Where to start looking for help with insulation/heating?

[kk7xx]

Hey guys, we'll be moving into a new place in late September and I have a very short amount of time to convert the 40x60 pole barn to my warehouse/workspace (the main reason we are buying this property). I need to get it insulated and heated within a few weeks of moving in so I can start using it for work.

I've been reading and watching a ton of videos about ideas on what to do to accomplish this, but with my time limit, I'm hoping I can hire someone to help finish/insulate the pole barn.

This is just the dumbest of basic questions so I apologize, but what kind of contractor am I looking for with interior pole barn work? Should I call insulation companies followed up with drywall (or ribbed steel panels more likely) workers? Or does it make more sense to call a pole barn builder and see if they could finish off the inside?

Including some photos to show how little is done so far. Just has metal walls, posts and girts.

Thanks for any guidance.

 

[matt_i]

Based on your time frame I would hire (in this order)

A) an electrician to wire up as much as you need to get started plus a little ways into the future

B) a spray foam contractor

If you wanted to metal-rib panel after that, you could probably hire just about anyone.

 

[Bad]

I would definitely suggest an electrician to come to your home and help you with your insulation and heating.

 

[kk7xx]

Thank you guys. Wasn't thinking of an electrician for some reason, guess since I already had the lights and a few outlets but I definitely will need more outlets before buttoning everything up.

Based on your time frame I would hire (in this order)

A) an electrician to wire up as much as you need to get started plus a little ways into the future

B) a spray foam contractor

If you wanted to metal-rib panel after that, you could probably hire just about anyone.

Spray foam would definitely get the job done faster but I thought I was going to have to avoid spray foam bc of the reports of it causing rust if applied directly to the outside metal walls. Do you mean on top of some type of interior WRB or have you heard otherwise about the rust issue?

Thanks again.

 

[sleek98]

Depending on what the type of warehouse do you want the electrical hidden in wall or surface mounted with EMT?

If you are doing metal panels on the inside it might be faster to have an insulation company come out to do their thing, then walls then the electrician. Also would make putting the panels up faster since they will not have to cut for the boxes.

 

[stm317]

Blanket insulation is probably the fastest option that isn't spray foam. Hang a ceiling and have cellulose blown in to the proper depth

 

[NUTTSGT]

If you had an actual general location, your fellow members might be able to recommend someone that is fairly local to you.

 

[kk7xx]

If you had an actual general location, your fellow members might be able to recommend someone that is fairly local to you.

Good point! I thought I had it in my profile but doesn’t seem to show up.

I’m basically near Ann Arbor/Canton, MI if anyone has SE Mich recommendations, would love to hear them. Thanks.

 

[kk7xx]

Depending on what the type of warehouse do you want the electrical hidden in wall or surface mounted with EMT?

If you are doing metal panels on the inside it might be faster to have an insulation company come out to do their thing, then walls then the electrician. Also would make putting the panels up faster since they will not have to cut for the boxes.

True, guess I should consider which is fastest since I’m not partial to one way or the other. This will basically be a storage-type “warehouse” but will be used for some other various non-industrial work certain times of the year, usually in the fall/early winter.

 

[kk7xx]

I am overloaded with info on this...never would have guessed there would be so many insulation options, almost too many...seem to be able to read opinions online about them for days.

We are doing a lot more home renovations on the new property than expected so I'm taking a little more time with the pole barn. On the bright side, it already had all the electrical ran that I needed, I didn't know that ahead of time.

I just got a few estimates from local insulation companies. Basically $4300-4600 for 2" of closed cell on all the walls and another $2300 for 12-14" of blown-in above the ceiling (once I have the ceiling panels or drywall installed...need to make that happen ASAP but bogged down with the house, biz is suffering atm from that).

