Tips for Buying Residential Steel Buildings

Steel buildings are becoming a more and more popular option for residential use. People are choosing steel buildings for use as garages, storage sheds, home offices, garden buildings and even for extra living space. Choosing metal for your residential building needs makes sense for many reasons, but choosing the right one from all the steel buildings on the market requires some understanding of the basics of building with steel and the buying process.

Price Is Not the Be-All and End-All

Price is obviously an important consideration, but it shouldn’t be your single deciding factor. Everyone loves to save money, but not at the expense of safety or long-range stability. Many cheap steel building kits are only cheap because they cut corners that could have implications on safety and usability. A price difference of several hundred dollars may seem huge, but when you spread out the cost difference over the decades of use you’ll get from a steel building, the difference is actually rather small. Lower prices may also be a consequence of what’s left out of your building quote. Always make sure that you’re comparing equivalent packages when doing price comparisons. If you’re only getting a lower price because you’re only paying for a steel shell, you could end up spending far more than the price difference to finish it the way you want.

Pricing on Residential Steel Buildings

Basic pricing for a steel building usually includes all the metal parts you’ll need to erect your building. When you purchase a steel building kit, it will come with the interior structure, the walls and all the fasteners you need to put it together. It will also usually include the roof, but you’ll often get to choose the roof option that you want for your structure, which will make a difference in the final price.

Many things you think of as part of your building may be optional extras. Those things include trim, gutters, windows and doors. Most dealers and manufacturers will allow you to choose your options and will include them in the price quote they give you.

Contract Details

Always go over your buyer’s contract carefully so that you know exactly what’s included in the price you’re paying. If you’ve discussed specifications, such as a certain door or window model or insulation options, be certain that those things are in the order contract. Generally, the contract you’re sent will have the entire building priced out piece by piece. Make sure that you’re getting everything you think you’re paying for before you sign the contract.

Steel Buildings and Local Codes

Always check with your local zoning office and building code office to get all the details and specifications you’ll need to follow when erecting your structure. Many communities have specific codes for steel buildings, and most manufacturers will work with you to create a design that conforms to your local building codes.

Accessories and Finish Work for Steel Buildings

Steel buildings are an increasingly popular choice for homeowners who want to add garages, workshops, home offices and other additions to their homes. There are dozens of decisions to make when you’re trying to narrow down your choice of steel buildings for your property, but none are quite as much fun as choosing the accessories and finish work that customizes your new building and makes it stand out from other steel buildings of similar basic design. These are the most common customizations and accessories you can choose from when designing your steel buildings.

Trim Choices for Steel Buildings

Trim serves two major functions for your building. First, and most important, it covers places where two pieces of metal join and makes the building weather tight. Second, and more obviously, trim makes your building look neatly finished and complete. Many steel building companies provide a wide range of color choices in trim options, and the best custom cut the trim for each building. Properly finished and installed trim is like the frosting on a cake – it greatly enhances the building’s appearance and value.

Gutters and Downspouts

Some suppliers of steel buildings include the gutters and downspouts in the trim package, but a few don’t. Even those that count them as part of the trim package nearly always offer them in colors that match the trim for a complete look.

Roof Ridge

The roof ridge fits over the top of the roof peak and connects the two roof panels to each other. It also covers the seam between the two roof peaks and prevents leaks. The roof ridge is also part of the basic trim package, even though it has a vital purpose.

Windows and Skylights

Windows provide light and ventilation, and improve the appearance of your steel building – but they’re not always necessary for small steel buildings, garages and storage sheds. Even if they’re not required, however, they can add a professional finishing touch and make your shed or garage fit more comfortably into the landscape. Windows fit anywhere in your steel building between supports and cables, and are self-framing, so they’re very easy to install.

Skylights are made of heavy-duty fiberglass and can be installed in the roof or on any of the walls. They’re usually sold in pairs, but may be available as singles. Properly installed skylights allow natural lighting into steel buildings and increase their energy efficiency. They also add a nice finishing touch to a home office, office or retail space.

The finish work on steel buildings is half the fun and most of the style. Once you’ve done all the hard work of meeting local building codes and figuring out the specs needed for proper load-bearing, take a break from the hard work and have a little fun.

