Do-it-Yourself Barn Building

Planning For Your Barn

• 1

  Determine what purpose your pole barn will serve. The purpose of the barn will help you determine the best size and location for the barn's construction.

• 2

  Speak to your local permitting office. The agency that issues permits has information on structural requirement in your area, and will let you know about code restrictions. Having a series of questions prepared in advance will prevent you from forgetting to get the answer to any crucial issues.

• 3

  Choose the building location. Pole barns can sit on sloping ground, but if you plan to use the building as a garage, or as storage, level ground will work better. Pole barns do not require floors, but if moisture would interfere with your intended use of the barn, you will have better results with a poured concrete floor.

Pole Barn Construction

• 4

  Obtain building plans. As simple as pole construction can be, you still need to have exact measurements and everything must line up properly, so having plans helps guarantee success. You can have plans custom drawn; purchase plans as part of a kit that provides not only instructions but also most of the construction materials; or you can get free pole barn plans off the Internet or from a magazine.

• 5

  Square your building and set the poles. To make sure that the corners of the barn are square, run string diagonally across the building from corner to corner, from all four corners. The two legs of the same string -- measured from where the strings cross to the corner -- should have the same distance. Dig the holes to code-required depth and place the center poles using bracing to hold them perfectly straight up and down. FIll the holes with concrete, allowing it to set up before removing the bracing. Use the string again to mark a perfectly straight line along each side of the barn to use as a guide when digging the holes for the side posts.

• 6

  Install sides of the barn. Nail the siding to the exterior side of the supporting posts. You may choose to run boards horizontally between the supporting posts, or you may choose to use some other material such as aluminum siding or T1-11.

• 7

  Install roof trusses and roofing materials. If you know how to frame rafters they work well, but pre-made trusses offer a simpler and faster way to install a roof that you know is properly made. Nail plywood and your choice of roofing material to the exterior of the trusses and the barn is ready for finish work such as doors, windows, or interior finishing.