steel buildings

[Ranger_Edge]

im thinking about getting a 20'x40'x12' steel building to put in my backyard. it is the type that you buy pre-fabbed that you just have to lay a slab of concrete for and bolt together. also i would have to install a standard 8x10 garage door. ill provide a few pics and a link. it would cost me $7000... and that is delivered to my door.

what i wanted to know is if anyone on the board has one and what they think of it.

my only concern about this type of set up is making too much noise while working in it. it would basically be a small shop to finish my truck and possible work on others. i have a pretty big back yard, so space would not be an issue.

also, if there are other alternatives... im open for suggestions.

http://www.surplussteelbuildings.com/index.htm

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[WoodyW]

I work out of one very similar to the one you are looking at (about 2000sf). It's great....you can't beat it for the money...noise isn't so much an issue. My only beef is that it's too small now, if you have room go as big as you can...you will use it. I heat mine with a barrel heater and I can keep it pretty warm in the winter. I prefer the looks of square "Red Iron" buildings but you can't beat the price for the straight wall arch buildings.The biggest problem you may have is codes/ordinances against steel buildings where you live. In Yucaipa where my shop is now, they have all but eliminated new construction of steel buildings, esp. arch style...requiring conditional use permits and hearings that neighbors must attend, etc... it wasn't like that a couple of years ago. I just got a permit for my new block shop in Redlands, (they won't allow steel as big as I need it,) and it took me 6 mos. and a ton of extra engineering costs, neighbors had to okay it, etc....about $6000 so far just to get plans/permitted. To answer your question- The buildings are great, I love my steel shop- it took 2wks to tighten all those bolts though...

[gwm]

Just make sure you go to your local authorities first, before the salesman sucks you in. I didn't, then had to undo the deal because San Diego County didn't like the building at all in my area. Of course, according to the salesman they had put thousands of their buildings up in San Diego and never had a problem. Turned out that was true, but they were at airports. I don't live on an airstrip.

[steelman]

I am in the steel business in Tucson,AZ. Hopefully i can help. Be very carefull before you sign anything, make sure that the building is designed for your local building codes. Check your CC & R's in your neighborhood if applicible, some don't allow metal buildings at all or they must match the house. I am not a big fan of this product because it takes away from the true value of the metal building industry, however it is a inexpensive way to get into a shop. Also, this design limits any future changes you might want to do:add window,door etc... Make sure a 20x40 building is large enough for your possble future use, cheaper at this point to go a little larger. Lastly read all the fine print on your contract agreement, they make all their money in the last minute changes. If you need anything else let me know.

Mark

[racetrash]

40 x 60 mbmi building up here, total was around 50k, no electrical yet. had to bring slab and finish guys up from the 909, no one up here would do it. county had problems with the prints, but the building company got it fixed after 3 trys. would have gone bigger, but i'm on a hillside and could only do so much grading and still have room for my house we are building. blm land on 2 sides, so we are dealing with a 70' setback

[BlueCoyote]

Ditto - check with the local authorities and get it in WRITING! This includes the town / county and the local fire district. Check for zoning regs, set backs, CCR's etc. Low cost is not always better. And a "STORAGE Building" is easier to permit than a Garage / shop.
99.9% of what the salesman tell you is BS. Many of these will not meet CA codes, and / or the engineer is not CA licensed. It cost me some big $ to learn this the hard way, and I thought I did all my homework. Find a vendor that has an actual store - not some office cubie or web site. Go see the actual product - find out if they are an actual dealer or just piecing stuff together and selling off a web site. A lot of the quonsut huts are junk. Ask about plans / drawings, calculations. Often these are 'extra' and can take 16 weeks to get done and cost almost a grand. And then the slab drawings can be another 'extra' - see the pattern here......

I wound up going with a 480 sqft versa-tube building <www.versatube.com> from a vendor in San Diego. Not my first choice, but the only one that could economically be built and added onto. Overall I am happy with the Versa Tube building, an hope to be adding another 480' in the spring

Racetrash - how did you ever get your building approved? Mine is about 10 miles from yours (on the Yucca Mesa - SBD Co - not town) The local fire dist would not allow me to build over 500 ft unless I installed a fire hydrant ($50k +) or sprinklers ($20k+).

[racetrash]

the fire permit was not a big deal, as long as we kept all structures 65' apart, no sprinklers needed, and our fire hydrant is 1000' away. must of got the guy at the joshua tree station on a good day. i wonder how close u are to my partner don, he just put up a 40x60 on la brisa. pete

[hoeker]

i'm just curious how you keep that from turning into a sauna during the summer? even in MI my metal roofed building was miserable before i insulated it.

[Ranger_Edge]

thanks for all of the input guys! there is a lot more stuff to consider than i really thought.
where would be a good place to go and gather the information that I need? city hall?

a little off topic, but i am considering installing a phase converter to take my 220 single phase, and making it 220 three phase. have any of you had expericence with this and how do you like or dislike it?

[WoodyW]

City hall would be where I'd start- you're looking for building and safety, Redlands has the planning dept in there as well, it may be different where you are. Remember to smile alot, dress well, and compliment the clerk on her hair...every little bit helps!