why use roof trusses?

[yooperdave]

It would not surprize me if you needed some knee braces which would extend from a bottom chord panel point of the truss down to the column at an angle close to 45 degrees. The knee brace would take off 4' to 6' of clear headroom at the eave of the building - but only at the columns. This is one of the most effective ways of adding rigidity to a wood frame.

Do you need 14' clear EVERYWHERE?? You still have some other options if this is a requirement. All you need is more money...

Yooper Dave

 

[Mosey]

yooperdave - No, I don't need 14' everywhere, just on the inside starting about 2' in from the edges. So, a cross brace like you described would probably be OK. I'm still learning terminology, can you describe what you mean by "bottom chord panel", "column", "eave of the building"? Thanks.

 

[cowboydoc]

Danny,
I coudln't ever save anything buying a package over doing it myself. They have everything out perfectly so you only get exactly what you need. The price is usually cheaper with one of their kits. Menards does do a good job of this. They have a computer there that generates out what you are looking for. If you do go with them though make sure you get the better steel.

 

[cowboydoc]

Danny,


There is also a place there in Indiana that does pole barn kits and will deliver them. My friend is a contractor and has put up several of these and has been very impressed by the quality of the products.

 

[bnixon]

I am just curious...How much would a kit like this cost?

I am looking at prefab steel buildings and they seem to be very reasonable. They are clearspan and have 10-14' seal heights. I had quote for a 60' X 80' fully insulated with three 12'X12' roll up doors and two 16' X 7' car garage doors for about $13,000. You basically just bolt it together.

I am curious as to the cost comparison of the two types.

 

[Mosey]

It turns out the guy at the building codes office I talked to earlier gave me bad info. I talked to the guy in charge today and he said a pole barn with 14 foot walls is no problem and I can use standard construction techniques. I can use 6x6 poles and would need to go 3 1/2 to 4 feet deep and be spaced 4 to 6 feet apart. I'm planning to put a shingled roof and OSB sheeting on the sides covered with vinyl siding. So, it will actually look like a garage, but be a pole barn type building. I also plan to put vinyl siding on the existing garage, which has T-111 siding and needs paint anyway, so it will all match and I won't have so much painting to do in the future. That's the plan anyway, we'll see what actually happens!

 

[gmason]

As a side thought, have you looked into any of the PVC roofing products? They have some that let varing amout of light through and install very similiar to metal/tin roofs.
I'm currently in the pre planning stages of my 30'x20' two story barn with 15' "wings" on each side.

I've gathered my 8(used and green) telephone poles and have a 20' I-beam I'm going to use to span the front opening. I've got 3-4 large oak trees that are dying from the drought that I'll saw-up into 8"-10" beams to span the rest of the poles. I don't plan on getting permits, but I have a brother in-law that's a engineer.

good luck
gary

 

[cowboydoc]

That just all depends on what you want. It is the same price though if you went and bought the materials. They don't charge you any extra for putting it together for you, just the normal price of the materials. They do save you money as a kit. For example stock you can only buy tin in 2' increments. Pre-ordered they cut your tin to the exact length that you need. If you need an 11'9" piece you get an 11'9" piece. All you have to cut are your sidewall piece for the slope of the roof.

 

[radman]

I put up a Menards pole barn shed 1 year ago. You can get engineered prints which are certified from them for $250. Based on what specs are required, the pole barn plans can then be generated. In many cases, the local building permits codes will specify what wind and snow load requirements are for your area. With that info, the engineers will design your building based on the size, height etc. to meet those permit requirements. The engineered prints will give truss ratings, wind loads, snow loads and lumber requirements, depth of poles in ground, the amount of cement to set the poles on and a lot of other info. $250 is not a bad price to get you in compliance. Ask your local building and safety office what specifically is required for the type of building you want to build. It took about 3 weeks to get the engineered prints. It is best to have the engineered prints in hand and approved and then order the building. Also get multiple print copies.

 

[yooperdave]

Mosey,

The eave of the roof is the outside edge - usually where the roof bears on the outside wall and usually the low point.

The ridge of the roof is usually the high point and usually near the middle of the roof.

A truss panel point is the point where a top or bottom chord of the truss intersects with a web member. The panel point will resolve forces more efficiently and directly. Trusses are not usually designed for concentrated loads between panel points.

The knee brace (or "kicker") is a strut which is providing a degree of fixity between the column and the truss thus providing some rigidity of your column/truss frame.

This kicker will most definately use up more than 2' of your 14' clear height - more like 4' to 6' as previously mentioned.

The column is the pole - the vertical supporting element.

You might get (2) 2x6 wood studs @ 16" o.c. or 6" light gage steel studs to span the 14' with conventional framing methods if you cannot give up the clear space.

Yooper Dave