Designing a pole barn in collaboration with Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing is easy. Our leadership has over three decades of experience in the industry! As pole barn builders living in Colorado, we understand the weather and its challenges. Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing works closely with property owners to design pole barns and build structures catering to their precise requirements.
How To Choose A Pole Barn Size
The first question to ask when you design a pole barn is: What is the purpose of your building? The second question is, do you plan to expand in the future? The answers to these two questions influence the size of your pole barn. Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing can produce buildings of all sizes throughout Colorado, including indoor riding arenas, horse barns, agricultural buildings, residences, shops, and garages.
Let’s consider the size requirements of a standard indoor riding arena. According to industry experts, the ideal arena is 80’ wide with interior heights between 16’ and 18’ from ground to peak. Doors should be approximately 14’ high and wide to accommodate a horse and rider. These dimensions are essential for functionality, and the most important factor in an indoor arena is maintaining a clear span with no beams or posts inside the riding space. The standard indoor arena size is an 80’ x 120’.
Plan for future developments when you are designing a pole barn. If you are building a riding arena, you might want to customize the design with additional stalls, tack areas, feed storage, or wash stalls.. Staff housing or client accommodations are also valuable additions.. For a residential garage, consider reserving space for a future office, a workshop, recreational vehicles, or seasonal storage.
Peak Pole Barns can build wall heights ranging from 10’ to 24’ and any width up to 80’. We can construct any length you want without limits. The post-frame building method allows for large floor plans without the need for interior support walls, providing maximum flexibility in layout and use, giving you more building interior space than other construction methods. Our buildings are sturdy, and our designs are specially engineered to withstand Colorado wind speeds and snow loads while accounting for every detail of safety and durability.
Pole Barn Cost Factors: What to Consider When Budgeting
Budget Planning for Designing a Pole Barn
The building’s purpose, size, and chosen features are the main cost factors. A simple hay storage barn will not require large windows and doors or decorative elements like a cupola compared to an indoor riding arena. Considering these details early makes choosing the right features easier when setting a realistic budget.
Financing Options for Pole Barn Construction
If you do not have the full funds available, financing may be required. Include both the loan’s principal and interest repayments in your budget so the design process remains clear and manageable.
Site Preparation Costs
Every project requires site preparation, and this can be influenced by weather or terrain. You may need to raise the ground level, remove rocks, or improve drainage. Proper preparation ensures the site will align with the structural needs of your new barn.
Permits and Approvals for your Pole Barn
Permit costs vary by jurisdiction, building size, and intended use. Planning for these expenses early allows you to visualize the finished project timeline with greater accuracy while avoiding delays.
Design and Construction Expenses
Design and construction form a large part of the budget. Peak Pole Barns are specialists in designing a pole barn that matches your needs. Our experienced building designer team manages engineering, planning, and construction to bring your dream pole barn to life.
Finishing and Customization Pole Barn Options
Finishing work may include plumbing, electrical, HVAC, drywall, flooring, and more. These customization options allow you to tailor the space for personal or agricultural storage.
Landscaping and Exterior Features
Landscaping and exterior details may also be part of the budget. Peak Pole Barns offers options such as wainscotting and colour combinations to provide character and endless possibilities.
We understand the importance of transparency and trust in our industry. We like to give clients a tangible demonstration of our professionalism and commitment to the project.
Choosing The Best Pole Barn Layout For Your Needs
The layout of your pole barn should reflect its purpose. You might design your pole barn for livestock, agricultural machinery storage, or even as a helicopter hangar. Using the right design tool makes it easier to create a design that matches your long-term needs.
Positioning plays a major role in layout planning. Barns that house animals need balanced sunlight, shelter from strong winds, and convenient space for loading and unloading. Adequate ventilation, reliable lighting, and easy access to water are also essential. A practical layout should support efficient waste removal and keep daily operations smooth.
For animal housing, consider these essentials:
- Cowsheds benefit from an open loafing shed to maximise airflow.
- Horse barns require wide passageways, large stalls, and open work areas.
- Good airflow reduces ammonia levels, heat, and dust.
- Layouts that are easy to use make it simpler for staff to care for animals.
