Steel building questions

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Hi guys - Not directly wood related but there are a lot of experienced members on here so I figured I'd ask:
I bought a never-assembled-still strapped on the pallets steel building off of CL last night. It is this brand/style except there are no end walls:
http://usbuildingsdirect.com/a-model-steel-buildings.htm

It is a 24' wide by 35' long by 13' high building. I got it for $2,500. I hope to store my farm implements in it. It will be located in an area on the farm where I can't get a cement truck to so I plan on sinking tubes level with the gravel pad. It's not a very tall building and it would be nice to drive the tractor in with a wagon full of hay at times when it starts to rain right after baling so I was thinking; could I build a 4' high stud wall to lift the whole building up? Of course I'd have to tie in end walls right away to stabilize it, but can this be done? ???

[florida]

Years ago a local garage had its roof removed and a  steel building like that put on top of the walls and they had t get a permit to do the work so I'd say it can be done.

[brendonv]

My friend has one i considered buying at one point and doing as you say.

On another note, if you don't end up using it lemme know!

[Holmes]

  If it could be done with concrete it would require a 4' deep trench, 2' wide footing, 7' tall 8" thick foundation wall.  If you can build a wooden foundation as described then it could be done.  If I put the building on top of a 4' wall I would be worried that joint could blow out by snow load or wind.  The building also needs to be held down. They can make excellent kites. :

[snowstorm]

it only would take 15.5yds of concrete for a 6" slab. i did the ground work on a horse barn a couple yrs ago. the owner was a dr. he found the design in a book liked it so it had to be . he didnt want a concrete floor. so we set 6x6 wood in the ground down 6' these were not only for the Connors but for every stall. in this case concrete would have been much less $$. 2 yrs later he sold the place and moved

[DeerMeadowFarm]

Yah, I'd like concrete, but there is no way I can get a truck up there. My farm is on a south-facing slope and the fields have a 100+ years of cow manure on them; a truck would either tip or sink out of sight. :(

[beenthere]

So that cow manure must be getting pretty thick by now..  ;D

[sandhills]

I'd do it in a heartbeat, but like you said tie the end walls in right away.  I helped a neighbor a few years ago that had an old hog finishing shed, I think it was something like 80'x120' with an 8' ceiling? but we raised it 16' and made it into a machine shed, had it raised, studded, and wrapped in one day.  Only took half the community and 12 telehandlers to do it!  :D  Worked out good though so anything's possible, I'd think you'd be fine with your plan. 

[Dave Shepard]

The best way to do it if you can't get in there to pour concrete would be to build what is called pony wall from concrete blocks. The blocks are something like 2'x2'x6' and have a groove on the bottom and a ridge on the top. Stack them two tall and they are very stable. They are also great for buildings where you are going to scoop something out of them like sand.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

That works out to over 3,000 lbs. each if I did it right. My tractor can only lift 2,400. :(

[red oaks lumber]

not to sound like a smart mouth but, if you are concerned that a cement truck won't make it up for various reasons,what makes you think you'll get a full wagon of hay up there? seems to me you need to make a road to your site for constuction as well as future uses.
i have a saying, if you start cutting corners you'll soon have a round shape which will forever keep you going in circles. spend the time and do it right once. just how i see things.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

You don't sound like a smart mouth but I think you're comparing apples to oranges. I put about 150 bales of hay on a wagon. At 50 pounds each that's 7,500. Tractor weighs around 5,000; wagon say 2,000 just to have a round number. You're looking at 14,500 total and that's on a high estimate. According to Google, a cement truck weighs 26,000 pounds empty; almost twice as much!

[Dave Shepard]

You can get concrete trucks in some weird places. Especially if you have a D-8. :D

[snowstorm]

The best way to do it if you can't get in there to pour concrete would be to build what is called pony wall from concrete blocks. The blocks are something like 2'x2'x6' and have a groove on the bottom and a ridge on the top. Stack them two tall and they are very stable. They are also great for buildings where you are going to scoop something out of them like sand.

i have built retaining walls with them. used to be able to buy them for $35 each. even saw a garage built from them. painted yellow of all things

[red oaks lumber]

you completly missed my point

[Holmes]

I see on WorcesterCL ,retaining wall blocks  6'x30"x18". If they were installed level you could bolt the frame to it and gain 30".  That would be better than a 2x4 knee walls.

[justallan1]

If I were to set that shed on a wall of any kind I think I'd bury the outside of your sub wall as much as possible. I believe most of those sheds get their load strength from tying the sides together via your anchoring system.
Just my .02

Allan

[DeerMeadowFarm]

you completly missed my point

I guess I did. Can you explain it to me better? I get the idea of a road. I've spent over $50K on my 1/3 mile road to my house over the years that I drive on at least twice a day every day, but I hardly see the need to build a road to a building where anything I would drive out there can traverse the field "roads" that exist now.

[Dave Shepard]

Don't underestimate a cement truck, only the driver. :D

[DeerMeadowFarm]

I see on WorcesterCL ,retaining wall blocks  6'x30"x18". If they were installed level you could bolt the frame to it and gain 30".  That would be better than a 2x4 knee walls.

That looks like a good idea, but I'd need a footing for those as well no?

[Banjo picker]

  The building also needs to be held down. They can make excellent kites. :

I'm with Holmes.  The concrete makes for more than a nice floor, its an anchor.  You could get 16 or so yards back there in a back hoe bucket or rent a motorized Georgia buggy.  Would be slow, but could be done.  Banjo

[DeerMeadowFarm]

  The building also needs to be held down. They can make excellent kites. :

I'm with Holmes.  The concrete makes for more than a nice floor, its an anchor.  You could get 16 or so yards back there in a back hoe bucket or rent a motorized Georgia buggy.  Would be slow, but could be done.  Banjo

I had to google "georgia buggy"; pretty neat. I guess I could bucket it over to the site with my tractor if I was convinced I needed to have a cement floor.
As far as tieing it down, the kit has a c-channel that is fastened to the footing (or knee wall in my case?) with bolts. The channel is mounted with the "c" up. The hoops are wide corregations and bolt to the inner part of the upright "C". When all the hoops are up you are supposed to "grout" the whole thing by filling the upright "c" with cement.

[Holmes]

The footing would depend on how long you want the building to stand straight.   You could dig down a few feet and fill with crushed stone then put the retaining blocks on that, but it will not guaranty the blocks won't get moved by frost.

[Banjo picker]

You may not need a concrete floor, but that 15 yards of concrete weighs 60750 lbs... that's a pretty good anchor for a kite.  But Its your building, do what ever you want.  Banjo

[Al_Smith]

FWIW years ago I've seen the old galvanized steel quonset type barns raised up with 3-4 feet concrete block walls .If they didn't the cow manure would rust out the steel .

Of course that means digging a footer and laying  up block .Back to the old concrete truck thing again .