VersaTube vs pole barn: which is right for your property?

Two different ways to build

A pole barn, also called a post frame building, is built around large posts set into the ground or onto footings, with a framed roof structure and metal or wood siding. It has a long history on farms and ranches.

VersaTube buildings are pre-engineered steel kits. VersaTube's Tennessee manufacturing listing describes them as pre-engineered DIY metal building and shelter kits made of ready to assemble structural steel frame components joined with patented Slip-Fit connections. Hansen Pole Buildings, a post frame supplier, puts the distinction bluntly on its blog: VersaTube buildings are not pole buildings.

What a VersaTube building is made of

According to an authorized reseller's listing for VersaTube's Summit series garages, the frame uses 2 inch by 3 inch heavy duty galvanized American steel tubing, the panels are 29 or 26 gauge sheet metal, and the frame carries a 20 year warranty. The kit is described as engineered for the wind and snow loads of your area. VersaTube says it is a U.S. based company with dealer partners in eight countries and over 2,500 dealers, and the buildings are sold through dealers whose crews erect them or through the factory with approved installers.

Typical uses listed by VersaTube include steel garages, buildings, carports, shelters, barns and loafing sheds.

Snow load is the deciding question in Central Oregon

Whatever you build, it has to carry your site's snow. Deschutes County says snow load is site specific and must come from the Oregon Snow Load Map, and prescriptive residential design uses at least 36 psf ground snow load. See snow load requirements.

Hansen's blog tells the story of a steel kit building that collapsed under snow in Minnesota, and its takeaway applies to any brand, including post frame: without sealed engineering drawings that show the design loads for your specific site, a rating is just an assumption. Ask for those drawings before you buy, whichever system you choose.

Foundations and anchoring

The two systems meet the ground differently. Post frame buildings carry loads down through their posts to footings. Steel kit buildings are typically anchored to a concrete slab, piers or footings according to the manufacturer's details. Either way, Deschutes County lists an 18 inch minimum frost depth for footings, and the foundation has to match the snow load the building is designed for. See footing depth in Central Oregon.

If you want a concrete floor, a slab is part of the job either way, which is where a concrete contractor comes in.

Permits are the same question either way

Neither system skips the permit. Inside Bend city limits, structures over 200 square feet or taller than 15 feet need a building permit, and in unincorporated Deschutes County the trigger is over 200 square feet or over 10 feet tall. Farm buildings in certain zones can apply for an agricultural exempt permit. See permits for a garage, shop or steel building.

How to compare them for your project

Line up quotes on the same basis: the design snow load and wind load on the engineering, the size and clear height, door openings, the foundation each requires and who builds it, what is included in the kit and what is not, erection labor, and the warranty. Ask who pulls the permit and who answers questions from the building department.

Think about use, too. A building for vehicles and equipment, a horse shelter and a heated shop have different needs for doors, floors and insulation.

Assembly and erection

VersaTube's dealer page describes two ways to get a building up: buy from a dealer whose crews erect it, or buy from the factory and use an approved installer. The reseller listing describes pre-cut parts with Slip-Fit connections designed to reduce assembly time, and a complete kit with the frame, sheet metal, screws, trim and instructions. Pole barns are typically built on site by a framing crew from a materials package or plans.

Either way, find out before you sign who handles each step: site prep, foundation, delivery, erection, doors and final inspection. Gaps between those steps are where schedules slip.

Where RCC fits

RCC is an authorized VersaTube dealer and installer, and a concrete contractor first. We can price the kit, the foundation and the slab together, and erect the building. If a VersaTube is not the right fit for your site, we will say so. See VersaTube buildings at RCC.