VersaTube Steel Frame Building Project by RV Education 101

hi i'm mark polk with rv education 101. if you're like me you quickly outgrow the amount of storage space you have in your garage when my garage started getting cluttered i had two options i could have a big garage sale or i could build an outside storage building that can accommodate things like lawn mowers atvs and other equipment once the decision was made there were some criteria this storage building would have to meet first i want to do the project myself so the building has to be a do-it-yourself type of construction project second the building needs to be well engineered and made from materials like galvanized structural steel tubing that will stand the test of time third we live in a community that does not allow storage buildings with metal siding so the building i choose must be able to be finished with an alternate material like vinyl siding wood siding hardy planks or stucco fourth i only want to deal with a reputable company who is concerned about the consumer and will stand behind the product from start to finish last but certainly not least i want a product that was made in the usa with these criteria in hand i started to search for the ultimate storage building it wasn't long before i discovered a company called versitube building systems versatube designs manufactures and distributes pre-engineered steel framing components and systems for residential agricultural commercial and light industrial building and shelter applications they offer clear span buildings up to 52 feet wide the buildings are expertly engineered and with patented slip fit steel frame construction and self self-drilling screws they are really easy to assemble with the versatube building i get the long lasting steel structure i wanted and i can finish the outside the way i like it the company was great to deal with and it was made in america now let me show you just how easy it is to construct a versatile steel frame building the first step was to select the location where the building would be constructed versatube recommends you have a concrete slab poured with the footing seven inches above grade to use as a platform for the building i opted to construct the platform from treated lumber in either case check with your local building inspectors prior to pouring concrete or constructing the platform for your versatube building with the platform constructed i was ready to start on the building when i ordered the building versatube worked with me on the building size and layout that would meet my particular needs soon afterward the building was delivered right to our front door it's time to break open the packaging and get started inventory the building materials to make sure everything is included versatube offers complete assembly instructions on its website and you will receive an instruction manual with your building make sure you review all of the safety cautions and warnings before starting on your versatube building it is also helpful to review the tools that will be required and the basic parts listing to familiarize yourself with the building components the first step to assembling the building was to lay out our side wall base rails versatube buildings come in four foot five foot or six foot on center building frames your instruction manual will show the layout for your particular building for my building we are using four foot on center frames base rails should be located one and a half inches from the edge of your foundation and one and a quarter inches from the front and back the outside dimension of the base rail should be your building width which for my building is 12 feet wide set your spacing and install screws in each joint measure the distance from the end pin on each base rail to the first pin on the next base rail and adjust to four or five feet as required for a concrete slab you anchor the base rails using half inch by seven inch concrete wedge anchors the anchor holes are pre-punched in the base rails i am using half inch by five inch lag screws and flat washers to anchor the base rails into the treated beams see your instruction manual for the base rail layout for your particular building next we can assemble our roof and wall sections the roof and wall sections consist of two side posts two rafters and one peak the first step is to assemble the peak rafters and side posts before you fasten the joints with screws take a measurement across the top and the bottom of each assembly this outside measurement is the outside size of your building and in our case 12 feet now you can fasten the joints with number 12 self-drilling screws put four screws in the peak to the rafter and two screws in the bottom of the side post to rafter joints for now the other two screws will go in when the soffit brackets are installed on larger buildings truss braces are required and would be assembled to the roof and wall sections at this time your instruction manual will show the parts required and the assembly of truss braces now we can install the soffit brackets on the side posts there are two per truss section soffit brackets are shipped flat and must be folded to create the soffit contour slide the bracket on put the two remaining screws in the side post the rafter joints and two screws where it connects to the side posts with the helper flip the roof and wall section over and put additional screws in the soffit bracket on the opposite side next we want to set the roof and wall assemblies onto the base rail pins starting at one end install the roof and wall section at this point it's important you check the roof wall assemblies to make sure they are plumb and square and that the height is equal first check the front and back sections for plumb check the outside of the post if adjustments are required you can drive a stake in the ground about eight feet away from the building and use a ratchet strap to pull the post into plumb when the front and back sections are plumb side to side tie two strings from the front side post to the back at the top and bottom of the bend these strings let you see if any sections are high low or out of plum make adjustments as required this is where we choose a location for our walk door the door is typically placed in the second