My rural electric is going to sell me use power poles for $1.00 a foot and will deliver for a small fee. and im wanting to build a pole barn.. what are some things I should look out for when trying to do this? also are there any free plans on the net that would show building a barn with these types of poles? Im going to get a bobcat to help with leveling/clearing and raising the poles if thats possible. and im new to this type of construction so any help would be great. thanks
If you've got a couple of helpers, it's easy. I did it with a little B7100. We tied the middle of a long rope to the top end and with one guy on the rope on each side to make sure it couldn't fall to either side, I raised it with the front end loader and slowly moved forward with the bucket sliding down it until it stood and fell into the hole.
I haven't used any full length, but did make 28 piers for the foundation of my log home in TX. I got free poles from TP&L and cut them to length with a chainsaw, the shortest was 1.5' & the longest was 8.5', with everything imbetween. You will have to trim these up, so use a magnet to look for nails and staples before cutting. They can also give you some wicked splinters so always handle with gloves. I would think that a Bobcat could stand them up into the holes without much trouble. If the FEL bucket does not have a toothbar, get a couple of real large clamps to put on the bucket lip. That will keep the pole from sliding off as it is raised.
Also, get more than you need because some will be too rotten or broken/split too much to use. Besides, if you have extras you will find a few more projects to do with them... [img]/forums/images/icons/wink.gif[/img]
thanks for all the reply's guys I went to look at a bobcat this weekend but wouldnt give 500 bucks for it much less what the guy was asking... poles should be delivered next week so hopefully if it stops raining around here i can get them in the ground by the end of march....
GOFFRACING AND OTHERS...........I WAS SURPRISED BY THE NUMBER OF POSTS TO THIS AND YET NO ONE MENTIONED THE FACT THAT POWER POLES ARE TOXIC.THEY ARE USUALLY TREATED WITH PCB`S AND USUALLY UTILITY COMPANIES GIVE THEM AWAY AND YOU HAVE TO SIGN A WAIVER.[GET THE HINT]
REMEMBER THAT YOU CAN`T BURN THE POLES NOR BRING THEM TO A DUMP.NOW DO YOU REALLY WANT TO UTILIZE THEM IN A BARN.A CHILD IS 200 TIMES MORE LIKELY YO GET CANCER IF THERE IS A POWER POLE ON THE PROPERTY THAN IF THERE ISN`T.NOW IMAGINE THE RISK WHEN YOU HAVE 20+.SOME ARGUE THAT MOST OF THE TOXIC MATERIAL HAS LEACHED OUT OVER TIME.BUT UNKNOWN TO MOST PEOPLE SOME UTILITY COMPANIES UPGRADE THE TOXIC TREATMENT OCCASSIONALLY THROUGH OUT THE LIFE OF THE POLE.
BUYER BEWARE!
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