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Do-It-Yourself Barn Straightening
"The barn was crooked in every way before we started," says Leo Redekop, Watrous, Sask., who came up with a relatively simple and inexpensive "do-it-yourself" way to straighten an old barn that's been standing on his place for 75 years.
Once straightened, Redekop replaced the windows and added new siding and shi
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Do-It-Yourself Barn Straightening LIVESTOCK Buildings 7-4-25 "The barn was crooked in every way before we started," says Leo Redekop, Watrous, Sask., who came up with a relatively simple and inexpensive "do-it-yourself" way to straighten an old barn that's been standing on his place for 75 years.
Once straightened, Redekop replaced the windows and added new siding and shingles. He also added a lean-to to the barn and put calf pens in both the lean-to and the barn, moving the alley to the side of the barn and putting pens outside the lean-to in a clever arrangement that makes the most of the room in the old building.
"What was once an eyesore that most people would have demolished is now attractive and a key part of my cattle operation," says Redekop.
Here's how he went about straightening his leaning barn:
First, he poured a new foundation alongside the old one and directly under the upper sill which had swayed badly off to the side of the old foundation. With braces he secured the sill above the new foundation.
Next, he prepared to install new studs along each side by removing all siding on the walls leaning out. On the other side, where new studs would be installed inside the barn, several loft floor boards were removed to make room. Then new studs were cut to uniform length, jacked tightly into place and nailed.
Once new walls were installed, the old studs on all four sides of the barn were cut to allow the weight of the barn to fall into place against the new studs down both sides of the barn.
The end walls were left hanging while a foundation was poured for them. Then new, shorter studs were nailed in place alongside the old ones. The bottom was then closed in on all sides with siding.
"It's hard to compare the cost of doing this yourself with a commercial straightening service because two of us did the labor. The only cost to us was materials. No special equipment was required," Redekop told FARM SHOW.
For more information contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Leo Redekop, P.O. Box 907, Watrous, Sask. SOK 4T0 Canada (ph 306 946-2491).
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