bay it will be necessary to measure the width of your walk door frame and cut the base rail at the door opening with that done we can square and plumb one of the end wall frames using diagonal braces or ratchet straps now we want to install a run of hat channel girts on both sides of the building at the eve one and three quarter inches down from the bottom of the soffit brackets measure the distance between the frames at the base rail and carry that dimension to the eave and install the hat channel making sure that each section is plumb and square if you plan to use windows in your building you can install the window frames now the window frame consists of two horizontal tubes and two vertical tubes connected with angle brackets the horizontal tubes will fit the frame base spacing four five or six feet the vertical tubes will be five feet long and must be cut to fit the window frame height you will need to install one and a half inch square nailer tubes around the window opening using number 14 by 2 inch concealer screws the nailer tubes bring the window flush with the hat channel when it is installed leave the window out until the plywood or osb is installed the next step is to install the walk door frame set your door in place and check for square set the door header in place above the door casing measure and cut the vertical support to fit attach the header with angle brackets and attach the vertical support to the header using an angle bracket and to the base rail using a flat bracket on the inside of the building install the one and a half inch square nailer tubes around the door opening using concealer screws remove the door until the plywood or osb is installed with the window and door frames completed install additional hat channel girts on the sides of the building hat channel comes in lengths to fit your frame on center spacing the 8 foot ten foot or twelve foot lengths of hat channel can be started at the bottom two inches up from the platform and even with the top of the base rail spacing of the hat channel girts will depend on the side wall height of your building hat channel will need to be cut to fit around the doors and windows now it's time to install the back base rail back base rails consist of t connectors and straight cut pieces of 2 inch square tubing see your instruction manual or drawings for the number of t-connector verticals required for your building snap a chalk line across the back of the building a quarter of an inch in from the ends of the side base rail and even with the back of the vertical side base rail pins this will help keep the back base rail straight lay out the t connectors with even spacing between them according to your instructions connect the t connectors and the base rail with the straight cut two inch square tubing attach the end base rails to the side base rail pins using angle brackets anchor the t connectors to the concrete or treated beams and screw the swag joints together with two screws each now we can assemble the back wall vertical components check your assembly instructions or drawings for the tube length the back verticals are made up of eighty one and three quarter inch verticals with a swag at one end and tube extensions assemble the eighty one and three quarter inch piece to the extension and install two screws in the joint attach a flat bracket to the end of the extension allowing two inches of the bracket to extend beyond the end of the extension set the assembly on the t-connector with the flat bracket at the top slide the assembly up on the t-connector swag until the assembly touches the underside of the rafter or peak plumb the assembly and attach the flat bracket to the rafter or peak on the inside of the building now install screws in the t-connector joint repeat this for additional back vertical components as required when the back wall vertical components are installed make sure the building is square and install the back wall hat channel girts according to the instructions now we can start on the front enclosure measure from the outside of the side base rails to locate the inside of your garage door the door opening will be the door size set an l connector at the bottom corners of the door opening the 2x3 tube will be vertical and the 2x2 tube will be the base rail the l connector will be joined to the side base rails with a cut piece of 2 inch square tube see your instructions or drawings for the layout of your front enclosure anchor the base rails to the concrete slab or treated beams the door frame verticals will fit down on the out connector and extend up to the underside of the rafter height extensions may be required just like the back verticals the front verticals will be attached to the rafter on the inside of the building with a flat bracket make sure the assembly is plumb before you attach the flat bracket to the frame repeat this assembly on the other side of the door the door header will be in one piece two pieces or three pieces see your instruction manual or drawings join the header parts with four screws in each swag joint install angle brackets on top of the header at both ends measure and put a mark on the door frame verticals at the door height ours is seven feet attach the header to the verticals at both ends install the vertical brace over the door header with the flat bracket on the inside at the top and two angle brackets at the bottom the brace should be centered install hat channel girts on the front wall cut the hat channel to fit around the door install hat 10 on the gable frame install one and a half inch square nailer tube over the garage door flush with the bottom of the header use number 14 by 2 inch concealer screws install the roof hat channel start at the eve of the building and install a run of hat channel flush with the outer edge of the soffit bracket position the hat channel so that 11 inches of the channel extends past the front and back frame sections this is done to allow 11 inches of overhang at both ends continue up the roof installing additional hat channel runs using the spacing shown in your instruction manual or drawings remember to extend the hat channel 11 inches past the end of the wall frames when all of the roof hat channel has been installed on both sides of the roof you must build