Anyone dismanteled an old barn?

[Pigeon Lady]

My Dh recently became a volunteer firefighter. A local farmer wanted them to burn down an old barn on his property. The other firefighters were talking about the barn. Apparently it's very old and the timbers are huge. They really didn't want to burn it down. Anyway, it turns out that a new barn has been built right up next to it so it would be too dangerous to burn it after all.

Ken got the name and number of the owner. We're going to call and ask if we can go look at the barn. We would really like to save it if at all possible but not sure if it's something just the two of us could do.

If anyone has experience in this I would love to hear about it. Is there a safe way to dismantel the frame without having to hire a crane?

We go by this farm all the time and have seen the new barn being built but can't for the life of me recall seeing an old barn there so I don't think it's a huge structure.

Anyway, all advice and imput will be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Pauline

[CGUARDSMAN]

my dad and a family friend did it when i was a kid and they kept just the best lumber its do-able but you might need to rent some type of lift or small crane to handle the timbers.

[doohap]

My husband and I dismantled the dilapidated old barn on our property, and though it was a bit frightening taking down the last supporting members, we did not need any special equipment. We kept the lumber, used some of the old rafters for a shed on the back of the barn and even saved some old square nails. All the nails, for that matter. Metal sells. But the square ones, we keep!

However, I agree, you may need some sort of bracing or lifting mechanism. Good luck and HAVE FUN! You'll love knowing you did it!

[Farmerwilly2]

I've done several now, get great wood out of them for building, get plenty of scrap to use for kindling. I've got 2 approaches. If the building is stable (a lot of old ones aren't) and you can get on the roof safely it pays to peel it off first. If not, I peel the siding or boxing off first. A mattock makes a great pry tool, you can get lumber off without splintering it to pieces. Next I pull all the girts (the lumber on the sides that the siding was nailed to). Now it gets hairy. The frame will have wind braces that need to be cut, which ones depends on which direction you want to lay it down. The more you cut out, the more unstable it becomes. When I've got them out I run a chain from my tractor to the top of the post, low gear and pull. Better yet, get someone else to run the tractor so you can watch it fall, it is a sight to see. For purists I will admit you loose the ends of your braces, you break out the relish on some tennons and can snap some timbers, but every one I've done has folded like a safety gate. Once it is safely on the ground it's crowbar and mattock and chainsaw work. Congrats to you. I like wood buildings better than metal. They've a better 'feel' to them. You could spend a lot of money renting crane time, drive out pins and disassembling it in the reverse it went up, but it would be pretty pricey.

[Obser]

A long time ago I tore down quite a few barns – when barn siding was very popular for paneling in rustic settings. The only siding that was worthwhile was vertical “board and batten” style. That is generally easy to remove, particularly since the nails are usually rusty. It was typically nailed only top and bottom and usually once between. A long wrecking bar usually let me pry loose the bottom and center nails. Then I would jerk the board up and down then twist it to free top nails.

I never climbed to get any wood – the gain was simply not worth the risk, particularly since the structures were old and dilapidated. Once the available siding was off I pulled down the structure with my 4 x 4 pickup by attaching a long cable to a “critical looking” upright and pulling it out. If I chose well and pulled clean, that would usually bring the structure down as planned.

Occasionally there were surprises – like:

The barn that refused to fall after three posts had been pulled (and I had to get in close to attach the cable again).

The barn that collapsed before I had done anything (but was inside looking aground). That was “exciting” to say the least.

The barn that fell “backward” (in the direction opposite my pull)

The time I used my new truck, attached to a likely post and pulled. The barn came down in the direction I was pulling – but the post to which the cable was attached remained solidly in place so I couldn’t drive clear of the collapse. The barn just missed my new truck.


Your mention of another building quite close to the one to be removed raises some red flags.

Whatever you do – BE CAREFUL (and check your medical, life and liability insurance) – though I didn’t worry about such things back then (forty years ago).

[motdaugrnds]

I have not taken down a barn; but have dismantled a hundred-year old school house to the ground using a crowbar, 4-lb hammer and mattock. This structure was literally held up at the time by a cable run from one side of the building to a large tree on other side of building. This literaly kept the building from falling into the street. Since I did not want the wonderful 16' wide siding damaged nor could I permit the material to fall into the street, I left the cable there the entire time. When I had both the roof and the siding off I busted up the foundation with a sledge hammer and the building fell. I will never forget this experience because I had to do it alone, was in late 50s at the time, female and afraid of heights. I am a city gal and had never done such a thing in my life; but my family needed some building materials and it was given to us free of charge just to move it. It was a dangerous job and I often cried from fear just before I tackeled each portion of it. I have no doubt my heavenly father got me safely thru it.

[doohap]

Originally Posted by motdaugrnds

I have not taken down a barn; but have dismantled a hundred-year old school house ... It was a dangerous job and I often cried from fear just before I tackeled each portion of it. I have no doubt my heavenly father got me safely thru it.

What an experience! How long did it take you?

[RosewoodfarmVA]

Having torn down dozens of houses and barns, I must say with a little common sense it's not hard at all, just disassemble it in reverse order of how it was built. Sometimes you can reassemble it, depending on termite damage, etc. Where in VA are you? If you're near me I'd be glad to have a look at it. I'm in southside Va near the Buggs Island (Kerr) Lake. Nathan

[YuccaFlatsRanch]

If anyne in the Kerrville, TX wants a barn or other old building taken down for the wood and metal I'm your man. I can't get enough of the old wood and parts and I really need the old metal roofing.

[bachelorb]

Originally Posted by Farmerwilly2

You could spend a lot of money renting crane time, drive out pins and disassembling it in the reverse it went up, but it would be pretty pricey.

I agree with everything he said. Now depending on the structure, gravity works a whole lot better than cranes. Use the crane costs to reassemble the beams, use a prybar to disassemble.

[Pigeon Lady]

Wow! Thank you all so much!

I was expecting a lot of negative "you can't do that without special tools, you'll kill yourself!" comments! Forgot I'm talking to homesteaders here

Motdaugrnds, tell us more about the old school house. That's absolutely amazing!

Rosewoodfarm, we'll go take a look at it and I'll drop you a pm. It would be great to have the opinion and advice of someone who's done this stuff before.

Love all your stories. Please keep them coming.

Yes, I am a bit concerned about the close proximity of the new barn (it's a beautiful building) We'll just have to go take a look and see how much room there is to manouver.

I was looking at this site - that's why I thought a crane was essential.

http://thebarnpeople.com/dismantle.htm

Anyway, keep your fingers crossed that we can rescue this one before they bulldoze it or something.


Pauline

[Farmerwilly2]

I see you needing the crane only if you wanted to trully dismantle it---removing pegs, saving all tennons, numbering joints for reassembly. If I was into historic preservation I'd go that way. I want to salvage the lumber, just not picky about how it goes back up. 2 barns I've taken down have been the same thing---someone else had put them up (one in 1934) from barn(s) scavaged from elsewhere. I think I'll bill it as 'historic recycling'.