What Is A Pole Shed?
A pole shed is one of the most common types of out buildings due to its simplicity and reduced cost. Pole sheds are used for simple outdoor storage and rarely have a completed floor, usually just using the ground for the flooring. They are commonly used for covering farm equipment or as an extra garage where covered but economical storage is desired. A pole shed is commonly left open on one or even both ends, serving more as coverage than complete enclosure.
The construction of a pole shed is quite simple. The posts supporting the shed are set in concrete and serve to support the trusses of the roof structure. Cladding, usually in the form of wood but sometimes steel, is used to connect the posts to each other and provide for horizontal bracing and structural support. There are lots of possibilities for roofing types but the most popular is the simple gable roof. In barn construction you will frequently see the gambrel roof style as well which looks like a conventional gable roof that has an additional horizontal extension on each side.
A pole shed is very popular because of its flexibility for the internal space. Many times a coverage work area is needed, but there is not a large budget. As time goes on, more can be invested to complete the flooring or configure the internal floor space as required – whether for storage of equipment, animals, supplies or the creation of a shop – the choices are endless. With the large open floor plan and the lack of a floor requirement or even a foundation, these structures can be constructed quickly and economically – that’s what makes pole sheds so popular especially when compared to metal barns or pole barn construction.
One of the benefits of a pole shed is that there are lots of pole shed plans available online. You can get the full plan including a cut list to provide your local timber supplier. A cut list will list all of the required pieces of timber and beams and will specify their exact dimensions and lengths. With this cut list you can go to the local building supplier and they will cut all of the materials to your exact specifications. This will save you a lot of time in the construction of the pole shed and may also reduce costs because you won’t have a bunch of extra material left over, or, worse yet, wasted material due to erroneous cuts or measurements. You will find that many lumber yards will give you discounts on complete packages like this as well because you are placing one large order at once and spending a considerable amount with them in one purchase. Thus, you will have more negotiating power when purchasing all of the materials at once from one supplier. You do need to research this, however, because sometimes the supplier will discount some materials and raise the costs on others to compensate – so be forewarned and do some comparison shopping.
