Can We Make This Happen?

Hansen Pole Buildings’ Designer Rick has been working with a builder who sent this photo and asked, “Can you make this happen?”

The answer is ….. Yes!

My pole building mantra has always been:

The only limitations are imagination, budget and available space.

Once we get past these – everything is good!

Now the photo is not the typical post frame building, where squeezing every bit out of each dollar invested is high on the list. A project such as this with an open beam ceiling could easily result in a budget many times per square foot more than a typical pole building.

Let’s start with the columns. My preference would (and always) is to use pressure preservative treated columns embedded in the ground. This could still be done, however the columns would probably need to be wrapped with something like 1x STK (Select Tight Know) S1S2E (Surface one side, two edges) Cedar to give the ‘bright wood’ look.

Another alternative would be to use untreated timber columns and mount them onto brackets wet-set into concrete piers (https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2012/01/concrete-brackets/).

Glu-laminated columns could also be used.

Besides glu-laminated post frame building columns, our good friends at Timber Technologies, LLC also fabricate some really awesome looking (and performing) trusses out of glu-laminated timers and heavy black steel plates (https://www.timber-technologies.com/titan_trusses.phtml).

Rather than traditional 2×6 (or larger depending upon spans and loads) roof purlins, glu-lams could be used and again attached to the trusses with steel brackets, painted black.

Across the purlins, 2×6 Select Decking for the awesome open beam ceiling:

(https://www.hansenpolebuildings.com/blog/2015/02/tongue-and-groove-lumber/) would give the look desired as well as meeting the strength requirements.

Thirty pound asphalt impregnated paper (aka building felt) would be placed over the decking and the roof steel could then be installed.

Makes it all sound far simpler than maybe imagined. This open beam ceiling…could be yours!