What is under this barns floor?

[nvrenufrm]

Love the Silo.

 

[pcmeiners]

"The silo is cool and appears to be in good shape but a liability if it becomes too deteriorated and needs to be demolished."

You are correct in a 200-300 years it might become a liability. Definitely keep it, you could turn it into a cool small rental. As to the barn floor, until you open it up, it is hard to give advice; hope you do not find the remains from an 1800 serial killer.

First think to do is to get some Termidor off Ebay and apply for termite protection.

 

[zak77]

236 Mill Rd, Hampden, MA 01036 | realtor.com®

View 41 photos for 236 Mill Rd, Hampden, MA 01036, a 4 bed, 4 bath, 3,744 Sq. Ft. single family home built in 1999 that was last sold on 11/10/2020.

www.realtor.com

This is one barn that was converted to a house. I've been inside many barns in Mass and think they are very cool structures that should be saved, but i completely understand the cost and functional obsolescence they are suffering from.

 

[Forgottonia]

In NH, you would probably find a 4-5’ tall dirt floor space under there with acess out the back or side that is lower grade. Part of it could bea root cellar but most of it was probably for shoveling manure out of the way temporarily. Hay usually went above onto a lift where it is drier. The foundation of likely granite/stone with the beams resting in granite/stone.
Unless someone has already redone this barn, you won’t find a nice poured concrete floor. It does look like work has been done since the floor seems level. But that work may be limited to shimming the framing beams or adding additional ones also on stone supports. It’s only if you get lucky that you will find a lot more due to the cost.

I had one small barn, 20x30 with a dirt 4-5’ basement. It was an old carriage house. I cut out the floor, filled it, poured a slab and lowered the floor by about 18” to reduce the ramp going in and to gain ceiling height. I installed a 2 post lift. In another carriage house, 24x30, I left the wood floor, which had been previously reinforced with steel beams and center supports on top of a low poured concrete foundation, and used a 4 post lift on top of the wood floor.

^^This. I was going to say that it wouldn't be a dirt floor if hay was stored down there. But barns generally stored hay up above and manure below. So it's likely a dirt floor. The person showing you the barn probably either didn't know what was stored down below, or didn't want to say manure for fear it would put you off.

btw, The barn/silo combo is beautiful. If it was me, I'd look into reinforcing the silo from inside and make it into a useable space.

 

[600SL]

Drill a small hole and run a scope in.

I would but I'm in NC and the barn is in CT

 

[600SL]

^^This. I was going to say that it wouldn't be a dirt floor if hay was stored down there. But barns generally stored hay up above and manure below. So it's likely a dirt floor. The person showing you the barn probably either didn't know what was stored down below, or didn't want to say manure for fear it would put you off.

btw, The barn/silo combo is beautiful. If it was me, I'd look into reinforcing the silo from inside and make it into a useable space.

He did say hey was stored down there. There is no ceiling so I think the flood above was removed.

 

[yeldogt]

In NH, you would probably find a 4-5’ tall dirt floor space under there with acess out the back or side that is lower grade. Part of it could bea root cellar but most of it was probably for shoveling manure out of the way temporarily. Hay usually went above onto a lift where it is drier. The foundation of likely granite/stone with the beams resting in granite/stone.
Unless someone has already redone this barn, you won’t find a nice poured concrete floor. It does look like work has been done since the floor seems level. But that work may be limited to shimming the framing beams or adding additional ones also on stone supports. It’s only if you get lucky that you will find a lot more due to the cost.

I had one small barn, 20x30 with a dirt 4-5’ basement. It was an old carriage house. I cut out the floor, filled it, poured a slab and lowered the floor by about 18” to reduce the ramp going in and to gain ceiling height. I installed a 2 post lift. In another carriage house, 24x30, I left the wood floor, which had been previously reinforced with steel beams and center supports on top of a low poured concrete foundation, and used a 4 post lift on top of the wood floor.

As you went north there was a change in barn design .. some of this had to do with the amount of rock encountered and also what was on the farm .. both livestock and when was grown. They did not build what we think of as "bank" barns as you moved north.

Hay was always up in the "loft" -- it had to be .... most German barns had stone walls with vents for strength on the ends to hold more hay vs the earlier British.

By 1900 the typical structure we view as a "barn" in the mid-atlantic to lower New England -- it's time was over. None would have been built with what we view as Concrete/ Cement floor. Portland Cement ... the strength agent in our mortar and concrete had been developed and was constantly being improved on throughout the 19th century ..... But -- the USA did not get it first true "Portland" factory until after the civil war -- and really not until almost 1880 was there much production. The first was in Clopay Pa .... the product was way too expensive for barn floors.

