steel building info

fubar62172 · Dec 22, 2016

Hi Guys
I'm in the process of looking for a steel building to put up for my garage/shop. I'm looking for a decent building for a lowish price. Gonna have some machine shop equipment in it and a lift for my cars. There are a bunch of companies out there and they seem like used car salesmen so I figured I'd ask for some real life experiences. Shop will be going up in SE Massachusetts so I'd also like to ask about if and how you insulated your buildings
Thanks for any input

cg285 · Dec 22, 2016

i just put up a kirby building on the recommendation of my erector who has erected a previous building for me. i'm in florida - no advice from me on insulation

DDoug · Dec 22, 2016

I'm pretty sure you'll have to follow a code or two.

Even in the in-incorporated areas, the states have been enacting
statewide building coeds, and here in Pa, I have a snow loading
code finally.

Before the code implementation, the building sales guys said I needed
35 psf snow loading, I talked to some friends in the engineering business
local to me, and they recommended 60 psf.

You will probably come up against some pretty hard sell tactics, as
when they must meet the snow loading (and other codes) the price goes way up.

cg285 · Dec 22, 2016

the price changes for wind loads too (hurricanes) but not all that much.

you need to check the jbolt locations before the pour because the concrete guys usually get them wrong

pour more concrete than you think you will need, i've added twice to mine already and it's only been 8 months

btw my interior buildout cost almost as much as the metal building. (w/o electric)50x75 bldg, 15x75 interior buildout

Steve in SoCal · Dec 22, 2016

The two most common forms of insulation are rolls/batts between the skin and purlins or, spray foam. Spray foam is done once the building is skinned, it is a better seal at higher cost. In your area you may want to consider hydronic floor heat as well.

In addition to wind and snow loads you may need engineered drawings. If you are going to do the erection yourself, do you have access to the equipment needed? Size will determine what options you have, smaller building have less structural considerations. What size building are considering?

Steve

DanielG · Dec 22, 2016

Steve in SoCal said:
The two most common forms of insulation are rolls/batts between the skin and purlins or, spray foam. Spray foam is done once the building is skinned, it is a better seal at higher cost. In your area you may want to consider hydronic floor heat as well.

Some locales don't allow the soft insulation under the skin, as it gets compressed at the supports, which is where you need it most. We were allowed to either use rigid insulation or run batts on the inside of the steel. We chose rigid, as you lose a lot of space otherwise. I think we had either 3.5 or 4" polyisocyanurate insulation, which can be taped to seal the building very well. The skin is attached to the purlins with extra-long screws.

If you're thinking of hydronic heat, don't forget to insulate under the slab.

fubar62172 · Dec 22, 2016

Steve in SoCal said:
The two most common forms of insulation are rolls/batts between the skin and purlins or, spray foam. Spray foam is done once the building is skinned, it is a better seal at higher cost. In your area you may want to consider hydronic floor heat as well.

In addition to wind and snow loads you may need engineered drawings. If you are going to do the erection yourself, do you have access to the equipment needed? Size will determine what options you have, smaller building have less structural considerations. What size building are considering?

Steve

Looking into appx 30x30x15
I can erect it to save cash

fubar62172 · Dec 24, 2016

any companies I should stay away from?
Thanks

steve45 · Dec 24, 2016

Weld together buildings are cheaper than bolt together, but may not meet code where you are. When I was building mine, it seemed that everything was extra. Doors, paint, 20-year paint vs 5-year paint, trim, etc.

I bought my garage door elsewhere to save money, make sure to insulate that, too.

Garwood · Dec 24, 2016

fubar62172 said:
Looking into appx 30x30x15
I can erect it to save cash

Double that size to start. That is tiny for working on cars and having machines.

WILLEO6709 · Dec 24, 2016

standard sidewall height around here is 16 feet. allows a 14' door ( semi van trailer). In stick built go even 4' increments for sheet sizes. in steel I'd probably go 50 x 50 minimum.... it fills up fast enough...

gbent · Dec 24, 2016

I used insulation from Thermal Design. 3 1/2" between the metal and girts/purlins. Then the girts/purlins were filled out flush with unfaced fiberglass and a vapor barrier added to the inside.

