companies. A few other's had been 2x the cost, but I called a company called Rigid Building. They have an office off Arapahoe and I25. I gave the guy my specs and when I added it up for the extras I would have to pay with strat, it was a wash. However, it looks like the quality and design of Rigid is world's above. Square posts and beams that meet and bolt together at flanges vs the pic above and are machine welded. I went with a 3:12 pitch as requested by the HOA vs the neighbors 1:12 and Rigid's standard pitch. They have their prices listed on their site too, but it can be more if you need more than 30 lb snow loads. The pitch cost more too. http://www.rigidbuilding.com/stack-buildings/

I'm still trying to do as much myself as possible, but some things are looking like it's easier for me to go out and make money and pay someone else to do it. I'll probably have a bunch of pics as the project proceeds.

On another note, Congress passed a major tariff on foreign steel back in about 2004. They only just started enforcing it this year since China and others were flooding the market, likely under cost and driving down U.S. made steel. Since the enforcement, steel prices have been increasing by sometimes 10%+ each month.