Category Archives: Pole Building How To Guides

Fascia Trim Dimensions

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 11/14/2014
Fascia Trim Dimensions

How to Calculate Fascia Trim Dimensions Justine (aka Hansen Pole Buildings’ wizard of deliveries) and I were discussing this subject today, so it makes for a good time to share! In most cases, pole buildings with sidewall (eave) overhangs have fascia boards. These are most generally 2×6, 2×8, etc., depending upon snow loads as well […]

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Pole Barn Pitch Break: a How-To

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 10/31/2014
Pole Barn Pitch Break: a How-To

How to: Pitch Break from Steeper to Flatter with Steel Roofing Pitch breaks occur at a transition between steeper (towards peak) and flatter roof slopes (towards the eave). Exercising care, this will be a painless and leak free area. Lots of things are going to occur at the junction between the two roofs. In order […]

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How to Increase Pole Barn Clear Height

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 10/23/2014
How to Increase Pole Barn Clear Height

How Do I Make It Taller? One of our clients called in earlier today as his builder is beginning construction of his new pole building kit package. He has invested in a 14’ eave height building, and while his tallest door is 10 feet high, he has now decided it may be important to have […]

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Trimming an Overhead Door

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 04/23/2014
Trimming an Overhead Door

Every once in a while I surprise people and actually pass out some worthwhile real life scenario information. Today it is going to be a “how-to”: trimming an overhead door. Here is the picture – the client hired a contractor to construct their building and ended up completing the building themselves. The new pole building […]

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Dear Guru: How Do I Install a Pocket Door?

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 01/27/2014
Dear Guru: How Do I Install a Pocket Door?

Welcome to Ask the Pole Barn Guru – where you can ask questions about building topics, with answers posted on Mondays.  With many questions to answer, please be patient to watch for yours to come up on a future Monday segment.  If you want a quick answer, please be sure to answer with a “reply-able” […]

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Parallel Chord Scissor Trusses

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 08/15/2012
Parallel Chord Scissor Trusses

As always, I enjoy finding real life solutions to client’s challenges. One of the Building Designers, Rick, of Hansen Pole Buildings posed this to me today: “Another thing came up yesterday, got a guy that wants everything, and is on a cost crunch, nothing new there, but one item that he wants is parallel chord […]

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Lofty Aspirations Part I: Attics and Lofts

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 04/10/2012
Lofty Aspirations Part I: Attics and Lofts

Strive for a higher standing in life? For many people the way to stand taller is to include a loft in their new building. What exactly is a loft? It is a building upper story or floor directly under the roof. In many cases it is roughly synonymous with “attic”, however an attic typically constitutes […]

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Concrete Slab Calculations

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 02/10/2012
Concrete Slab Calculations

One of our Building Designers asked me the other day if a 10% “shrink factor” should be used when advising how much concrete it takes to pour a concrete slab on grade. This particular Building Designer “in a previous life” had been a building contractor.  It had been his practice to always order 10% more […]

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Fiberglass Insulation is Boring

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 02/09/2012
Fiberglass Insulation is Boring

Fiberglass insulation is difficult to write about. In my opinion just about everyone knows about this topic or how the product works. There just isn’t much sizzle to the topic. I would hate to work for an advertising agency or public relations firm having to write about this stuff on a weekly or monthly basis! […]

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Where is the Top of the Concrete Slab?

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 02/08/2012
Where is the Top of the Concrete Slab?

This is not like Where’s Waldo?, or Where in the World is Carmen San Diego? The relationship of the top of a concrete slab inside your new pole building, to the grade surrounding the building is critical not only during construction, but also in the lifetime of performance of your building. Hansen Pole Buildings services […]

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Architectural Review Board: The Dreaded ARB

Posted by The Pole Barn Guru on 12/12/2011
Architectural Review Board: The Dreaded ARB

I read a fair number of blogs relating to the construction industry. Recently one of them was talking about the proposed removal of an 80 year-old pine tree leaning precariously over their house. This resulted in a call to an arborist (on a sidebar, I have near my home a business “The Affordable Arborists”, which […]

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