 

[yeldogt]

236 Mill Rd, Hampden, MA 01036 | realtor.com®

View 41 photos for 236 Mill Rd, Hampden, MA 01036, a 4 bed, 4 bath, 3,744 Sq. Ft. single family home built in 1999 that was last sold on 11/10/2020.

www.realtor.com

This is one barn that was converted to a house. I've been inside many barns in Mass and think they are very cool structures that should be saved, but i completely understand the cost and functional obsolescence they are suffering from.

Looks like they forgot what they were building ? Nothing inside echos that you are inside a barn?

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

My guess is a C4 corvette by looking at the wheels. 1985?

I’d use the name “Corvette” lightly-
It was more “Smogvette”!

 

[Jackfre]

Put a fire pole in from top to bottom.

 

[600SL]

I’d use the name “Corvette” lightly-
It was more “Smogvette”!

When I had a Chevette, I used to just tell people I had a Vett!

 

[600SL]

Looks like they forgot what they were building ? Nothing inside echos that you are inside a barn?

No but at least my wife would move in in a heart beat.

 

[yeldogt]

No but at least my wife would move in in a heart beat.

It's the inside of a classic barn that you want to see ... not have it all covered in drywall and trim that does not have anything to do with the structure.

If you do a barn .... you do a barn

 

[RPH]

If you want to go down the rabbit hole of barns. Then check this site out.

https://justbarns.proboards.com/

 

[nh_yota]

It's not uncommon for barns to have some sort of cellar beneath the main floor but they're not used to store hay because it needs to be kept dry.

 

[danfromsyr]

That does sound like a possibility. If you look at the silo, it looks like some lower hatchway was blocked off. Possibly the area was back filled to cover the original foundation.

The silo is cool and appears to be in good shape but a liability if it becomes too deteriorated and needs to be demolished.

that silo will outlive you.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

When I had a Chevette, I used to just tell people I had a Vett!

Then, when they saw it... "Oh, Shitvette!"

 

[pbon]

That is a nice looking barn inside — it does not look hacked up and appears to be in good shape though a post hole beetle and termite inspection would be a good idea if you are able to buy with contingencies. These days it’s often all cash, contingencies waived or your offer is not competitive.

The brick silo is stunning. With time and money it could be an office, guest apartment, or even a tiny house. I’d take it along with the barn and rent out the house….

 

[f121]

That silo is amazing, never seen one like it. Be such a waste to pull that down, it needs preserving.

I would bet it’s just dirt under that floor. But the place, it looks amazing

 

[firebirdparts]

He did say hey was stored down there. There is no ceiling so I think the flood above was removed.

Doubtful. Hay will mold and the cows don't like that. Nobody would store hay below the floor, I don't think. Certainly an odd thing to say. Could be true, but awfully odd.

 

[RPH]

Remove the tractor and this would be the automation used to gather hay from the fields. No bales, all loose. I still have the rail track in the ceiling of my old barn.

 

[Git]

Here is another one extremely similar in design. Note the lower level

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[Renegade1LI]

that is a really cool barn & silo! I had a three story barn at a farmhouse we had in Saugerties NY, the lower level was for the live stock & opened out to the pasture. The upper level stored implements & such & there was also an attached work shop. Barns were made for working, my wife & I are on the hunt for one to convert into a rental, fun stuff.

 

[firebirdparts]

I’d use the name “Corvette” lightly-
It was more “Smogvette”!

Possibly with "Ceasefire injection."

Getting back to the silo, what's in there? The windows must be a latter day modification, so somebody was up to something in there.

 

[600SL]

Possibly with "Ceasefire injection."

Getting back to the silo, what's in there? The windows must be a latter day modification, so somebody was up to something in there.

The silo is completely sealed off. The windows do not open but you can look inside the first one and see nothing but a dirt floor. I believe the windows were at one time access hatches that were replaced with windows just to make it look nice. Also if you look at the picture in the original post there appears to be some kind of entrance at the bottom theay has been buried. Not sure if that was just another small hatchway of a full size man door.

 

[Toomanytools?]

He did say hey was stored down there. There is no ceiling so I think the flood above was removed.

Maybe "hey was the name of the old cow in the barn?" The realtor was sticking to full disclosure laws. ! )

 

[firebirdparts]

You can tell there was a structure there originally tied into the silo brick. I am not really that knowledgeable about silage, but the traditional way was to blow feed to the top and then unload from those openings, and so there would have been a need to fork silage out through those openings. Lots of hard work. There would have been a ladder in there with the openings. The roof leads you to think that the loading line went up inside that structure, which is perfectly normal. These things seem always to be covered with a structure, but it seems like that was a lot of extra trouble. Silos always seem to have that, though.