When you experiment with different layouts, you can refine the placement of stalls, wash bays, and tack areas for better efficiency.
For agricultural machinery, focus on practicality:
- Wide doors on both sides provide easy entry and exit.
- Open floor plans give machinery space to move freely.
- Storage areas for tools and parts keep everything organised.
- A wash bay outside the structure improves maintenance and cleanliness.
With a designer tool, you can view the barn from every angle and ensure your vision into a reality is practical.
Peak Pole Barns has completed hundreds of agricultural and commercial buildings throughout Colorado. Each new building is custom-made to turn your vision into a durable, functional space that supports your work.
5 Tips for Designing A Functional Pole Barn
Design pole barns with functionality in mind. Residential homes and garages serve different purposes than equestrian and agricultural buildings. Each building type has distinct temperature control, access, services, and comfort requirements. We share five tips for designing a functional pole barn
Tip 1: Select the Right Doors
Internal and external doors are key features in pole barn buildings. Select the right door for the building’s purpose, such as mechanical doors opening outwards for large agricultural machinery buildings or an overhead door for horse barns.
Tip 2: Manage Water Access
Provide humans and animals with consistently available clean water and include systems in your design to remove excess water, whether from snow, rain, or a wash bay.
Tip 3: Provide Appropriate Light
Pole barn buildings need artificial light and natural light from windows. Choose energy-saving options to minimize your energy bill.
Tip 4: Ensure Sufficient Ventilation
Good ventilation is vital for all buildings and even more so when you house animals. It gets rid of excess heat, moisture, odors, and indoor pollutants. Cupolas not only look beautiful, but they also provide building ventilation. Pole barn designs enhance ventilation naturally, improving air quality and increasing comfort.
Tip 5: Insulate the Pole Barn Building
Colorado’s climate requires us to insulate our buildings for comfort, especially in homes. The poles used in post-frame construction are widely spaced, which reduces the number of thermal breaks in the structure. This helps in the overall energy efficiency.
Designing a pole barn is a joint effort with clients. Peak Pole Barns can create structures that include everything you need, whether overhead doors, windows, thermal insulation, horse stalls, or cupolas.
The Five Best Pole Barn Design Styles for Every Purpose
The first thing you notice about pole barn buildings is their rooflines. Then you look at features such as the dormers, windows, doors, the veranda, lean-to, and cupola. Finally, we see the colors, unless it is a traditional barn red, which you would notice immediately! Modern technology allows us to be imaginative with our design styles, offering a range of metal colors and patterns.
Did you know there are more than twenty colors to select from for your roof, siding, and trim when you work with Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing?
Let’s look at five potential pole barn design styles for your project.
Gable Roof Pole Barns
The simplicity of gable roofs makes them the most popular design, as the roof’s two sections slope downward from the ridge cap to the walls. Many buildings we designed and constructed have gable roofs.
Monitor Roof Pole Barns
This building has a standard gable roof with a raised center section. Our project gallery highlights an indoor riding arena with this roof style.
Gambrel Roof Pole Barns
Gambrel roofs maximize space and allow for a second story or functional attic.
Pole Barn with a Lean-To
A popular option for all types of buildings, this provides additional covered areas beside the building, including verandas.
Custom Pole Barns
Peak Pole Barns is happy to create any custom pole barn design our clients can think of. Our custom steel fabrication services ensure all your decorative steelwork is unique.
When Peak Pole Barns designs a pole barn, clients can select the features they want. We offer advice to ensure structural stability and optimum functionality, but allow owners to create their dream buildings.
How To Select The Right Pole Barn Contractor
It can be challenging to find the right pole barn contractor. Who can you trust to bring your vision to life when designing a pole barn? Will they deliver quality work, or will the barn fall apart within a few years? Trust between client and contractor is vital for a successful building project. Peak Pole Barns has a general contractors license, is fully insured and pulls permits; all of which provide assurances that the structure is being built correctly.
Choose a Contractor in Colorado With Experience
When the contractor has sufficient experience, you know the pole barn build will go smoothly. Peak Pole Barns has been in and the building business since 2004. We are local to the Colorado Springs and Falcon areas, licensed and insured contractors, and would love to serve you!
