pole barns

[spin cycle]

how do you fix poles in the ground? bury or concrete?.....how do you stop rot? or how long do they last?

 

[michael N123]

Most I’ve dealt with are just buried in gravel/hardcore and they’ll last longer than the tin sheeting

 

[Bald n Grumpy]

Depending on your ground conditions and height of the pole ,have heard about them being put in with a post bumper on a telehandler
Haven't tried it or seen it done myself though

 

[puppet]

Dig a 3 foot hole, put a flat stone or slate at the base and use some props and straps while back filling. Concrete tends to hold water against the wood but properly treated will still last a long time

 

[Tomr10]

Just into dirt been there nearly 25 years

 

[spin cycle]

i'm lovin these answers

 

[betweenthelines]

Dad built a pole barn in the early 60's-dug holes and "planted the uprights (untreated tree trunks) as you would a gatepost

One evening we noticed the whole barn was leaning towards the road (and the power lines) Three strong ropes and three tractors to pull the whole thing upright.

The tractors stayed in place for a couple of days while we redug and put sleepers in the brace the original posts. That was the mid 70's, so your posts should last about 15 years.

 

[Lowland1]

Dad built a pole barn in the early 60's-dug holes and "planted the uprights (untreated tree trunks) as you would a gatepost

One evening we noticed the whole barn was leaning towards the road (and the power lines) Three strong ropes and three tractors to pull the whole thing upright.

The tractors stayed in place for a couple of days while we redug and put sleepers in the brace the original posts. That was the mid 70's, so your posts should last about 15 years.

Dad built one on the home farm in 1970 still standing today in use as a grain store with drive on floor. On our farm we have a similar one that has housed pigs and machinery since 1976 . Both have telegraph poles concreted in to a depth of at least 3 foot. Now I am a bit worried so I better check them.

 

[primmiemoo]

Old telegraph poles last longer. Dad used some, and clad most of it with salvaged corrugated sheets. Lasted something like 40 years. A series of storms including snow did for it in the end.

 

[Nearly]

Concrete around the bases, but not all the way under the posts.
Concrete is to hold them down, not hold them up.

 

[ISCO]

We never concreted just dug hole 3ft deep
Good telegraph poles last for years.

 

[jamesy]

Hydro poles are put in with a cross beam so far down, this would save them pulling up in high winds if wind gets under roof.

 

[Bury the Trash]

Western Power dont concrete any in, here they've used a jcb to dig out the hole, never seen one blow over yet.
Nor do bt . They use a long hydraulic auger.
Just dig deep 4ft 》 they are long enough.



P.s dont forget to put the big end in first

 

[Dry Rot]

The old Scottish Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food for Scotland (I think!) produced a series of booklets for crofters and there was one on pole barns written in partnership with The Timber Research and Development Association back in the 1950s(?).

I may not have the title right but there will be a copy somewhere as by law a copy of each publication has to be lodged in a national library. This booklet was absolutely brilliant as it listed all the correct timber sizes, roof pitches, and construction details for small self build barns using square edge timber or round. I can't understand why it doesn't seem to have been reprinted -- or maybe it has? Maybe someone can have a word with the library service as librarians are trained to research this stuff.

I've got photos somewhere (but God knows where!) of some barns built to these instructions. There were various ways of securing the posts TO KEEP THE BARN DOWN, not up as most think! One was to dig a big hole, drop in a 45 gallon drum, put in your post (suitably braced to hold it up), then pour in the concrete. A better way was to cast a base with two short lengths of RSJ sticking up and bolted through the uprights, so keeping the posts clear of concrete and the ground.

Edited to say I built a field shelter by digging the holes for the posts with tools used by the GPO for putting in telegraph poles. These tools are brilliant because you can literally dig a 5 foot hole straight down with vertical sides, then ram hard core down the sides of the pole. You get a much firmer grounding this way rather than disturbing the soil using a digger as it is very difficult to get the ground firm enough again. But you'll either need a loader or an A frame to drop the post in as it can only go straight down!

 

[spin cycle]

P.s dont forget to put the big end in first

you know me to well

 

[Bald n Grumpy]

BT put new poles down the road by us a few years ago . Kept an eye on them to make sure they didn't dig into our water pipe, they had a nice selection of post rammers on their truck never been used they just shovelled in loose and left it at that.
Poles leaning always

 

[primmiemoo]

Could always organise a specialist caber tossing contest. Dig the holes first, and hoopla!

 

[Kidds]

Western Power dont concrete any in, here they've used a jcb to dig out the hole, never seen one blow over yet.
Nor do bt . They use a long hydraulic auger.
Just dig deep 4ft 》 they are long enough.



P.s dont forget to put the big end in first

They don't usually fasten sheets of tin to them to catch the wind though.
Mine are dug in 3'. They have been there 2 years or more so far without blowing over. They haven't got any tin fastened to them either.
I still park my trailer in the pole barn even though it is just 6 poles sticking up.

 

[egbert]

I don't recommend concreting wooden posts in..it's asking for rot problems
Lately, I've been packing them with crushed concrete - or loose stone, with little or no dirt thrown back in.
the rationale is they'll drain better

 

[carbonfibre farmer]

Were you admiring all the pole barns I've put up @spin cycle when you were here yesterday?