Morton pole barns

[Crush]

Wondering if anyone has experience with them? Any feedback ie things you would do differently, quality etc..
Thx in advance
B

[Billohio]

We have 3. Anymore they are considerably higher than other companies in the area. We have 2 amish built barns since. Morton has a good warranty, good material and the crews can put a building up in no time. Our farm shop was a pole barn they insulated, covered the interior walls and ceiling. Turned out great. We seem to have a couple other metal companies in the area and they can beat morton pretty good on price. The salesman laid out my 30x45 garage and its kind of screwed up. I thought he should have known what to do but no. One thing we had trouble with, one building had some material under the roof to insulate it. It got to sagging and birds were building nests above it. They were not much help in correcting either an incorrect application or material just sagged with age. Now you can get a felt material already on the metal. We figure when the warranty is up now, we wont be around to care

[bbbentley]

My 2 cents - build it at least 13’ High. Why?, you may want to put in a lift or build a loft. 13’ gives you at least 6 ft above and below a loft. 2) look into getting custom trusses that are either boxed in the center, meaning you could have another loft down the center ridge of a gabled roof. 3)Have those 4 foot metal panels installed around the bottom perimeter (a lot of times they are the color of the trim).Why?. If you accidentally dent one of those panels, you only have 4 ft to replace and not 13 or whatever total length. If you can, put 4x8 plywood(4 “ verticle) around inside perimeter to protect siding. 3) They make a clear panel that has the same contour as the siding. Put them on at least the length of one side to let natural light in. 4) put either a window or vent with a fan up in at least one gable to aid in taking out fumes and hot air. 5) put about 4 anchors flush with the floor I have 3/4” threaded holes that I can screw a large eye bolt in. You don’t know how handy that is to chain something to the floor to hold it in place to work on or pry on. 6) I don’t put windows at eye level, just the ones mentioned up high. If you do put windows at eye level, make a welded woven bars that prevent entry. You can’t prevent everything. I know of at least 2 guys that someone used a cordless circular saw or sawsall and entered right through the siding. 7) invest in motion sensor alarm. You should spend time reading up on garagejournal.com for more ideas. Spend money for insulation- walls, ceiling and under floor. Look into H2O heated floor. Have a separate room or walled of area or outside shed for air compressor. They can be noisy ( unless you have the screw kind) run all air lines up high, then make drops Come down to a “t” fitting waiste high and put a 1 foot piece of pipe straight down below “t” with a ball valve to drain moisture.

[Crush]

Great info., thanks so much!!

[bbbentley]

Point 3 re: clear panels. Have them only 1 or two feet tall at the top of the wall at the bottom of the truss or aka bottom of gable entire length of building.
Also put in a floor drain for each bay

[L78 Fred]

A few more tips from experience

Morton is a quality name but if you use them make sure they use screws and not nails

I put min 1' eves on all sides and recommend 3-4' overhang on the garage door side

I agree spend the money on sufficient insulation for your area in the walls/ceiling
I like Bentley use plywood except I run it horizontal either 3/4" painted or 5/8" sheeting with white FRP ( fiberglass reinforced plastic) glued on ( durable and easy clean up)

I also use the box trusses for additional headroom for lifts

Spend the money for good commercial grade insulated overhead doors- oversize them you will really appreciate it later- I put the windows in the door up higher for security reasons

I like to use 4,000 psi 6" concrete either fiber mesh or wire mesh so I have no issue with heavier equipment or lifts. seal or paint/stain the garage floor prior to using the garage

I use 3/4" EMT conduit drops and home runs to my panel for flexibility to add anything electrical later.

