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Steel construction barns - MD Barnmaster? others?

Around The Farm
#1

We’re considering a steel constructed barn and I’m wondering if fellow COTHers could share pros and cons of their steel barns, as well as the manufacturer they used. I’ve looked at the MD Barnmaster but I’m not really familiar with any other companies that offer this type of construction.

And if you have photos of your barn, please post! :yes: I have a really hard time visualizing some of the barn styles that are advertised on the websites, but as soon as I see a real life barn in a photo the lightbulb comes on in my head.

One big question I have is about the steel interior walls. How do you install shelving, saddle racks, etc?? Does all of this have to be prefab or can you get regular (wood) walls for your tack/feed rooms?

And does anyone have one of these barns in a major hurricane alley? :winkgrin:

#2

We have a Barnmaster, it’s awesome, I just love it. You can drill into the interior walls if you want – we have saddle and bridle racks mounted on ours, a regular drill will do the trick. In the tack room, there’s also wood framing and rafters, so you can mount stuff using that as well.

We are not in a “hurricane alley” but we do get the odd one coming through from the Carolina coast. Barn was built to channel prevailing winds (godsend for flies and heat) and has withstood storms for the past 11 or so years with no issues, so at least Category 2, I think we’ve had since then?

Note: I do not personally own this barn, but my horses live there and I do a lot of work around the farm, so I feel like I know it pretty well.

#3

We have a 36x36 center aisle pole barn built by a local builder. We placed 2 12x12 stalls on each side with sliding doors to the outside. At the front of the barn is an area for hay storage/other storage and on the other side will one day be my tack/feed room. Here is an inside picture:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/StallsWestSide.jpg

This is inside one of the stalls:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/Stall.jpg

Future tack/feed room:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/Barntackarea.jpg

Extra storage area:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/BarnFeedArea.jpg

Exterior west side:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/Barn-WestSide.jpg

Front/north side:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c335/kelwalters/Barn-NorthSide.jpg

Putting up the wood and stall walls was generally easy. It’s a pole barn so we had wood beams to attach. I really like having wide runs that open into a sacrifice paddock. I like how airy the barn is. I wish I had added overhangs on each side. It’s something that we can do later (the builder designed it that way) but I need a new kitchen first. :wink: I’m not crazy about the sliding doors off of the stalls. Manure and dirt/snow get built up and then you have to dig out the track to use it. But I would always want some sort of door outside other than the aisle.

#4

I have 5 MD stalls in my pole barn and I love them. I wish I had the whole barn. I worked and sold MD barns about 8 years ago, the job did not last long…I switched to training and teaching full time. There are no cons to those barns ( except for cost) the horses cannot break them, the construction is tough, they are movable, they are virtually storm/windproof ( as much as any building can be) and they are easy to keep clean, are fire resistant, and look nice. If you go to a good seller/builder, they should be able to flood you with pictures and info. If they do not, find a good dealer. We have quite a few barns in our area, and they are lovely. PM me for more info, I might be able to put you in touch with someone that can get you to a good dealer/builder.

they also go up uber fast, so no long wait on getting your dream barn built!

#5

My reining friend has an MD Barn now for years.
It still looks like new. It is the model with the horizontal bars on the upper part of the fronts.
She really likes it all around, would not change anything.

#6

I bought a MD barn off of craigslist and had it put up on my property. I love it! I changed the dividing stall walls from solid to bottom solid and top grill and added dutch doors. I used the old dividers and stall walls to build run in sheds.

I’ve had it up for several years and it’s awesome. Easy to clean and very functional. You just drill into the walls to add stuff.

Some pics-
stalls
http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/88/71/3/3/8/2169303080058815717gpBmCG_th.jpg
http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/69/669/4/85/52/2471485520058815717dNzSIF_th.jpg

side view
http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/89/73/1/90/67/2730190670058815717kpzJBN_th.jpg

Front
http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/88/71/5/75/48/2744575480058815717BIKPmB_th.jpg

center
http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/69/669/1/41/64/2742141640058815717oPtnPu_th.jpg

Our barn is 36x72. I have 8 stalls a hay/feed/wash and tack stall.

#7

I put up a Barnmaster barn four years ago and it still looks like new. I love it. It went up in a week, and I was really happy with the way it looks and functions, and their crew that constructed it was great.

I have attached 40 foot runs that open up to the pasture, and I leave the gates open most of the time so my horses can choose if they want to be in or out. I have four stalls, a tack room and an open bay that I use to stage a month’s worth of hay and bales of shavings. I had them build a separate hay storage next to my barn.

I also recommend the skylights. It is bright and airy, and I have big doors on each end of the 16 foot aisle so I get great ventilation. Wouldn’t change a thing.

#8

Very nice looking barn. Where did you get your stall sides etc.

#9

They are the Farmaster Stall Systems:

http://www.stockyardsupply.com/page21/index.htm

We lined the exterior walls with wood so just needed to buy 4 fronts and 4 dividers. It was pretty reasonably priced and has held up well.

#10

Last December the companies, MD Barn, Barnmaster and Barns by Harrahs (the nation’s leaders in Modular Steel Barns) were merged into a single, well managed and financed, Company.