So getting back to the original question, that is a fat silo, so there is at least some possibility of having a space in there. But If you don't have a door, obviously, you'd have a bit of a challenge there. It can be done, but you kinda hate to start busting your way into a true brick structure like that.

 

[600SL]

Maybe "hey was the name of the old cow in the barn?" The realtor was sticking to full disclosure laws. ! )

Maybe he ment reprocessed hey, as in cow poop.

 

[firebirdparts]

The artist formerly known as "hay".

 

[600SL]

You can tell there was a structure there originally tied into the silo brick. I am not really that knowledgeable about silage, but the traditional way was to blow feed to the top and then unload from those openings, and so there would have been a need to fork silage out through those openings. Lots of hard work. There would have been a ladder in there with the openings. The roof leads you to think that the loading line went up inside that structure, which is perfectly normal. These things seem always to be covered with a structure, but it seems like that was a lot of extra trouble. Silos always seem to have that, though.

So getting back to the original question, that is a fat silo, so there is at least some possibility of having a space in there. But If you don't have a door, obviously, you'd have a bit of a challenge there. It can be done, but you kinda hate to start busting your way into a true brick structure like that.

I see the possibility of 5 art studios. But local fire codes may make that difficult. Its a beautiful building, but putting external egress capability might ruin it.

 

[kmacht]

That’s a nice looking barn but you will want to check with your insurance company before buying. Many will not cover a structure with a wood floor that was/is used to store cars or other large gas powered equipment (I.e tractors). The oil, gas, and grease that gets soaked into the wood becomes a liability for fire. I live in Ct and no insurance company I talked to would insure a garage with a wood floor when I was looking at property to keep our horses on It had to be concrete, gravel, or dirt.

 

[MongoTA]

Hello

I'm considering the purchase of a house with a barn. The barn is in central Ct. It was once part of an 80 acre farm used for raising cattle for beef. The barn has a plywood floor. I asked if there was concrete under the floor and he said no, it is a double 3/4" plywood floor on 2x 12 wood beams over a 4 ft pit that was used for storing hey. I was not aware of barns being used to install hey in the ground. So I'm wondering what the construction of this barn is below the floor. Its originally an 1800's barn that has been reconfigured several times, includng a reduction in size from ~ 60' x 100' to its current size of 30' x 100'

So the question is what could the crawl space under the barn be like. Would it be a full foundation with cement floor. Or could it just be a big dirt hole? How would they keep water out? What are the possibilities of filling it in for a concrete floor? It would require over 200 yards of fill?

Also any ideas of what can be done with the Silo

Semi-small world.
I drove by that property last year when picking up a Kennedy roller. The silo caught my eye. Hope the hunt goes well for you!

 

[82355]

You can tell there was a structure there originally tied into the silo brick. I am not really that knowledgeable about silage, but the traditional way was to blow feed to the top and then unload from those openings, and so there would have been a need to fork silage out through those openings. Lots of hard work. There would have been a ladder in there with the openings. The roof leads you to think that the loading line went up inside that structure, which is perfectly normal. These things seem always to be covered with a structure, but it seems like that was a lot of extra trouble. Silos always seem to have that, though.

That silo probably predates silage blowers.

Martin

 

[yeldogt]

Here is another one extremely similar in design. Note the lower level

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nice looking --- it would be interesting to know the history ,, lots of windows for

A midatlanic bank would be positioned differently if built in the mis part of the 19th century

 

[firebirdparts]

That silo probably predates silage blowers.

Martin

I'm not too expert on the history. According to google, tower silos were invented about 1870. It makes you wonder how they loaded the first one. Portable steam power would have been required to run a silage blower. Coincidentally, my grandfather had one from the steam era; a 'Blizzard." Never saw it used. The blizzard seems to have come out in the 20th century.

 

[RPH]

I'm not too expert on the history. According to google, tower silos were invented about 1870. It makes you wonder how they loaded the first one. Portable steam power would have been required to run a silage blower. Coincidentally, my grandfather had one from the steam era; a 'Blizzard." Never saw it used. The blizzard seems to have come out in the 20th century.

Grapples we’re in use at most barns. Either horse or human powered. Then the would layer the silage into the silo. Feed part is the bottom of the silage. Silage is anaerobic process. That’s the reason for the windows but they would have been doors back in the day.

 

[RPH]

Grapple in use. Love the shady osha approved ladder on the post. Hard work though.

 

[firebirdparts]

Grapples were ubiquitous here, but obviously just used to pick up hay. The usual.