Recently I wrote a blog post about Low-E windows. So Mrs. Guru, being an inquiring soul, read it, and wanted to know if our windows were gas filled. Why would anyone want to fill the space between panes of window glass to begin with? Well, as air transfers heat quickly, specific gases are used between […]

I’m a member of several discussion groups on LinkedIn. For those of you who are unfamiliar, LinkedIn is a business-oriented social site, used mainly for professional networking. One of the discussion groups is titled simply as “Builder”. A recent posting for discussion was, “What can be done to change the negative image builders get when […]

I’m not talking about roofs that look “cool”. Cool roofs are the roofs which deliver both high solar reflectance and thermal emittance. Solar reflectance is the ability to reflect the visible, infrared and ultraviolet wave lengths of the sun, reducing heat transfer to the building. Thermal emittance is the ability to radiate absorbed, or non-reflected solar energy. […]

Any time my readers get to thinking I have linked every possible subject beyond reason to pole buildings; I try to one up myself. Which brings us to Fibonacci…. Leonardo Fibonacci was an Italian mathematician who lived from about 1170 to 1250. He is best known for a number sequence named the Fibonacci numbers, which […]

If there is one thing I have learned in three decades plus of providing pole building kits, it is this – the hardest people to please, are builders. This pat on the back, from a builder, was so good we felt the need to share the bruises we have from it. Rachel, our most senior […]

In the past three plus decades I’ve literally sold tens, if not hundreds of thousands of sliding doors as well as steel sectional overhead doors. At Hansen Pole Buildings, we get hundreds of new inquiries every day – many of these are for people who are requesting sliding “barn” style doors, for the most part […]

One of our clients is currently constructing his Hansen Pole Buildings kit package, in Colorado. Colorado is one of those unusual geographic locales in the United States where the availability of any pressure treated timbers larger than a 6×6 is pretty much….not at all. It IS possible to get glu-laminated columns, however. In this particular […]

Shear walls are designed to resist lateral forces, such as wind or seismic, and transfer these forces to the component below them, which might be other shear walls, floors, foundation walls,  slabs, footings or embedded columns. Shear walls prevent the roof or upper floors from swaying or moving off their supports as well. Buildings with […]

Several months ago one of our clients posed an interesting question to us. Her building site was to be in a small township in Michigan. When she contacted her Building Department, in regards to building, she was told all buildings required a concrete wall around the perimeter. She was concerned about the cost involved in […]

Southern Pine lumber has been popular since Colonial times for a wide variety of applications. Favorable growing conditions, wise forest management, and efficient manufacturing ensure a continuous supply of high-quality Southern Pine products for future generations. Southern Pine consists of four main species — shortleaf, longleaf, loblolly, and slash — and has been the preferred […]

Even the best of pressure preservative treatment chemicals are not going to entirely eliminate the possibility of termite infestations. No, the termites are probably not going to touch the pressure treated materials, but usually building owners are unwilling to invest in all pressure treated wood for their pole buildings. So, what to do with the […]

If I had a nickel for every request for quote we have received for horse stalls barns with 8’ eave heights, I could not only buy a horse, I could pay to feed it! According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), a horse can be up to eight feet tall when standing on […]

Being a Seattle Mariners fan (yes I know it is a scary concept), my first real introduction to Low e, was then Seattle Mariners (now Texas Rangers) relief pitcher Mark Lowe. OK, not so funny, but it does illustrate how little most people know or understand about low e windows. Traditionally most post frame buildings […]

Pressure-treated lumber has been available for about 60 years. Most original formulas centered on arsenic as the main preservative, to help lumber withstand the extremes of outdoor use. While over time small amounts of chemicals from treatments such as CCA may have leached out of the treated timbers, a 2004 report in Wood and Fibre […]

Nearly three decades ago, we were looking at markets to expand our thriving post frame building kit package business into. Having then shipped buildings from the Willamette Valley of Oregon into Arizona and Colorado, Texas did not feel like it would be much of a leap. In doing research, it appeared the number one competition […]

More than once (especially in California), it has been suggested by lumber yards to use cedar or redwood posts for pole buildings, rather than pressure preservative treated wood of other species. The lumber yard sales people are of the belief the cedar or redwood posts should have adequate natural resistance to decay to last the […]

Yesterday’s blog gave credit (good or bad) to Mr. Sales and Martha, his “paddle”. There is more to the story on paddle blocks. Besides the obvious problem of splitting a paddle block with numerous nails, there are some other issues caused by the use of these blocks. Pole building eave height is the measure from […]

When I was in junior high school, our P.E. teacher, “Chic” Sales had the largest tennis shoe any of us had ever seen on the wall in his office. Now this tennis shoe had a life of its own, and was named Martha. Act out in class and it was your turn to bend over, […]

Guest blog Recently we had a client I will call Zelda, who was “up in arms” about her Dutch Doors “not fitting” after her barn was completed.  She insisted they were not framed in correctly, and she was now in a panic wondering what she was going to do.  Zelda insisted the doors were going […]

Justine is one of the Project Coordinator’s at Hansen Pole Buildings. Earlier this week, she emailed me this: The pole barn we have at our farm (obviously built by my bf’s grandparents) has issues.  When it snows or rain it leaks along the ridge from one end to the other.  Needless to say I have […]

The smell of fresh sawdust on a crisp fall morning, the slap and ring of hammers on boards, the sturdy feel of new framing – what’s not to love? So it’s no surprise when builders set out to frame a pole building, sometimes they use a little more lumber than really needed. Sometimes a lot […]

Tilt-up concrete construction is a popular method of building which rivals steel covered post frame. According to the Tilt-up Concrete Association, at least 10,000 buildings are constructed annually which enclose more than 650 million square feet. Tilt-up concrete construction is not new; it has been in use for well over a century. Nationwide, more than […]

I was talking with one of our clients yesterday. His builder was concerned because constructing the new pole building first, and then pouring the concrete slab seemed backwards to him. Here is the information I shared with the client: While the preference is to have the building shell completed prior to pouring concrete slabs, at […]

Rachel is one of the Building Designers at Hansen Buildings. This afternoon she sends me an Instant Message.  Here is how it went: Rachel: “Want to hear a new one?” Me: “Always” Rachel: “This customer talked to a local builder about 29 gauge steel and the builder said… Me: “Drum roll please” Rachel: …..”Miller makes […]

You’ve shopped for a new pole building from several vendors, negotiated features and pricing and have finally ordered. Everything is clicking right along until…..you decide to change something. In the case of Hansen Buildings, we strive for quick deliveries, so we begin processing your order as soon as our client’s press the submit button on […]