Shed pillars

have2flushtwice wrote: »

We have a digger forklift and three tractors in the same shed.
Thinking of a separate lean to for the lot of them.
Has anyone built one from 6x4 timber uprights instead of girders?
Set the timber in concrete or gravel?

I don’t think modern timbers are near good enough to stick into the ground.

I think decent esb poles would last substantially longer.

have2flushtwice wrote: »

Would it be as cheap to get girders!
What price is a girder anyways, have timbers that were 25 each I think.....
They may do the job.

Get the girders, whatever they cost. Do the job right the first time.....

Lets talk worst case scenario for a moment. Could this project kill someone? The answer is 'yes' - imagine someone reversing a tractor misjudges things, hits the column (upright) and the whole lot comes tumbling down on a driver or pedestrian. Add the cost of 4 machines damaged or destroyed.

have2flushtwice wrote: »

Has anyone built one from 6x4 timber uprights instead of girders?

Assuming those sizes are in inches, that is grossly under-sized. The risk is that it would warp and twist and the whole roof would sag. The foundations need to be concrete - vibration would likely see the column gradually dig through the gravel - and the roof would sag. You would need to be doing a concrete floor slab anyway, otherwise the machines would just churn up the ground. Then there is the matter of moisture.

If you just want a lean-to roof to put over the vehicles, against an existing building, you should be able to do so for a relatively modest amount. Doing half a job would probably cost nearly as much, but last a fraction of the time.

Decent stakes will last 20 years. Untreated stakes about 5 years. ESB poles are replaced after about 40-50 years. Timbers set in Concrete will rot faster than timbers set in the earth/stone. New ESB poles will cost as much as steel. I be sourcing steel

Here is a large slatted shed and feeding passages done with with wooden beams instead of steel in southern germany

A few things in its favour

i) its all local timber
ii) hotsummers to dry out any water ingress
iii) years of local engineering knowledge in making beams and maintaining them
iv) Well designed with lots of concrete low down and where machinery is more likely
v) a heritage area with very strict planning rules, probably only can get permission using "traditional" equivalent materials





https://photos.app.goo.gl/asq1fsGs812kmwhb6

G-Man wrote: »

Here is a large slatted shed and feeding passages done with with wooden beams instead of steel in southern germany

A few things in its favour

i) its all local timber
ii) hotsummers to dry out any water ingress
iii) years of local engineering knowledge in making beams and maintaining them
iv) Well designed with lots of concrete low down and where machinery is more likely
v) a heritage area with very strict planning rules, probably only can get permission using "traditional" equivalent materials





https://photos.app.goo.gl/asq1fsGs812kmwhb6

Timber will not last in the Irish Climate as long as in countries like this. First countries that use timber have harsher colder winters than ours. The ground freezes and they have snow as opposed to rain and long dry summers.

We were ruled by the Bristish for hundreds of years. If you go over to the UK you will see timber houses 4-500 years old build on brick or stone foundations. Why was it not used in Irealnd because timber rots faster in Ireland than anywhere else in the world.

There are a few reason for this. First the droplet size in wet weather in Ireland is much smaller than most other countries. This prevents some wood persertives working as well in Ireland as elsewhere. As well moisture come up from the ground because of our mild climate and even through brick and concrete foundations and even if these have a damp proof barrier above ground level moisture will still hold above this because of the nature of Irish weather. Worked on external based electrical and electronic system for years, system that worked perfectly elsewhere in the world were prone to Irish dampness to fail

I got a hen ark once that used Swedish construction and persevatives, in the UK they lasted 30+ years. I got 8 years out of it. Steel and Concrete and even they struggle at times

G-Man wrote:

i) its all local timber ii) hotsummers to dry out any water ingress iii) years of local engineering knowledge in making beams and maintaining them iv) Well designed with lots of concrete low down and where machinery is more likely v) a heritage area with very strict planning rules, probably only can get permission using "traditional" equivalent materials

oak I's very cheap in Germany

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