Steel Buildings Make Great Practice Studios

Is your teen part of a rock band that’s been practicing in your basement? Do you have your own rock band or musical group in need of practice space? Are you going to tear your hair out if you hear THAT song blasting from the basement – complete with missed notes and off-kilter harmonies – one more time? Steel buildings to the rescue! A steel building in your backyard can be the solution that will make the entire family – and the neighborhood – happy.

Few young bands can afford studio rental time or the cost of renting a hall on a regular basis for practicing, but practicing is a vital part of making it big in the music business. If your son or daughter has shown the commitment needed to really give it a go, but your basement or garage just isn’t a practical practice space any longer, take a look at the advantages that steel buildings offer as an alternative music practice studio.

Basic Steel Buildings are an Economical Solution

Metal buildings are surprisingly inexpensive, especially in a reasonable size for a practice space. Simple arch construction steel buildings – Quonset buildings and modified Quonsets – are available in DIY kits that you and the band can put up together. You can add it to your existing home, attach it to garages or build a stand-alone studio located away from your home. As long as the local building codes permit, you usually don’t need to excavate a foundation. In most cases, a poured cement slab foundation is all that’s needed. Even if you have the foundation poured by a professional construction outlet, the cost of your steel building will be quite reasonable.

There’s Plenty of Space for Different Floor Plans

Because steel buildings don’t require interior posts to support them, you’ll have the entire interior space to use for creating your floor plan. You can easily build in a stage, separate part of the building as a sound room or create a temperature-controlled area for instrument storage. You’ll find pre-engineered steel buildings in many different exterior plans and suited to nearly any budget. Steel buildings are among the most versatile types of construction, which means that when the rock band is ready to move out, you can easily reconfigure the space to serve other purposes. Steel buildings also make great garages, storage sheds and home offices.

Acoustics and Soundproofing Options

One of the major advantages of steel buildings as a small practice music studio is that they fit together so precisely. The precision fit makes it exceptionally easy to apply insulation and sound-proofing materials, which is an obvious benefit for any area where a band will be practicing. Check into acoustic tiles for the interior walls to provide soundproofing – as much to protect the neighborhood from the assault on its ears as to provide the sound-proof area required to do live recordings and demo tapes.

If you’re ready to give your vote of confidence and show support for your kids’ dreams of a musical career, look into the advantages steel buildings offer as music studios. You’ll be surprised at how affordable and easy it can be to set up a practice studio for the band.

How Easy Is It to Construct Steel Buildings?

Many people look into steel buildings as a solution to their additional storage needs, but find it hard to believe that they can possible be as easy to erect as the manufacturers say. When they say “Anyone with moderate DIY skills can put up a steel building with the help of a couple of friends,” exactly what do they mean by “moderate DIY skills”? If you’ve been considering a steel building for your garage, storage shed, home office or carport needs, this information may help reassure you that really, it’s true – almost anyone can put up basic arch-construction steel buildings with little experience and no special tools.

Most steel building kits come with everything you need to put your building components together and get them standing. If you work with a reputable supplier of metal buildings, your kit will also come complete with an easy-to-follow step-by-step manual that will get you up and running in no time. There are only four basic parts to putting together your building, and those four parts are the same for garages, storage sheds, barns or home offices.

Laying Foundations

The foundation and footings are vital to the success of your build, and they’re also the one part where many home builders call in the pros. The right foundation depends on the soil and loading conditions where you’re planning to build, as well as on local code restrictions. A local contractor or construction professional can help choose the best site for your building, determine whether you need any type of site preparation and design the best foundation for your building. In many cases, a small metal building will only require cement footings and a poured concrete slab as a foundation. In other cases, especially if you don’t need or desire a floor, the footings are the only part you’ll need to worry about.

Building the Arches

Putting the arches together is truly a DIY project, and if you can do it yourself, you’ll save thousands of dollars in construction costs. You’ll do most of the actual assembly on the ground, before you raise the arches. You simply put the pieces together, using basic power tools that you probably already own.

Raising the Arches

Once the arches are assembled, you’ll need to stand them up and move them into place. For larger buildings, you may need the assistance of some heavy equipment. But in most cases, you and a few friends can easily stand the arches up and move them into place. If you follow the instructions in the kit precisely, the pieces you put up first will help support later pieces. The precision fit of the pieces will ensure that all of the arches will overlap where they should, allowing for fast, accurate assembly.

