A new barn is a practical addition to any farm but can also add huge value to your property. In this series, we’ll tell you how to get the barn of your dreams.
Click to read part one, part two, part three, part four and part five
Professional help
No matter what type of barn you build, you will almost certainly need professional help, to draw up the plans, to check engineering aspects, to manufacture trusses – possibly even to help you fill in a PIM (Project Information Memorandum). These little documents used to be one or two pages long, now some can be up to 7-8 pages long and require at least your draughtsman to go over them with you.
You are building an asset that will last 30 years or more, so it pays to think about it.
Advice from an experienced barn builder
US author and equine expert Cherry Hill has built several barns and co-authored a book on the subject with her husband Richard Klimesh.
She believes there are places you can save money and places you can’t and while she only lists what will affect horse owners, it’s good all-round advice. Her list of things you shouldn’t consider skimping on includes:
• the foundations (keep it level and well drained)
• concrete – don’t mix it yourself if you’re doing a large concrete pad, get it delivered
• Timber – use larger size framing timber where horses will have contact with the walls
• Fittings – all bolts, handles, hinges etc should be quality fittings so if they come under pressure (say if a horse kicks out) they should hold.
Her list of things you could possibly save money on includes:
• Simple is easy – the simpler the design of the barn, the cheaper it will be.
• Be your own contractor but expect to pay for a draughtsman, a plumber, an electrician, an engineer and possibly a builder to oversee the work you’ve done.
• You might find it cheaper to hire a digger or backhoe to do the excavations or dig any trenches. Then again, a professional will probably get the job done much more quickly.
• Clad it yourself – if you feel comfortable doing it and have the time, cladding a building can be a job you can do yourself but it is time consuming and you will probably need to have a head for heights.
Nadene Hall
NZ Lifestyle Block magazine