Work With a Builder Who Knows Local Conditions
Every area is unique, from its weather patterns to its building codes. A contractor with local knowledge can limit construction delays. We know the weather conditions in Colorado and adapt our designs and construction techniques accordingly.
Pricing.
Pricing should not be the defining factor when you choose a contractor, but the quote should be fair. Our pole barns offer you a budget-friendly solution.
Select a Contractor Who Uses Quality Materials
A pole barn is a fixed asset and should be constructed with quality materials. Peak Pole Barns has built a legacy of quality that speaks for itself. When we build pole barns, they go up fast and remain standing with minimal maintenance.
License, Insurance, Warranties
Confirm the contractor’s license and insurance, as well as the warranties offered on the building and its construction. We have all the necessary licensing and insurance and discuss warranties based on individual project requirements.
Client References
The best way to determine a contractor’s work is by asking previous clients for their opinions and researching online. Peak Pole Barns has multiple references, including the happy clients highlighted on our website.
Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing works throughout Colorado, including Parker, Elbert, Elizabeth, Pueblo, Salida, Canon City, Buena Vista, Hartsel, Fairplay, and beyond. Our mission is to build a quality structure you are proud to own.
Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing specializes in providing a complete building solution, from concept to finished construction. Contact us today if you need professional assistance with designing a pole barn.
Selecting the Materials and Foundation
Most commonly, pole buildings are made from wood or metal. Each comes with its own pros and cons. For strength, safety, and durability, opt for top-quality materials, whichever design you decide on.
Integral to the sturdiness of your post-frame building are the poles. Typically, they are fixed on concrete footings in the ground. Vertical loads, such as the roofing system and even snow, are transferred through the posts to the footings – providing structural integrity. This cost-effective and straightforward method of construction forms the foundation of your pole barn.
The intended purpose of the barn will guide your construction materials choices:
- With no need for a traditional concrete foundation, your flooring may be dirt, gravel, stone, asphalt, or concrete.
- For the exterior siding, you can choose from steel, stucco, vinyl, engineered wood, brick, or cladding.
- Roofing can be metal or shingles.
Maintaining Your Pole Barn
Whether you raised the barn yourself or employed a professional barn builder in Colorado, age and weathering occur. As with anything you own – be it a vehicle, electronic gadget, or building – the life of your pole frame barn will be extended with a bit of TLC from you. From a safety perspective, and for the sake of its contents, schedule the following routine maintenance of your pole barn:
- Check for water leaks and signs of rot
- Inspect the exterior side panels
- Clear the roof of snow and other debris
- Examine all the doors and windows for weather-sealing issues
- Look for and manage pest infestations
- Deal with the accumulation and source of standing water
- Keep the interior neat and functional
Here is a wonderful observation from “The People, Yes” by Carl Sandburg:
“For sixty years the pine lumber barn had held cows, horses, hay, harness, tools, junk amid the prairie winds… and the corn crops came and went, plows and wagon and hands milked, hands husked and harnessed and held the leather reins of horse teams in dust and dog days, in late fall sleet ’til the work was done that fall. And the barn was a witness, stood and saw it all.”
Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing appreciates the needs of pole barn owners like you. Whether you are using the structure to house livestock, store equipment, or keep feed dry, our full-service concierge business is ready to make your vision a reality. Get in touch with Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing in Colorado Springs today for all your barn building requirements – from custom building designs to construction.
Designing a Pole Barn in Colorado FAQ’s
How far apart should posts be on a pole barn?
When designing pole barns in Colorado, posts are typically spaced 8 feet apart, depending on the building’s size, snow load, and wind conditions. Local Colorado pole barn builders often recommend closer spacing in areas with heavy snow for added strength and durability.
Choose Colorado Pole Barn Builders You Can Trust
Designing pole barns in Colorado requires experience, quality materials, and a team that understands local conditions. At Peak Pole Barns and Manufacturing, we specialise in creating durable and functional structures that match your exact needs. Contact us today or request a free quote to get started on your custom pole barn project.