Thermal Design, Inc. - Steel Building Insulation Systems

Price competitive builds eliminate girts at 4' above the floor. You need the 4' girt to stiffen the liner panel and for hanging stuff.

If you have to build small because of budget but think you will eventually have money for a larger building you need to go with an established manufacturer who is more likely to still be in business when you wish to expand. (not the low price leader) Pay a little extra for a full rafter on the end you will wish to extend.

Tony Quiring · Dec 24, 2016

Google outback buildings and look for a local dealer.

They have several models and can be custom in any size X y and z at 6 inch steps.

They are galvanized steel and easy to build without a crane like the red iron ones.

They are reasonably priced and engineered specifically to your address so no worry about wind or snow loading.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337Z using Tapatalk

Onepass · Dec 27, 2016

fubar62172 said:
any companies I should stay away from?
Thanks

Yes. ANY that tell you they have a building that somebody else bought and put down a deposit and then cancelled!

Scruffy887 · Dec 27, 2016

Where in Westport? You have a lot of neighbors who will not like a cheap metal building next door. Morton is a name
i hear and see a lot.

James H Clark · Dec 27, 2016

fubar62172: 30 x 30 Ain't big enough. 40 years ago, I built a 36 x 50 x 12 and It ain't big enough. As to what companies to work with or avoid, I would recommend Butler Buildings. Two years ago when a tornado ripped about 6 feet of roof back, I called Butler and they still make every thing I needed and were very nice to deal with. Price is not everything. Good luck.

JH

Garwood · Dec 27, 2016

Mine is 36X132X16 and growing. I built 36' wide to accommodate a quality 5 ton bridge crane I bought used otherwise I'd have gone wider to start. Next additions will be extending eves out each side.

Pretty easy to fill up. I need areas to work on a vehicle at a time for product development. I have learned I need about 1000 sq ft for each vehicle to be worked on efficiently. I know folks that restore/customize vehicles for paying customers and they seem to need triple that area. Vehicles take up way more room than people think. Take a hood off, pull and engine, pull the body off the frame, remove axles. You got a lot of stuff there to deal with.

Machines don't need tons of room, but materials, tooling and finished parts do.

fubar62172 · Dec 27, 2016

Scruffy887 said:
Where in Westport? You have a lot of neighbors who will not like a cheap metal building next door. Morton is a name
i hear and see a lot.

off of Sanford rd...not looking for a crappy one but could care less what neighbors think

dave powelson · Dec 27, 2016

Scruffy887 said:
Where in Westport? You have a lot of neighbors who will not like a cheap metal building next door. Morton is a name
i hear and see a lot.

Yes to Morton and yes to Butler.
The most expensive, in time and $, steel buildings are the ones by 'no name', 'surplus inventory', 'big discount', 'must sell',
hawkers. Guaranteed to have all manner of things--missing, not fitting, damaged. In my fab shop, I've had to do a bunch of new builds, reworks of steel connections, etc.----for these gypo steel buildings, which local contractors got sucked into erecting 'It's only a 3 day-deal!'.....more like 40 days.
Drove by one prefab building erection-daily--was 6 months, 3 contractors walked off the job, the owner finished it himself.
The earthwork site prep, grading, footing, floor pour--in particular any steel embed/J-bolt locations/layout is critical to the steel work fitting (much more so than the causal party might think). I have no regard for most concrete contractors who just drop the anchor bolts in to a tolerance of +/- 12"!!.....and wonder why parties are irate about placement after the fact. Gave one concrete contractor, my print, dimensional layout of simple, flat embed plates to set in 2 small footings...and he blew it. Realized, when going over the print with him--that he could not read a print--that's my fault--my rework--my lesson.

garyhlucas · Dec 27, 2016

More important than going bigger than you can afford, is thinking through the location of the building on your site and planning how you would expand it if and when you need it and can afford it. So a manufacturer that will still be around for the expansion would be nice. I have seen so many buildings put up located wrong on the site and then any expansion is a sloppy inefficient mess.

Also nature abhors a vacuum and fills all available space with junk. At my last job I convinced the owner to let me sell off really cheap some NEW equipment he'd had for 17 years and not sold. The convincing argument was explaining how much rent those things cost over 17 years on a square foot basis. So having too much space can turn you into a collector of someday stuff, instead of a profitable business or just a gets it done kind of guy.

steel building info

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