Wood or Metal Construction?

[thecj3man]

I have finally cleared the biggest hurdle of building a garage, I have saved most of the money. I am having a hard time deciding on what type of construction to move forward with. 95% of the home garages in my area of East Tennessee are post steel construction. I am having a hard time coming to terms with placing wooden poles in the ground. I have seen some barns that stand for many years, and some that need poles replaced in 20 years, that is what is hampering my decision to go with a post steel building.

I hope to have a building built around 30’x50’ or 40’x60’ depending on the rest of the quotes I get back.

One company around here builds all metal buildings, essentially using galvanized steel 2”x4” tubing for constructing the walls and the trusses. They place the foundation and slab first and then build up. They then insulate and sheet the building much like a post steel building.

My other option is to have the foundation and slab placed, and then to do a stick framed build.

Has anybody had an all metal building or wood built garage and later regretted it. I thought the hard part would be getting most of the money, but it turns out deciding on construction methods is the hard part for me.

Thanks,
WAP

 

[thecj3man]

Here is the style of metal construction that I have been considering.


http://www.alstelassociates.com/Watauga_Gallery.html

 

[ctgoodman]

I'm interested in what you hear here. I'm shooting in for that same size range. I'm on the fence about burying posts in the ground as well. We have a lot of termite activity here in central NC. Also my build site has really dense clay that does not drain well. I know there are post frame structures out there that have been built in the 60's that are still standing. I'm building on family land and my base requirement is I want to build a structure that my children will not have to worry about structural problems in their lifetime. So I expect whatever I build to be able to stand for at least 60 years. So for me I've really about ruled out anything where I have wood to ground contact.

 

[seth13_1984]

I am currently in the process of having a 30x40 steel 3 bay garage with wood posts built. Initially was considering stick built but decided with steel. I will let you know the results, supposed to pour floor tomorrow!

 

[ctgoodman]

I am currently in the process of having a 30x40 steel 3 bay garage with wood posts built. Initially was considering stick built but decided with steel. I will let you know the results, supposed to pour floor tomorrow!

You should do a build thread on that in the garage gallery.

 

[seth13_1984]

Will do! New user, longtime lurker.

 

[Cyberbear]

Poles, posts or columns directly into the soil has never appealed to me for all the reasons you mention, especially if moisture and termites are a consideration. Metal frame and skin on a solid slab with adequate footings seems like a very good option for the above reasons.
Just be sure to deal with any condensation that may form on the inside during certain times of the year, something we don't worry much about on the southern west coast as much.
For my 30 x 80 shop I went old school wood frame and stucco, as we don't have termites due to the very dry climate.

 

[600SL]

I went with steel here in Central NC. I'm very happy with it. It is very comfortable.

There are two types of steel construction. The one with the frames is what I got with a 3/12 pitch roof you have room in the ceiling to put a lift in with only 10' sides. With trussed steel roof or trussed wood, I would have had to go with 12' side walls. You can check the link below to see it.

 

[zcar751]

I built a steal building 4 years ago. I am happy with the building overall, but you need to insulate it when you build. I recommend spray foam instead of the fiberglass batting because the plastic will eventually tear. Also the spay foam seals the structure and adds stability.

 

[thecj3man]

I went with steel here in Central NC. I'm very happy with it. It is very comfortable.

There are two types of steel construction. The one with the frames is what I got with a 3/12 pitch roof you have room in the ceiling to put a lift in with only 10' sides. With trussed steel roof or trussed wood, I would have had to go with 12' side walls. You can check the link below to see it.

I like that style of building very much. I have been trying to find a contractor in East TN. to erect one, but most of the companies around here only want to do industrial steel erection. I would like to have 14' sidewalls so I can have door big enough to get a large tractor in.

I built a steal building 4 years ago.

Did you build it yourself or have a contractor do it?

 

[NUTTSGT]

If I were to build a new construction shop, I would stick build it. I'd stay away from the steel because I don't have the equipment to do it nor do I like the interior look of it.

I'd also shy away from the pole bldg with poles in the ground. Knowing my luck, I'd have an issue and have to ripping out my finished interior to replace the poles.

Getting the most from your money includes doing as much as you can with sweat equitity.

 

[CraigStu]

Although my brother and I owned a steel shop 40 yrs ago that worked well, I don't really like them. One big issue for me is it seems that you end up building a wood building inside the steel building. That depends on what you want for inside walls of course. Since I want standard drywall, I am going to go w/ stick built. I like to run 2-3 layers of block above the floor level and then standard 8 ft walls on top of that. It's an easy, inexpensive way to get 10-11 foot ceiling. And the only wood near the ground is door trim which can be done w/ Azek to avoid even that problem.

 

[G McKay]

If you can afford it, why not go with the "all steel" building?

 

[DEEDDUDE]

The first time I saw an all metal building I wanted one, so I may be a bit bias. I’ve been wanting a building for a very long time so I had plenty of time to think about it. I talked to many builders and building owners in the past and got their advice, like what you’re doing here.

I went with all metal. When I started the process I got quotes from many different builders. Some wanted to just erect the building other wanted the whole job. I told them what I wanted (all metal) and they got back with me on the bids. One builder wanted to save me some money on my build and offered to do a wood frame and metal siding. He said he could save me a couple grand. I’m all for saving money and $2000 is hard for me to come by, but when you are looking at spending 10’s of thousands of dollars the 2 grand didn’t seem like a lot more to spend.

As stated in above post I didn’t feel comfortable putting wood pole in the ground. I had to build a building that could withstand 119 mph winds, hopefully it doesn’t get tested, but with that said my home withstood 130+mph winds less than a month after being complete. The wood frame would probably be more than adequate for my needs, but I do like the red iron look. I would look into the red iron buildings myself to see how much of a difference in price they could be. I’m sure they’re a lot stronger, but then again it’s just holding up sheet metal.
Good Luck with your build.