Thick plastic on poles for pole barn

[HalbertBros.Racing]

Is puting thick plastic on the 6x6 treated poles that are going in the ground pretty much the same as using the Post Protectors ive seen advertised on the internet? I think it is just a plastic sleeve that goes over the post before putting concrete around it.

 

[kbs2244]

Something that most people do not think about is that the lift resitance of a pole style building is due to the friction between the pole and the dirt in the hole.
And lift resistance can be very inportant in some areas.
Any kind of plastic wrap would reduce that friction.
A well treated bear wood wood pole would be my choice.
Check with your local building deparment.
This kind of thing is their 8 hour a day job.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

The building is going to be built in north alabama. Im also planning on living in part of it. When i told the builder i wanted post protectors on the 6x6 treated poles, he said the poles would never rot. I just dont see that because ive seen many fences built out of treated 4x4 and they rot off right above the ground.

 

[kbs2244]

I don't know the lift code in N AL.
But your build department will.
Even in a "no code" area it sometime pays to mine that experience.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

Im just trying to decide if it is worth the extra expense. The post protectors will be around $800.00 to enclose all 6x6 poles. Havent fiqured out how much it would be if i just wrapped plastic sheeting around it.

 

[danfromsyr]

wrap them with the self healing roofing membrane..

for lift protection (friction) drive a 5/8" rebar thru a hole near the bottom of the hole (sealed by membrane of course)

and I'd doubt the poles will rot, the 4x4s you've seen rotted were probably the wrong type of pressure treatment. not rated for direct ground contact or burial.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

wrap them with the self healing roofing membrane..

for lift protection (friction) drive a 5/8" rebar thru a hole near the bottom of the hole (sealed by membrane of course)

and I'd doubt the poles will rot, the 4x4s you've seen rotted were probably the wrong type of pressure treatment. not rated for direct ground contact or burial.

Self healing roofing membrane. Is that the roofing felt?

 

[Nighttrain]

Ground contact wood. Most post for fence are not and thats why they rot. If you enclose the post with plastic you may cause them to rot. water will not beable to wick away.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

Ground contact wood. Most post for fence are not and thats why they rot. If you enclose the post with plastic you may cause them to rot. water will not beable to wick away.

See thats what ive been told.
One person you talk too says they will rot if nothing is around them.
2nd person says if you put something around them they will rot.
3rd person says coat the bottom of the pole because it is like a wick?

I dont know what too do.

 

[dlenkewich]

Do what the builder reccomends... It's his business to know the way to do things. If he's wrong then it's on him, not you. He's the expert, not you.

A fence also sits in the rain/snow/sleet. While the ground may get damp, the posts are protected from the elements by the building itself.

 

[Flathead Youngin']

i went back n forth on this for a while too......where i built my building i plan on using it for the rest of my life and didn't want to contend with cutting off posts 20-30 years from now...

i was dead sold on them and then after reading this and that, i chose not to use them for some of the reason stated in this thread.......

most pole barns i see that are 20-30 years old seem to be fine but they also had the advantage of arsenic that treated posts don't have now......

well if i can get 30 years out of them, i'll leave the problem for my kids- even though i don't like this way of thinking.....but anyway....

 

[TimGrz]

What about something like the Big Foot System.

Can be bought in multiple diameters and the posts bolted to the top above the ground line. All kinds of tech/documentation available on the site as well.

/tg

 

[justanengineer]

All wood will rot if its placed in the ground due to the moisture, even ground contact. I will upload pics when I get home, but my parents built their pole barn a few years back and used an old farmer's trick. Basically, you bury and fill a 55 gallon drum with concrete, and center a piece of square tubing the exact size of the post. Make sure the tubing sticks above the ground a foot or two, bore a hole in the tubing/post and bolt it solid. Should the post ever rot inside the concrete/tubing (good luck if its treated), its easily replaced and you get a higher lift value than ordinary in the ground/concrete post.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

i went back n forth on this for a while too......where i built my building i plan on using it for the rest of my life and didn't want to contend with cutting off posts 20-30 years from now...

i was dead sold on them and then after reading this and that, i chose not to use them for some of the reason stated in this thread.......

most pole barns i see that are 20-30 years old seem to be fine but they also had the advantage of arsenic that treated posts don't have now......

well if i can get 30 years out of them, i'll leave the problem for my kids- even though i don't like this way of thinking.....but anyway....

Yea im planning on using it for the rest of my life also. I guess thats what bothers me so much is that i want to make the right decision. Thanks for all the help on my issues at the present time.

 

[theoldwizard1]

...ive seen many fences built out of treated 4x4 and they rot off right above the ground.

When setting treated wood post in concrete, do NOT fill the hole to the top ! Fill to within about 6" to the top. After concrete is hard, fill the rest with gravel. This will let the water run away from the post at the ground line.

 

[justanengineer]

I apologize for the lousy pic. Unfortunately the parents' barn is never clean. As you can see, galvanized square tube in the middle of a 55 gallon drum with concrete poured around it and the top edge sealed with silicone for good measure. Water could not get in if it wanted to. They still joke about how neither the civil engineer nor the inspector had seen this method before, but both found several ways in which its superior to both post in ground and post in concrete methods.

 

[HalbertBros.Racing]

Thanks for all the info.