I'm in the planning stages of a 30 X 40 pole barn for storing my boat. I was wondering how many of you have an at-home boat storage facility. Trying to decide whether to build a metal structure or spend the extra money and put vinyl siding/shingle roof on it. I have heard that the metal roofs sometimes drip condensation inside, and that they are prone to leaking. Any input?

Believe or not the is not much difference in osb and siding VS. Steel.

Pro's are it looks nicer with your home and the osb plywood stiffens your building up so it is stronger. Shingled roof cost a little more than steel but you will have to weigh that one out on what you want.

The reason the older steel buildings leaked is with the wind over time flexing your building would cause the steel to oblong the holes around your nails and wala you have a leak.

The new buildings have rubber washers on your nails. You also have a choice of buying screws which are better in the long run. They also have the rubber washers, which equals no leaks.

If you go with a steel roof, your steel is obviously corrigated. Make sure on the roof that you put your screws on the high ridges not the valleys. Sounds backwards and people are concerned about caving the steel in. You need to use a little common sense and stop when the screw is home. Anyways the andvantage to this is when it rains the water is going to run in the valleys so you have much greater odds of no leaks with your screws up on the ridges.

Hope this helps

Cougarman

Cougarman,

Thanks for the quick reply! I was all set to build a pole barn with OSB/siding and shingle roof. Was planning to farm out setting posts, installing trusses, etc., and then installing the sheathing and siding myself. Then I ran across an ad in a local advertisers' paper for an outfit about 70 miles away that will build a 30X40 metal pole building with 10' sidewalls, 10X7 overhead door, and a concrete floor for $9500, which includes delivery &, assembly. Sounds pretty cheap, but I'm still not sure that I want a metal building. I talked to a guy who has a metal building nearby, and he says the condensation gets so heavy at times that it looks like it is raining inside! Don't want that on my boat! I guess I could insulate it to cut down on the condensation problem.

I have a garage that is metal studs, 10' ceiling, and a trussed roof. sheathed in OSB, rapped in tyvek & sided. Inside is insulated with blown in cellulose 6" deep. Then sheet plastic & 7/16 OSB. 12" insulation (same type) in the ceiling/attic. roof ventilator with fan. Insulated double steel garage door. I purchased a heating/ac unit like is used on telephone huts and cell sites & equaled 3 tons of a/c & 35,000 btu of heat for $900.00. In the winter if it is 0 degrees outside with no heat on the garage will be about 48-50 degrees. Nothing has ever frozen, even at -15 degrees. It costs about $40-50 a moth to heat or cool when I use it. A friends well insulated steel building costs him in excess of $300/mo for propane alone & it does freeze stuff when the heat is not on. Now, what was your question?????
Oh yeh, which is best..... 1500 s.f. and my wife & I built it ourselves......heck of a woman!!

The condensation comes from the insulation or lack there of.

Jon

How close is it to your house? That would determine for me if I needed to match the house or not. Resale should also be considered when building any out buildings. BTW my brother has a 40x80 pole barn, fully insulated w/interior metal perforated siding. He has no problems with condensation and stays above freezing in most conditions.

My climate ranges 15 F to 100 F on average, with high humidity.
I have some condensation on surfaces but have not seen it "rain".
4" of insulation 60' x 40' x 16'. Steel rollup 12'x14' door 12'x16' door double walk thru steel single walk thru, windows, plumbed for toilet, & shower. 4" pad w/ reinforced concrete (I wired it my self) @ 35K.

I am thinking about one of these steel buildings for the Comanche. Which Manufacturers make the better quality buildings?
Thanks
Ed

I have a Morton pole building 96 x 48 concrete floor and no insulation. I store an RV, plow truck, 2 boats and 4 trailers without any problems. The only thing that I was told before I built was build it bigger than you want, and I wish I would have now.