My observations are the BEST of all the companies innovations have been integrated into a quality product, surpassing the others.

They are also offering 100% Material financing up to $40,000 on approved credit of course. These are FREE standing loans, not tied to any other asset base.
Call me with questions, I am not directly involved in the new company but have a 20 year working relationship with the Businesses.

#11

To Finish questions…

One big question I have is about the steel interior walls. How do you install shelving, saddle racks, etc?? Does all of this have to be prefab or can you get regular (wood) walls for your tack/feed rooms?

And does anyone have one of these barns in a major hurricane alley?

Shelving supporting a lot of weight is easily installed with supports on the steel channels with “tec” screws. If you want to fasten in the 4’ middles it is recommended to “through Bolt”
Any wall can be mfg. with a T&G Interior or exterior. These are still Laminated walls (2" thick")

Word of caution, barns with this option lose their Fire resistance, which is a major reason for so many choosing the MDBarnmaster style building.

The barn are engineered for wind conditions up to 120 MPH. A good friend had an MD barn many years ago that stood rock solid in Florida’s Hurricane Andrew. Also had a friend’s building withstand Hurricane Iniki in 1992, with just a slightly peeled roof along the eave.

#12

I have a Barnmaster and love it. It has been easy to maintain and the upkeep is minimal. I do have a suggestion…I didn’t do it and I can’t remember why I did not, but here goes. If you go with one, make sure the walls sit higher up on the foundation. I don’t know what the term is for it, but I didn’t do it and there are certain spots where over the past years, the moisture has rusted out spots in the stall. I guess I could call BM and have them check it out. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I really stripped the stall in question. But, I think I could have prevented it had I listened to my friend who said the foundation needed to be higher than the stall bottom.

#13

We’ve had our Barnmaster barn for over 15 years. Still love love love it. It’s fire resistant, somewhat insulative, and stands up to Wyoming winds just fine. It was one of our windy-ish days (40 mph and up) when the very skeptical building inspector came to look it over years ago. (We were the first Barnmaster in Wyoming.) He was soooooo impressed - he said he wished all Wyoming barns stood up to winds as well. Still looks new.

It’s easy peasy to drill the walls to install racks and such.

Liz

#14

Where do they ship from? I’m just thinking that could add to the cost significantly…

Can you insulate and heat them?

#15

Thanks very much for all of the info so far! I really like the properties of the metal barns so it’s definitely on my list of considerations. My only experience with one is just seeing the one that is out at the Equine Educational Unit when I was in college so no day-to-day experiences. I actually think theirs might be a Barnmaster also. Good to hear that those of you who do use them on a daily basis can speak highly of them.

#16

We had a Barnmaster barn built on our property 6 years ago, and we couldn’t be happier with it. One feature that I especially like is that it’s easy to add onto or modify. We have a 36 x 36 raised center aisle barn with eves on both sides. Last year we had a hay storage built under the eve on one side of the barn, and it functions and looks great. Basically, the contractor just ordered more panels to construct the hay storage area. He suggested a sliding metal door, which when closed makes the hay storage area pretty much disappear.

The barn is “kick proof”. I can testify after having a boarder’s horse who kicked consistently in his stall (we asked the boarder to leave) other than dings in the wall of the stall where the horse kicked there was no damage whatsoever to our barn. The barn is very well ventilated and pretty much maintenence free.

#17

We purchased a 5 stall shedrow inline barn from MDBarnmaster in 2012. Overall, I’m happy with the quality and the final product meets all the marketing hype…fire proof, kick proof, easy-to-clean, and etc. It is a good product but the question is…
Is it worth it?
Recently we contacted our local dealer to get pricing on additional stalls. It’s now 7,100.00 per stall (49.99 sq/ft). That’s 30% more than five years ago. Yikes!

The thing is…I got pricing for individual walls and doors. For a new stall, the walls and doors run about $3200 which means the connector columns, roofing, screws and such are another $3900. The numbers just don’t make sense. That stuff just doesn’t cost that much to manufacture. I’ve purchased steel buildings with far larger support beams and steel panels for other buildings. I know how much this stuff costs…

I really think these folks are pricing themselves out of business. Personally, I’m going to look else where.

#18

Wow, this is an old thread.

#19

Wow yes it is!! After posting this thread, I ended up pricing a super basic 36x36 barn from MD Barnmaster and it was $60k!!! Ummm no thanks!!

Annnnd we still haven’t build a barn yet, so there’s that. haha

#20

Go with a pole building company.
I built a pole barn and finished off the inside myself with stall fronts from TSC.
The price per square foot is generally quite reasonable, and you can finish off how/what you can afford.
Stalls can be fairly simply built with just 2x6x12’s (or10’s) lumber and 4 ft wide tubular gates.
My stall fronts were fairly inexpensive from the local TSC, but most local feed stores can order in and deliver stall fronts/panels also.
I built the wall dividers with salt treated 2x6x12’s, and covered those with 1/4 inch stained plywood for a finished look.
Good luck!! :slight_smile:

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