Add the End Walls

The final step in the assembly of your steel building is to add the end wall panels. The arches provide the sidewalls and the roof in one. The end walls finish off the exterior of the building. Each end wall panel is precut and ready to put together, then stand and bolt into place.

The only tools you’ll need to put up most small steel buildings are a power drill with a screw socket, a hammer, a tape measure, a level and a crew of friends with a free weekend.

Invest in Quality When Choosing Steel Buildings

Steel buildings are available in many different styles, sizes and colors. High-quality steel building kits are designed and fabricated with the utmost attention to detail to ensure that there’s no waste or extra weight in the structure. This not only cuts down on shipping costs and materials cost, it also ensures that your entire building fits together perfectly, making it weather-tight, energy-efficient and easy to build.

When you choose a steel building for your project, whether it’s commercial or residential, you’re making an investment in quality. The building you erect will outlast nearly any other kind of construction. Steel is stronger, is less susceptible to damage, is fire-resistant and resists corrosion. Steel buildings can be designed to withstand all types of severe weather, including hurricanes, and can be built to conform to the most stringent codes in earthquake prone areas.

In addition, most metal building kits are reasonably priced and easy to assemble. If you’re reasonably handy, you can probably assemble a steel building yourself with the help of a few friends. More complex buildings may require the help of a professional contractor, but even then, the cost savings can be considerable. In most cases, arch-construction steel buildings don’t need a dug foundation, and, because they’re delivered ready-to-assemble, take far less time to erect than wood-frame structures.

Once upon a time, steel buildings were used as airplane hangars and storage buildings, but modern technologies and design choices have opened the field to many other types and styles of metal structures. These days, it’s not unusual for steel buildings to house workshops, retail stores and office buildings, as well as home offices, garden houses and storage areas.

Most manufacturers provide a 20 to 30 year warranty on their buildings as a whole, with parts of the structure guaranteed for more or fewer years. For example, some of the most energy efficient roofs may be guaranteed for up to 50 years. The guarantees are completely within reason – it’s not unusual even now to see World War II era Quonset huts – the base model for many of today’s most popular steel buildings – still in use as storage sheds, garages, barns and shops.

If you’re looking for the ideal solution to protect your car or boat, a shop for your farm or craft goods, a storage shed or garden shed or any one of a multitude of needs, consider the range of steel buildings available on the market today. They’re guaranteed to meet or exceed your needs and your standards.

Energy Star Windows and Doors Make Steel Buildings Even Greener

Today’s steel buildings offer many options for windows, doors and trim to help you customize your build. If you’re putting up a new storage shed, garage, office or other steel building project, the right doors and windows can add a lot more than just good looks. Even though steel buildings are already among the most energy efficient structures being built today, your door and window choices can increase the energy efficiency even further.

A lot of energy goes right out the window or the front door. Tight-fitting windows and doors made of the most energy-efficient materials available can save you hundreds of dollars are year on your energy costs – and reduce your carbon footprint by cutting down on the energy you use. When you shop for window and door options for your steel building, be sure to check their Energy Star rating and choose the highest-rated options you can afford. Don’t forget that you’ll often recoup the higher cost of greener windows and doors in energy savings, sometimes in as little as a few months or a year.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, you can save 7 to 15 percent on your energy costs by choosing Energy Star doors, windows and skylights. The savings can be as high as $500 a year in New England, just on heating costs. If you’re in Florida, the savings might be slightly smaller – in the neighborhood of $300 a year. Those savings can go a long way toward making the higher initial expense of energy efficient windows more palatable.

Skylights in your steel buildings are another way to reduce your energy costs. A skylight can help capture the heat from the sun during the winter or provide additional ventilation in the summer. In addition, a skylight reduces your need for artificial lighting, and introduces healthy full-spectrum light into your environment. This is especially important if you’ll be using a steel building as a workshop or home office.

Steel buildings are a great environmental choice for many reasons. They’re made of recycled materials, and can be recycled when you’re ready to upgrade. Their weather-tight construction reduces your energy costs and helps keep your building more comfortable. When you choose Energy Star windows and doors for your steel buildings, you increase the benefit to the environment by reducing your energy use even further. That does great things for the environment, and keeps more money in your pocket at the same time.

Steel Buildings Are a Green Choice

Green builders are turning to steel buildings as an environmentally friendly choice to traditional wood construction for many reasons. While steel may seem an odd choice for an earth-friendly building design, steel buildings actually offer many green advantages for builders. They last longer, are more energy efficient and consume fewer natural resources in construction than wood and other traditional building materials.

