Choosing a barn for your horse can be an exciting activity but also a tedious task. Wouldn’t you want your livestock to relish the lush green grass fields accompanied by a safe and secure shelter with all the necessities? We are sure you love your livestock and would choose the best to give your livestock a comfortable and safe haven.
What do you think? What is an ideal barn? Well, a perfect barn should have enough ventilation, all the necessary facilities, and sufficient space to accommodate the livestock. Picture a barn in your mind, and you will see a spacious well-built barn with large windows located in the middle of vast green land with ample sunlight and breeze.
Imagining something is really easy, but to turn that imagination into reality, you must make an effort. Choosing a barn is no less than turning your dream metal structure for your horse into a reality that demands proper planning, consideration of various factors, and enormous decisions relating to budget, design, customizations, etc.
Let us walk you through the factors that you should consider before buying a metal barn.
Location
The location of the horse barn plays a vital role in the well-being of the livestock. If you plan to install your barn close to the road, make sure the road connecting to the barn is smooth enough to load and offload the horses. Make sure you choose a location that has all the necessary utilities. A drainage system will be of importance if you are bathing your horses inside the metal barn. Select the type of drainage system wisely according to your needs.
One of the important factors to be considered while choosing the location is the weather conditions. If you plan to install the metal horse barn in an area with extreme weather conditions, it will also affect the design of the metal barn and the roofing you decide on for it. Severe weather conditions require metal buildings with certifications, building codes, and strong roofing.
Budget
You might be thinking that this is an easy task, but actually, this is not. Building a metal barn is not a random buy, but it is a long-term investment that you have to make wisely. Before you buy your metal horse barn, make sure you decide the budget you want to keep. The size of your prefab metal horse barns, the customizations you make to it, the location you choose will affect the cost of the metal horse barn. Every square foot counts; the greater the metal barn size, the higher the price. If you build a simple barn, the cost will differ, and if you install a barn with multiple features and add-ons like panels, gables, vertical roofs, insulation, and wainscoting, the price will increase. If you choose to install the metal horse barn in a windy location or a location with harsh weather, then the certifications and codes will add up to the metal barn cost.
Size
What do you plan to use your metal barn for? Yes, we know that you are buying it for your horses, but there are many uses of a metal barn. Decide for what activities you will choose to use the metal barn and then finalize the structure’s size. Make sure you keep a little additional space for emergency storage or in anticipation of future needs. Perhaps, every extra square foot would mean increased barn cost; therefore, finalize the metal barn’s size after proper research and planning.
Additional Features
You will simply love metal for this! Metal barns are highly flexible and versatile and can be given any shape, size, or design. There are a plethora of features that can be added to a metal barn. For starters, the metal horse barns come in various color options. You can also give your choice for doors to the metal barn. Be it a walk-in door, garage door, or roll-up door, they all can be installed in your metal structure. Talking about windows, there are different styles of that too. Sliding windows, glass windows, or wooden windows, the options are endless. Besides these, you can choose gables, roofs, panels, wainscoting, anchors for your metal barn. You can also go for a two-floor barn for livestock and personal living space. Today, Barndominiums are extremely trending as they allow you to live inside your metal barn. You can go for that option if you love to spend your time in the barn taking care of your livestock and do not wish to travel to the barn frequently.
Certifications
This is really important for you if you plan to install your metal barn in a location with extreme weather conditions and prone to storms and hurricanes. Sites that face harsh weather need certified metal buildings. Now what are these? Certified buildings are buildings made with certain specifications that can handle heavy winds and snowfalls. They are built as per the area codes that are mandatory before the metal building is installed. Wind and snow certifications vary from 90-180 mph and 20-65 pounds per square foot, respectively. Every location has different minimum requirements to fulfill before the installation of a metal structure.
You might think that this is not as important, but trust us, this is one of the most important considerations before buying a metal barn. The strength and certification of the metal barn will determine the durability of the metal barn and the lives of livestock that it will shelter.
Installing the Barn is a Step-By-Step Procedure
Designing a metal horse barn is a complex and time-taking process. But once you consider the factors mentioned above, then designing and structuring decisions become easier. Building a metal horse barn is a one-time investment that does not require much maintenance once you install it. Apart from being highly versatile and flexible, metal is also resistant to fire, mold and mildew, and rust. Metal buildings last for years if they are built with high-quality metal and with proper planning. The market is full of metal building suppliers, but we would suggest going for an experienced metal building supplier that offers you maximum benefits.
