Home Improvement Project - Pole Barn (New Rolling "M" Workshop)

Home Improvement Project - Pole Barn
(New Rolling "M" Workshop)

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The Rolling "M" Workshop has officially outgrown the two car garage at the Ranch. There simply isn't room for the hot rod, all of our lawn and gardening equipment, and a workshop. To alleviate our space pains, we decided to build a 24' x 24' (10' side walls) pole barn to house our lawn and garden equipment and the workshop. This will leave the garage open for automobiles and mechanic's tools. We purchased a stock barn plan from an area lumber yard and made a few changes to meet our needs. Here's the process:

Requested and gathered estimates for fill, grading, and concrete work.
Requested and gathered estimates for building materials
Discovered termites on the property, setting the barn plans back by a couple of weeks and a couple of thousand dollars.
Reviewed estimates and decided that there must be a better way.
Purchased the book, Practical Pole Building Construction by Leigh Seddon and set out to design my own barn
Decided on a 24'x24' pole barn with 10' walls, a 4/12 pitch singled roof, a 12' sliding door, and a wood floor ($1700 cheaper than concrete).
Made up a materials price/source list
Ordered and had delivered almost all of the materials needed to build the barn
Layed out for the four corner posts, eight intermediate wall posts, and the 6 floor support posts.
Rented a 12"x4' power post hole digger and dug all 18 post holes 4' deep
Poured 12" footings and set, plumbed, braced, and back filled posts.
Measured and marked for floor girts on corner post
Used a water level to replicate floor girt line on remaining posts
Installed 2x8 pt exterior floor girts with 20d ring shank barn nails
Installed 2x8 pt interrior floor girts with barn nails and lag bolts
Installed 2x8 pt floor joists 24" o.c. with joist hangers and truss nails
Installed 3/4" T&G flooring over floor framing with construction adhesive and deck screws
Installed 2x4 horizontal siding girts 24" o.c.
Framed-in rough openings for 36" walk-in door and 12' sliding door
Installed 2x4 wall studs 24" o.c
Installed 4/12 pitch roof trusses 24" o.c.
Built Cupola
Built Knee Brace for front overhang
Installed soffit blocks on gable ends
Installed 1x4.5 (white) facia boards and framed front overhang
Temporarily installed Knee Brace to support front overhang during roofing
Installed 1x2 (red) facia boards
Installed 3/8" OSB roof sheeting over facias with 8d nails.
Installed 15# roofing felt and aluminum drip-edge flashing
Installed 25 yr. asphalt shingles
Installed Ridge vent and cap shingles
Installed Cupola & Weather Vane
Removed Knee Brace
Installed T1-11 Siding
Installed 3/8" plywood soffits and soffit vents
Reinstalled Knee Brace
Took a weekend to dig trench to house, lay conduit, pull electrical and data cables, and bury gas pipe
Installed Electrical Sub-panel and connected temporary circuit for outlet and light
Installed 1x4 corner boards, frieze boards, and trim boards
Installed 36" pre-hung steel walk-in door
Built Sliding doors
Installed Sliding door track and track flashing
Hung and adjusted sliding doors and sliding door hardware
Installed and Painted 1/4" Luan plywood flooring
hung 1/2" plywood on interior walls (32" above floor - the rest will be drywall)
Wired new electrical circuits for 110v lighting and outlets
Installed forced air hanging gas furnace
Spent the winter working inside the barn
- Built new tool cabinet to protect hand tools
- Built new Miter box bench
- Built new lumber storage area
- Built clamp rack
- Installed full extension storage drawers under Miter box bench (My very first dovetails!)
Installed 1/2" PT plywood skirting around base of barn
Stained skirting red to match drip edge facia boards
Back filled around skirting with CA6 white gravel
Stained exterrior walls white
Installed three Crestline single-hung vinyl replacement windows
- Removed wall studs
- Cut holes through exterior siding
- Framed rough openings
- Installed windows
- Installed exterior casings and stools
- Stained casings and stools white
Caulked all windows, doors, and trim with 100% silicon caulk