and install the n-wall soffit frames to build a soffit frame you will need one peak two rafters two special eve corner assemblies and two soffit brackets join the peak to rafters like you did with the main frames now insert an eve corner assembly at both ends and install soffit brackets the 5 inch outside surface of the soffit bracket should be 168 inches or 14 feet apart they will line up with the soffit brackets on the building build two of the end wall soffit frames it will take at least two people to install the end wall soffit frames the end wall soffit frames will be placed under and against the roof purlins that are hanging 11 inches over the building frame set the frame in place and line it up with the ends flush with the soffit brackets on the main frame attach the frame to the roof purlins with two screws at each purlin repeat this at the opposite end now it's time to clad the building with half inch osb or plywood your instruction manual will have a guide showing how much osb you will need for your building size the soffits will be trimmed using one by eight and one by six clear pine the wood will be attached to the hat channel purlins and girts with number six by one and five eighth inch wood to metal self drilling screws these screws use a phillips drive the osb sidewall panels will be 48 inches wide by eighty eight and a half inches tall the panels will extend one inch down below the slab surface on all sides of the building cut panels to fit around windows and doors start the first panel in the corner of the building one inch in from the outside of the building frame the frames are four five or six foot centers and this will make them come out even on most building lengths see your instruction manual for the soffit nailing schedule for 4x8 panels the under surface of the soffit overhang is also clad with osb the side fascia will be one by eight boards and the end wall fascia will be one by six boards before installing doors and windows wrapped the osb with a sheathing wrap the wrap acts as a breathable water resistant barrier and protects the wood and other structural components from water water penetration can cause the wood to rot and develop mold or fungus for the wrap to work properly it's important that you lap the sheathing so it can shed water if installed horizontally a two inch overlap is sufficient install windows and doors install any windows and secure the window flange to the metal framings wrap the edges of the window with the window seal to prevent water penetration behind the window frame if you are using a pre-hung door plumb and square the door frame in the rough opening using wood shims your door may require screws through the frame hinges and jams into the frame use pan head screws to attach the door to the frame with the building clad in osb it can be finished in your choice of an alternate material like vinyl siding wood siding hardy planks or stucco we want the building to match our house so we're going to finish it with vinyl siding if you know the basics of vinyl siding installation you can do it yourself if not you can hire a local contractor to finish the building for you so if you'll be using shingles or any roofing other than sheet metal you'll need to install osb on the roof like we did on the sides the lower boards on the roof should start at the inside edge of the fascia trim since osb and shingles add weight to the roof the building frame will require interior truss bracing to handle the additional load also hat channel purlins would be spaced closer together to further support the additional weight and to line up with the roof panel seams we're using a sheet metal roof so we can install it now that the vinyl siding is on the building start at the front or back on one side and install the first vertical roof panel the overlap edge of the panel should be flush with the gable soffit frame use painted screws with sealing washers use one screw on both sides of the major ribs at the eave and one screw on one side of the rib at all other locations the lower panel end should overhang the eve two inches install the remaining panels on the first side of the roof make sure the overlap edges go over the under lap edge of the previous panel you may have to trim the last panel to fit repeat this procedure on the other side of the roof install the ridge cap start by centering a section of ridge cap on the roof and marking the edges repeat this on the opposite end and snap chalk lines to help keep the ridge cap straight install the outside foam enclosure strips and the ridge cap following the versatube assembly guide install the garage door following the versatube assembly guide and the instruction manual that came with your garage door you can install the garage door now well there you have it a storage building that surpassed my expectations a do-it-yourself project that is well engineered finished with an alternate siding material that matches our house and manufactured by a reputable company right here in america now i have an aesthetically pleasing storage building with room to spare and it only took a few weekends to complete and i have a garage back that you can actually put two vehicles in and still have room to walk around this was a win-win project and i had lots of fun doing it there's nothing like standing back and looking at a project that you completed with your own two hands whether you're looking for more storage space around your house like me or need a one or two car garage or if you have a much larger building project in mind you absolutely should take some time to look at a versatile building they are great people to deal with and they have a steel building or shower designed specifically for you that's made in the usa for more information on versatube garages buildings and carports visit www.versatube.com or give them a call directly at first tube 1-800-900-7222 so you

Channel: RV Education 101

Views: 385,685

Rating: 4.7204299 out of 5

Keywords: steel building, metal building, DIY metal building, steel frame building, VersaTube steel frame building, carports, RV shelter, boat dock, metal building project, Mark Polk, RV Education 101, DIY project, storage building project

Id: YPLyqBDB84k

Length: 23min 39sec (1419 seconds)

Published: Fri Mar 11 2011