Hay loft above horse stalls in a pole barn

[LAXPatrick]

Ok, I've got some horse stalls built along one side (and into the corner) of my 60x64 pole barn.

I left the posts long for the stalls so I could build a hay loft above. 4 stalls, 12x12. So, basically I'm looking to build a deck above - the wall posts are 8ft centers, so I can tie in my ledger board to that. The span will be just about 12'. The front beam will be affixed to the front stall wall - 12' centers with door posts at 4" (so there's a 4' gap from the corner, 8' gap to the next stall).

My question is - how beefy do I need to go? I talked to an engineer at the local truss factory and he said that I need to go 2x12s double on the ledger and beam with 2x12's 16" centers for the joists. I'll use 3/4" plywood for the decking.

I'll be stacking small hay bales (50lb) probably no more than 6ft high. My finished deck dimension should be around 12x48 feet.

Can I go lighter - say 2x10 16" centers?

Guess I'm looking at about a $200 difference...

Just curious what you folks thought...

Thanks,

LAXPatrick

 

[LAXPatrick]

Ok, I've got some horse stalls built along one side (and into the corner) of my 60x64 pole barn.

I left the posts long for the stalls so I could build a hay loft above. 4 stalls, 12x12. So, basically I'm looking to build a deck above - the wall posts are 8ft centers, so I can tie in my ledger board to that. The span will be just about 12'. The front beam will be affixed to the front stall wall - 12' centers with door posts at 4" (so there's a 4' gap from the corner, 8' gap to the next stall).

My question is - how beefy do I need to go? I talked to an engineer at the local truss factory and he said that I need to go 2x12s double on the ledger and beam with 2x12's 16" centers for the joists. I'll use 3/4" plywood for the decking.

I'll be stacking small hay bales (50lb) probably no more than 6ft high. My finished deck dimension should be around 12x48 feet.

Can I go lighter - say 2x10 16" centers?

Guess I'm looking at about a $200 difference...

Just curious what you folks thought...

Thanks,

LAXPatrick

 

[DaveNay]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Can I go lighter - say 2x10 16" centers?)</font>

Personally, I'd be looking at heavier, not lighter. If you are stacking your hay 6 bales high, and assuming each bale covers approx 4.5 sq ft (18" x 36") and weighs 50 lbs, then your load per square foot is going to be almost 67 lbs. (live load or dead load? I can never remember which is which.) I'm no structural engineer, but 67psf over a 12' span sounds like it is pushing the limits of a 2x12 16" O.C. If I was building (I admit, I over engineer things), I would put 2x12's 12" O.C.

edit: Wrong again Dave! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif See the attached PDF with span and size tables. Apparently, 2x12, 16" O.C. is well within your design specs.

 

[DaveNay]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Can I go lighter - say 2x10 16" centers?)</font>

Personally, I'd be looking at heavier, not lighter. If you are stacking your hay 6 bales high, and assuming each bale covers approx 4.5 sq ft (18" x 36") and weighs 50 lbs, then your load per square foot is going to be almost 67 lbs. (live load or dead load? I can never remember which is which.) I'm no structural engineer, but 67psf over a 12' span sounds like it is pushing the limits of a 2x12 16" O.C. If I was building (I admit, I over engineer things), I would put 2x12's 12" O.C.

edit: Wrong again Dave! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif See the attached PDF with span and size tables. Apparently, 2x12, 16" O.C. is well within your design specs.

 

[LAXPatrick]

Great reference. So - according to this, if I'm using #2 or better, I should be fine with 2x10s...

Thanks,

LAXPatrick

 

[LAXPatrick]

Great reference. So - according to this, if I'm using #2 or better, I should be fine with 2x10s...

Thanks,

LAXPatrick

 

[riptides]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Guess I'm looking at about a $200 difference... )</font>

For peace of mind, I'd not worry about the cost. Who says storing hay is all that will end up there. I'd over engineer anything I walk or store values under......

-Mike Z.

 

[riptides]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Guess I'm looking at about a $200 difference... )</font>

For peace of mind, I'd not worry about the cost. Who says storing hay is all that will end up there. I'd over engineer anything I walk or store values under......

-Mike Z.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

2x10's will work fine. If you want to over build it then use the 2x12's but either way you will be fine.

 

[Robert_in_NY]

2x10's will work fine. If you want to over build it then use the 2x12's but either way you will be fine.