Build a Pole Barn for Animal Shelter: I Built A Pole Barn For Under $3,000
(Page 3 of 6)
February/March 1995
By Ellen Franklin
The Poles
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I used telephone poles because they were cheaper than poles from the lumberyard and I could never recall seeing one rot. I figured they would be better and I was half-right. The other half didn't consider that telephone poles are not all the same size and it takes a little extra work to line them up. In this case, the extra work was well worth the dollar savings. However, I also had to move these myself, cut them to length and place them in the holes—all by hand. This process took more than a week. Another option, of course, would have been to buy the poles at a lumberyard. For each individual, it becomes a question of time versus money. Which is more valuable to you? If you decide to cut the poles yourself, it is best to use a handsaw. The chain in a chain saw will quickly be destroyed by the gummy substance these poles are treated with. Once in the hole, short poles like my 10-footers can be horsed around by rotating them in the hole bottom and banging them into place with a sledge and long pry bar. Place poles so their outer edges are all in a line, and let the inner line fall where it may.
These were 1992 prices, mind you, so I imagine that you'd have to add 10% or so for inflation, plus a few hundred more for miscellany. Even then, the whole project could still be completed for well under $3000.
Next, you need to brace each pole into an upright position. Secure a stake in the ground about 6' away from each pole to nail your brace to. Using a carpenters level, stand each pole up straight and nail two braces to each pole to hold it in place as in the diagram below.
Now stand at one end of your wall and sight down the length of the wall. The top edge and the bottom edge of your poles must be in a straight line at the outside edges. So now, you pitch the carpenters level over your shoulder and adjust any pole that does not line up by sight. The middle areas of your poles may not be straight because telephone poles are not exactly even, but as long as the tops and bottoms are in line, you will come out perfectly well in the end.
If you are absolutely certain that your poles are in the right position, pour one sack of ready-mix concrete into each hole. Remember, you can't change a thing once that cement is poured so be sure you are right. Let it set for at least two days. Then, fill the hole with dirt, adding in thin layers, tamping each well with a 2 x 4.
The Stringers
Now you want to nail long boards, or stringers, along the top edge of the poles to serve as the "plate," which supports edges of the roof trusses. I used 2" x 6" boards that came in 16' lengths. I had originally planned to use just one of these along the outside of the poles. But since the trusses I used were extra heavy, I decided that one would not be enough, so I put a second on the inside, shimming it out with thin wood slats or notching posts to set the boards in a bit to straighten out the waves in the "cattywumpus line." I leveled stringers with the carpenters' level and secured them with plenty of nails. For good measure, I further secured them, where the ends of two stringer boards met at a post, with galvanized metal truss plates nailed across the joint.
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