He Used Pallet Racking To Frame A Building

He Used Pallet Racking To Frame A Building BUILDINGS New Techniques “I built a large storage shed using pallet racks for the framework after seeing a much smaller shed built the same way at a local hardware store ” says Michigan idea man Scott Karkau “My father-in-law who’d built a lot of things from scrap materials on his farm didn’t think it would work but he was really impressed when it was finished even though it took nearly two years ” The 80 by 100-ft structure is 26-ft tall with 18-ft side walls The main building is 50 by 100 ft with a 30-ft lean-to A 50-ft square loft forms a second story above two sections of the shop Karkau is a truck driver with very little framing or construction experience but he says “I’m full of ideas and a hoarder who scavenges all types of things so gathering materials for my shed was a year-long adventure I got 350 8-ft and 12-ft pallet rack cross members from an old warehouse for $400 As a bonus the price included 100 sheets of 3/4 and 1/2-in plywood which I used for divider walls and adding a second floor to my building I paid $3 000 for 25 used 50-ft trusses and three 14-ft by 14-ft steel doors Another $200 got me 120 used engineered trusses Three sides of my barn are covered with insulated 2 1/2-in thick siding that I got for $300 ” To round out his materials list Karkau purchased 30 new 18-ft rack uprights 27 engineered floor trusses pole barn steel roofing and vinyl siding The concrete flooring for half the shed and driveway approaches were his most expensive outlay at nearly $18 000 Karkau used the pallet racks to frame the walls and provide support for the roof The bases are bolted to 4-ft deep concrete footings with uprights reinforced by cross members on the top middle and bottom He hired a crane and operator for five hours to set the trusses ” With all materials and construction labor included Karkau says his insulated 80-ft by 100-ft building cost him about $9 per sq ft to build That’s less than half the $20 per sq ft a neighbor paid for his custom-built 50-ft by 100-ft shed with all new materials Karkau insulated ceilings in the loft two shop areas and half of the main building with 285 sheets of 4-ft by 8-ft by 3-in thick panels salvaged at no cost from a local Sam’s club The building has 30 windows of various sizes and shapes that Karkau bought on clearance for about $1 600 Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Scott Karkau 374 Harper Road Mason Mich 48854 ph 517-881-4979; scottkarkau@gmail com

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