2 of the companies said 2" would be enough at R-14 but I was thinking of doing 2" of XPS like this right over the girts before they spray the foam instead of between the girts so there is less tedious cutting. Would I still need to seal the XPS or can I just tack them to the girts and let the closed cell seal up any small air gaps?

https://www.menards.com/main/buildi...ion-2-x-4-x-8-r-10/654957/p-1444450471143.htm

A third company said they could put 6" of dense packed on top of 1" of spray foam for me for $6800 which would be R7 + R23. Not even sure how that is possible with my configuration though (8' between posts) but they claimed the net would hold. Tempted to try it and forgo the XPS. Then again, I was already going to be fudging the steel panel wall install a bit with 8' oc, worried if the dense packed would make them bulge out.

Any thoughts on the best route? XPS on top of girts + spray foam or spray foam + dense packed? Or just spray foam direct to the girts/panels and leave it at R14?

 

[chinboys]

I am a DYI type but I also have a technical background and a degree in making lots of hot water via tiny tiny small little things to make steam and electricity.
I would refer you to https://forum.heatinghelp.com
The trade, as well as the DYI, ask questions all the time.
They will always want a heat or cooling load calculation of course which you can hire out or do it yourself.

good luck

 

[climb.on]

I am overloaded with info on this...never would have guessed there would be so many insulation options, almost too many...seem to be able to read opinions online about them for days.

We are doing a lot more home renovations on the new property than expected so I'm taking a little more time with the pole barn. On the bright side, it already had all the electrical ran that I needed, I didn't know that ahead of time.

I just got a few estimates from local insulation companies. Basically $4300-4600 for 2" of closed cell on all the walls and another $2300 for 12-14" of blown-in above the ceiling (once I have the ceiling panels or drywall installed...need to make that happen ASAP but bogged down with the house, biz is suffering atm from that).

2 of the companies said 2" would be enough at R-14 but I was thinking of doing 2" of XPS like this right over the girts before they spray the foam instead of between the girts so there is less tedious cutting. Would I still need to seal the XPS or can I just tack them to the girts and let the closed cell seal up any small air gaps?

https://www.menards.com/main/buildi...ion-2-x-4-x-8-r-10/654957/p-1444450471143.htm

A third company said they could put 6" of dense packed on top of 1" of spray foam for me for $6800 which would be R7 + R23. Not even sure how that is possible with my configuration though (8' between posts) but they claimed the net would hold. Tempted to try it and forgo the XPS. Then again, I was already going to be fudging the steel panel wall install a bit with 8' oc, worried if the dense packed would make them bulge out.

Any thoughts on the best route? XPS on top of girts + spray foam or spray foam + dense packed? Or just spray foam direct to the girts/panels and leave it at R14?

I did 10" of dense pack in my house. It's great, but the sheetrock guys hated me since it was so hard to get the sheetrock sucked down tight with the bulge. I would think tin on an 8' span would bulge. If it didn't I would be concerned the insulation wasn't dense packed enough and there would be settling. Maybe you could toe nail some 2x4s in between the posts to give more support to the tin panels?

If you go with XPS between posts don't feel like you need to cut them perfect. Better to intentionally leave gaps and go back with a foam gun and seal them up. Good luck!

 

[kk7xx]

I did 10" of dense pack in my house. It's great, but the sheetrock guys hated me since it was so hard to get the sheetrock sucked down tight with the bulge. I would think tin on an 8' span would bulge. If it didn't I would be concerned the insulation wasn't dense packed enough and there would be settling. Maybe you could toe nail some 2x4s in between the posts to give more support to the tin panels?

If you go with XPS between posts don't feel like you need to cut them perfect. Better to intentionally leave gaps and go back with a foam gun and seal them up. Good luck!

Thanks! I think you're right about the 8' span bulging with tin. I ended up just going with the 2" to the walls for now and 14" of blown-in above the ceiling. I'll be working on the ceiling asap so they can do that part. Figured winter is coming fast and I need to get my biz revenue going again, I could spend weeks over-analyzing and still not decide on what really amounts to a few % pts of energy savings which will probably seem pretty trivial when this is all done. R14 is good enough for now and I can see how it does over the winter before buttoning up the walls for good.