Lester Rep Tomorrow: I'm Scared

[Bull]

I have wanted a garage since I moved in to my house back in '99.

Finally, I am having the local Lester pole building rep meet me tomorrow at 3pm. I'm scared. I know the price of steel has gone up, and I know concrete is expensive, and I know that for me, the bigger the garage, the better. I hope I don't have my dreams shattered when I find out that I have 5-car garage tastes on a lean-to budget.

Wish me luck.

 

[Bib Overalls]

Good luck! Let us know how it works out for you.

 

[AdamMopar]

Lester makes some good buildings. We've got three out on the farm, one 60X40 foot shop, one 50X100 foot machine shed and one 20X60 storage building. We've been happy with them.

Adam

 

[Bull]

Hoo boy.

Lester rep is a great guy...was here from 3pm to 6:40 pm.

A 30 deep by 48 foot long by 12 foot high garage, with two garage doors and one human door, 6" concrete floor, fully lined and insulated but with no windows, will run a bit over $70k. This does not include site prep or any electrical work.

 

[rodnok1]

ow...does that come with a jar of vaseline? I figure my 40x60x12 pole barn will be 22-25k with office/plumbing/electrical/concrete/windows everything short of stone for driveway.

 

[wilbilt]

$70K???!!??

 

[Bull]

$70K???!!??

Yup.

What are you all paying for similar buildings?

 

[toxicz28]

I know someone that paid less for a 45' x 60' x 16' (eaves height) steel building complete.

 

[boiler7904]

$70k for a 30 x 48 pole barn!?! That's almost $49 a square foot. I can see why you were scared going into the meeting.

Time for some competitive bids.

Do you really need a 6" floor throughout the space? Could probably save at least a thousand there alone by going to 5".

Since they exclude site work and electrical, have you had those items priced yet? Pole barns usually go up in less than a week. Will they cooperate with an electrician since they are installing liner steel?

You might want to see if you have a rep for Morton Buildings.

 

[Bull]

The rep made it very clear that he could accommodate whatever I needed done. I can use their electricians, or use my own. As I mentioned, the price for the larger structure includes insulated walls that are then "lined" i.e. the inside walls are the same 29 gauge steel as the outside walls, so it's like an insulation sandwich.

I gave him the figure of 6" concrete because I'd like to install a 2 post service lift at some point.

The rep gave me a time of two weeks from materials drop off to them driving away from a finsihed project.

I do have a Morton dealer in the area, but I have heard that Morton buildings are even more expensive than Lester?

For those of you who know people who have built larger structures for less money, I am perplexed. How is that possible? Were they bare-bones, or with all the bells and whistles, finished and insulated?

 

[boiler7904]

I gave him the figure of 6" concrete because I'd like to install a 2 post service lift at some point.

Unless you're going to be unsure of the lift's final placement, you only need to thicken a small pad about 2' or 3' square x 8 to 12" deep under each post. Some lifts say they can be used on a regular 4" thick slab but I wouldn't risk it. Put a piece of rebar into the gravel base at the center of each pad and have the top end set to the final elevation. The vertical rebar lets you locate the lift location without any problems or guessing.

I do have a Morton dealer in the area, but I have heard that Morton buildings are even more expensive than Lester?

You'll never know until you start a conversation with them. I do know that this is the right time to be talking to the various manufacturers since they run spring promotions. I'd also talk to FBI if they build in your area - don't know if they work in MA or not.

 

[carguy123]

I just paid $18k for a 34' x 50' steel building with a bedroom, bath and 16' x 34' loft. Add $1,000 for the plumbing and $750 for the electrical plus $400 for the sheetrock (which I am hanging myself) and you still aren't anywhere in the league of that price.

This included lot prep and foundation.

You need a lot more than vaseline with that bid. Did he offer you the use of his sister?

 

[Bull]

Question: is it possible that labor is drastically more expensive in the Northeast than in the south? I mean, how else can we explain that in Texas you get a bigger building with a second story loft and a ton of other extra stuff for way, way less money? This is nuts.

 

[carguy123]

More than possible, we don't have unions here!!

But there has to be more to it than just that, there's too much of a differential.

I'd shop around some more and look at a weld up instead of a bolt up.

 

[wrigh003]

Holy cow. My wife's stepdad just had a detached steel garage/ pole barn put up that I've been paying pretty close attention to since I am thinking about a similar structure on my place. Not sure on the exact measurements, but it's probably 24 or 30 square, with a 10' deep lean-to porch/ parking space (with concrete slab under) all the way down one side. It's not the biggest garage ever seen, but it's plenty big for a boat, project car, work trailer (parking space), and all his tools, plus space to move around.

Sitework/grading, slab, building (installed/erected), two garage doors, one man door and one window and he's in it for ~$20k.

I can see (with the price of steel) how you could have a substantially greater cost with having metal on the inside, then insulation costs add up, and electricians don't work cheap, but even with all that, $70k sounds outrageous. Get some more bids!

 

[1320stang]

............ (thunk).......................... huh?..... (thunk)............................. ow, my head....(thunk)..................................................................................................... uh!!, after fainting from the $70k price three times, I concur, you need more bids or move to a different part of the country.....

 

[rodnok1]

The rep made it very clear that he could accommodate whatever I needed done. I can use their electricians, or use my own. As I mentioned, the price for the larger structure includes insulated walls that are then "lined" i.e. the inside walls are the same 29 gauge steel as the outside walls, so it's like an insulation sandwich.

I gave him the figure of 6" concrete because I'd like to install a 2 post service lift at some point.

The rep gave me a time of two weeks from materials drop off to them driving away from a finsihed project.

I do have a Morton dealer in the area, but I have heard that Morton buildings are even more expensive than Lester?

For those of you who know people who have built larger structures for less money, I am perplexed. How is that possible? Were they bare-bones, or with all the bells and whistles, finished and insulated?

I figured 4000 for 4" concrete, add 1500 more for 6". I would only put 6" in bay where lift may go if at all.
What type of options did you go for?? I'm putting 7 windows, two man doors, two 10' sliders in. windows and doors will be around 1K
If I insulated the entire building and put steel inside I figure it would cost max of 7500.
I figured a 200 amp service and internal wiring(lights not included).
I just can't inmagine what options you could have added to have such a high bid. Labor is usually same as parts, so 35k in parts...Scary to think then you have grading/electrical on top.

 

[chaingang]

Before I decided to stick build my shop I got a price from Morton. I was very impressed with their building. I picked a very well finished building 30x40x12 with scissor trusses 2)9x10 roll ups, one man door and two windows. This came to 28K, did not include site prep or the concrete. Quote for concrete was $6,500 and I have since had the grading done for $800. No electrical or insulation was included either. I did get the exterior finished to a high detail.
In the long run I decided to build the shop myself because I could and there is a huge amount of money to be saved. Plus I got a two story and will be in mine complete for about what they quoted, including the lift.

 

[wilbilt]

I am planning a 30x40x12 or so pole building I will build myself. So far, it's looking like it will be in the neighborhood of $15-$18K. The concrete is admittedly a large variable.

Initially, it will not be as nice as a turn-key unit, but I can live with that.

 

[bens]

Here's the specs from a building Morton put up for me last year:
$55,000
42'x75'
10' and 15' eaves
10' Lean-to on one side
10'x8' overhead door
14'x14' sliding door
2 people doors
2 windows

That does not include insulation, concrete or electric.
I spent $10,000 on 4" concrete and ~$1200 on electrical. And a fortune on fill and gravel for the site and driveway.

Good luck with your build.