Pole Barn Pad Question

[LetEmGrow]

Howdy

I have a question regarding the pad for a pole barn.  I have a little excavating work I want done and in that same general area I would like to put a pole barn one day.  Since the bulldozer will already
be there, why not put the pad in now?  Is there anything wrong with putting the pad in now and then waiting a couple years before I put the barn there? 

Thanks for any help you guys might have.  

[sbuff]

How big are you going , I have crushed stone for my pole barn. Depending on use would depend on going concrete or not .

[Steuben Jerry]

12 minutes ago, sbuff said:

How big are you going , I have crushed stone for my pole barn. Depending on use would depend on going concrete or not .

When I had our pole barn built (30x40) they let the stone base compact for almost a year before he came back to pour the concrete floor. 12 years later I only have one faint crack. Settling time can be helpful.

[wolc123]

The concrete pad should be done after the pole barn is up, because it will interfere with the sections of the poles that are below grade.  Those are fabricated from pressure treated lumber and extend below the frost line.  Usually, dry concrete is placed below and around and the base of the poles.

It might make sense to clear the topsoil off the site of the pole barn, while you have the dozer, then fill it back in with 2 inch crusher run stone, to a height of about 6 inch less than your finished concrete floor top.

When I built my 36 x 50, a couple years ago, I left most of the floor stone, except for a shop area and one of the two 10 x 25 porches.  I like the stone floor for parking tractors, boats etc. 

 

Edited December 24, 2020 by wolc123

[luberhill]

Assume you are not talking about the concrete pad rather the base .

The linger it sits and settles the better 

Mine sat almost a year and was compacted every 12” .. then rained on etc ..

Mine is 28 x 40 fiber in the mix and wire mesh with vapor barrier 

[Zag]

24 minutes ago, Steuben Jerry said:

When I had our pole barn built (30x40) they let the stone base compact for almost a year before he came back to pour the concrete floor. 12 years later I only have one faint crack. Settling time can be helpful.

Jerry’s spot on, gravel it only. I wouldn’t want my new expensive concrete taking on all the elements either. 

[Rack Attack]

I would recommend getting the site prepped for the barn ie. leveled and any drainage work that may need to be done, but not put the stone or for sure not concrete.  The reason for not putting the stone even in is when they drill/dig for the posts they will be mixing/covering your stone with dirt making a mess in the long run.

[LetEmGrow]

Hey Guys

No concrete or stone.  I am talking about a dirt pad.  I may gravel the inside floor at a later time (after built) but I was not planning on laying any type of a concrete foundation under it.
Just a dirt floor.

To my understanding, you come in a with bulldozer and build up a pad a few inches for drainage and then the pole barn gets built right on top of the pad.  I was not looking to pur a concret foundation.  

Am I way off?  I don't want to pour concrete.  Just a dirt floor and then maybe add gravel later.

Edited December 24, 2020 by LetEmGrow

[Nomad]

Don’t know much about this , but my nephew’s shop doesn’t have a poured floor .

[LetEmGrow]

1 hour ago, Nomad said:

Don’t know much about this , but my nephew’s shop doesn’t have a poured floor .

That's awesome

[Will_C]

When I built my 30 x 50 pole barn, we set the poles before the gravel. When we had the poles set we put up the top plates and trusses. Then we put in the gravel and compacted it with a plate compactor. Put the roof on and then poured the concrete.

[reeltime]

Not knowing what the site elevations are will have to shoot from the hip with recommendations.
Doing the pad prior to putting up the building is fine just remember to go a minimum of two foot wider than the outside dimensions of your building the only recommendation is if you are greater than 2 foot of fill filling a low spot like building into a sloped grade then I would extend my building pad 4 to 6 feet greater with than a building on what would be considered the low side of the building.
Even if you're not planning on doing a cement pad immediately I would still recommend putting a fine Crusher run base in prior to putting the building up it is a lot easier to do all of the heavy site work and bass work prior to the building being up.
Your pad preparation can be done at any time but if you're needing to fill large areas of low elevation you either have to compact the pill as you're putting it in or give it a substantial amount of time to naturally settle prior to doing your final elevation grades of the pad site. As a general rule of thumb when we do any potential future pad pours we prefer to have our Stone base is thick if not twice as thick as what the concrete level will be.

I would do all of my drain tiles and if you're going to potentially in the future have floor drains Ledo's solid pipes with your elbow stubbed up with a cap on it don't let it all settle prior to doing the building.
Once the building is up Final Grade elevations can be completed on the interior of the building




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[G-Man]

19 hours ago, LetEmGrow said:

Howdy

I have a question regarding the pad for a pole barn.  I have a little excavating work I want done and in that same general area I would like to put a pole barn one day.  Since the bulldozer will already
be there, why not put the pad in now?  Is there anything wrong with putting the pad in now and then waiting a couple years before I put the barn there? 

Thanks for any help you guys might have.  

Your better off putting the pad in after its built, will seal it from rodents that way, and possibly avoid a hefty accessment on taxes.