LED lights are great but T8 Fluorescent moisture proof are more cost effective at this time

My garages are pitched 1/4" for washing cars and installed a drain with grill across the front of my garage on the inside ( cant do this in some areas)

Any other questions please let me know and I will be happy to help with any thing I can
I have built 4 for myself so far and am continuing to make refinements on each of them

Best Wishes
Fred

[L78steve]

I have 2 Morton buildings and both are great.
I have #3 scheduled for May but am going with Posteel this time due to cost.
Keep in mind whomever you choose the building is only as good as the assembly crew.
I had a problem with Mortons roof leaking. Some screws were too tight and dished the metal causing a leak.
Some too loose and when the wind blew it pushed down the metal opening the seal.
Morton was on it quick.

[Starship]

Have had a 36x50 for 30+ years. Only problem I ever had was paint flaking off the roof after about 10 years. They replaced the entire roof under warranty.

[Crush]

I really appreciate everyone’s input. Currently working through design w rep. Will keep you posted.

[1railman]

I have a Morton and paint is about all off roof. Building is 30 plus years old and green is pretty faded. Trusses are on 9 foot center. Having said that, it is still standing.

I do agree I would opt for screws in metal rather than nails. I too would opt for posts that are not buried in ground. I.E. posts on steel clips or up-graded posts now available.

[TDW]

Before I had my buildings built, I did extensive research on most of the different building construction styles. Morton was one of the ones that I researched. After many hours of this, I decided to go with the Timbercraft Buildings. The difference in cost is not too bad, but it is more money for the Timbercraft. The company that did mine was exceptional. On time, showed up when they said they would, stayed on my buildings until their work was completely finished, and no cost over-runs. Strictly by the contract. The buildings are fantastic. I had a 40x48x14 shop built, a 30x40 residence, with an attached 30x30 garage. If you want to take an hour or so, read through his web-site. Lots of good info. Talks about the post and beam construction as opposed to the standard "pole building" types. A much better building, in my opinion. https://www.cornerstonebuildingcompany.com/

[wheelhop]

Any estimates on the cost of a 30 by 40 (1200 sf) pole building. Is there a square foot price? How hard is it to get something like this approved in a residential neighborhood?
I used to be a home builder and realize there are many variables that would affect price.

[PxTx]

I reached out to Morton for a 36x60 design I have. The local salesman out if NJ did reach out, and gave me a verbal of $150k.

When I pushed him to help me realize my dream and talk about itemizing the estimate so I could see where I might be abe to cut cost, he refused. I think he qualified me and felt I wasn't a lead worth persuing.

Maybe he was right. I am moving forward on a stick build and hoping to come in about 50% under his estimage- finishing much of the interior work myself. We'll see.

[Billohio]

150k seems outlandish. I am close to one of their warehouses and would guess without it being insulated and finished inside, that size is a 40 to 50k building.

[Vern B]

I have a Morton and paint is about all off roof. Building is 30 plus years old and green is pretty faded. Trusses are on 9 foot center. Having said that, it is still standing.

I do agree I would opt for screws in metal rather than nails. I too would opt for posts that are not buried in ground. I.E. posts on steel clips or up-graded posts now available.

9' centers??....but not surprising for Morton. I'd be scared to death of that living where you could get a significant snow load.

Being around the business all my life, most of the buildings I saw that collapsed from snow loads were Morton buildings. Whoever you get prices from, made sure they conform with local building codes. The big box stores are notorious for quoting buildings that violate local codes, not intentionally I'm sure, they likely have a generic plan in their quoting system that doesn't always comply with local codes.

[MikeyB]

I used Morton. Very high quality. They used screws. I was very happy with the work and materiel. I found them about 10% higher than other builders i quoted but went with Morton because of the reputation and warranty. I just had the shell built. 8 foot centers. I did the interior, electrical, insulation myself.

[markinnaples]

Beautiful building.

[Crush]

I used Morton. Very high quality. They used screws. I was very happy with the work and materiel. I found them about 10% higher than other builders i quoted but went with Morton because of the reputation and warranty. I just had the shell built. 8 foot centers. I did the interior, electrical, insulation myself.

What size is that and how many cars can you get in it?