Recycled and Recyclable

Most of the steel used in steel building construction today is 100% post-consumer recycled. When you choose to build a metal building, you’re not removing more of the earth’s natural resources. Instead, you’re actually diverting waste from the waste stream and landfills. That alone makes a steel building a greener choice than most wood construction, but it doesn’t end there. When you decide you’re ready to upgrade to another building, your current structure can be disassembled and sold to be reassembled elsewhere rather than being demolished and sent to the landfill.  If you decide to move, you can take your building with you by disassembling it and reassembling it at your new site. It doesn’t get much greener than that.

Energy-Efficiency for Savings

Today’s metal buildings are energy-efficient and weather-tight, making them easier to heat and cool than traditional construction. They’re made with high-grade materials that meet all environmental standards, and you can increase their greenness by choosing components and accessories, such as Energy-Star windows and doors and highly reflective roofs, that decrease your energy use even more. If you’re concerned about the environment, you’ll find that a steel building has a far smaller energy footprint than nearly any other type of construction in a similar size.

Non-Allergenic

If part of your reason for going green is to combat the contaminants that make breathing difficult for so many people, a steel building offers many advantages. Steel is resistant to mold and insect infestation, two primary contributors to allergic reactions and respiratory problems. The powder coating used for color doesn’t emit VOCs, another set of serious respiratory irritants.

Bonus Green Factor

Steel building kits are nearly always shipped ready to assemble in one or two truckloads, with everything needed to complete the construction. That means fewer trips, which translates to less fuel consumption. In addition, they’re lighter and more compact than other types of construction, which reduces the fuel consumption even further.

If your priorities for building include a concern for the environment, consider the many types of steel buildings available for your construction project. When you consider all the factors, steel may be the greenest building material on the market.

Heating and Cooling for Steel Buildings

One of the many advantages of steel buildings is their energy efficiency. When properly built, a steel building is remarkably weather-tight and energy efficient, which keeps your heating and cooling costs low. While it’s entirely possible to use a steel storage building without a heating or cooling system, installing one can keep your space comfortable during extreme temperatures and prevent damage to your belongings. If you’re considering a steel building as an office or workshop space, heating and cooling may be a necessity, especially if you’re located in an area with hot summers and cold winters. There are many factors to consider when deciding on whether and how to keep your new building comfortable and useable in all weather.

When you order your steel building, ask about the built-in ventilation system. Many steel buildings include adequate ventilation systems, including ducts and vents to allow free movement of air. In some cases, the ventilation system will be enough to prevent any one area from becoming too hot, cold or wet. If it’s not enough, proper ventilation will help your heating or cooling system work more efficiently, which saves you money on your energy costs.

Insulation is your first step to an energy efficient steel building. Most steel buildings are designed to be easy to insulate. Depending on your climate, insulation may be all the “heating system” that you need, especially if you pay attention to natural ways of conserving heat and cooling your space.

Choose a heating and cooling system that’s appropriate for the size of your building. HVAC systems are rated according to the square footage they can handle. If you choose a system rated for a larger area, you’ll be spending money you don’t need to spend without seeing an equivalent benefit in energy efficiency. If the system you choose for your steel building is rated for a smaller size, it will have to work extra hard to keep on top of the changing temperatures. That will increase your energy costs and shorten the life of your HVAC system.

Work with a specialist to decide on the best type of system to install, as well as to decide on the location for thermostats and heat registers. Locating them properly will ensure that your system is heating the space in the most efficient way possible.

Keep in mind that there are many ways to decrease the amount of energy you use to heat and cool your building. For example, you can take advantage of natural environment control by choosing an energy-rated roof that reflects the sun’s heat away from your building and helps keep it cooler on hot summer days. South-facing windows invite heat, which can be a blessing on cool winter days. In summer, try deflecting the heat with white or light-colored shutters or draperies to keep the building cooler.

Vent any machinery to the outdoors to prevent the heat from building up inside your building. Also, remember that lighting adds to the heat, especially traditional lighting sources. Consider installing an energy efficient LCD or LED lighting system, which runs considerably cooler than either incandescent or fluorescent lighting to cut down on heat retention in your building.

Many steel buildings are built to be energy efficient, but the choices you make can make a further dent in your heating and cooling costs.