Ultimate Metal Horse Barn Buying Guide

Many horse owners or farmer communities always face the problem to safeguard their horses from harsh weather conditions. Gone are the days when wood horse sheds were in demand and given priority over other alternatives. Today, the entire building industry recommends using metal over wood because metal buildings have so many advantages, and they can stand up to constant use in strong weather conditions.

Among the various kind of metal buildings, metal horse barn is one such building that is intended to protect your horse from strong winds, heavy rain, or other kinds of adverse weather conditions. It also provides a peaceful place to horses for grooming, breeding, and keeping other horse equipment.

Whether you are a first-time horse owner or looking to expand your horse facilities, searching for the right horse stall is always a hurdle. Some horse lovers even plan to replace their old-fashioned wood barn with the metal barn to renovate their horse sheds or eliminate the problems of rot, fungus, termites, and other insects that degrade your wood barn.

However, in metal barns, you find a plethora of options that confuse you for installing the best horse barn on your property.

So, every horse owner starts researching to derive the maximum knowledge about the horse stalls and install the right barn.

Important Questions to Ask Before Buying a Horse Barn

In your research and selection process, you should ask some important questions to the metal horse shed consultants. Every horse owner must ask these crucial questions before buying a horse barn.

Question 1: What are the initial requirements of physical site preparation for a metal horse barn?

It is the most common query that you should ask the building consultant before ordering a barn. The basic requirements for physical site preparation include the availability of a power source, airflow in your region, wind direction and speed, and distance from your residence or main horse barn. These pre-installation efforts will help the installation team complete your steel horse shed installation quickly.

Question 2: What types of metal-building components are available to make the horse barn?

For the durability of your metal structure, you look forward to selecting the best building components that allow your Metal Horse Stables to safeguard your horses for years.

Mostly, ‘All vertical’ horse stalls are proposed to customers, where you get vertical roof style (A-frame roof with Vertical panels) and vertical side panels. The vertical roof horse barn is the best investment if you are living in California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, and other states that face strong winds and heavy snowfall.

However, you also have options of Regular roof style and Boxed-eave roof style. Further, you can do customizations as per your need like extra trusses, braces, number of windows and doors, number of roll-up doors, and more.

NOTE: Use 3D Building Estimator to make endless customizations. However, the customizations you add to your horse shed will change the final price.

Question 3: Which is the best place for Horse Barn installation?

Ordering a horse stall is preceded by the selection of the right property. There are some essential points that you should consider in selecting the right place for horse barn installation.

• Easy Drainage: During heavy rain and snowfall, you never expect your horse barn to become a pond. Install a proper drainage system and make sure the water never makes a hurdle in your horse barn.
• Easy Access: The place you choose should be closer to the nearby amenities like market, roads, or driveways. There are requirements, including electricity, water, and livestock, that will be easy to bring at your barn.
• Natural Shade: If you are ordering a standard horse shed, you should ensure the shed provides ample shade to the horse, protecting it from hypothermia/hyperthermia and other health issues.
• Available for Expansion: In the future, when you plan to expand your existing steel horse barn, you must be able to increase its size as required. So, the area/property you choose must have sufficient space for future expansion.

Question 4: What type of anchors are used in Horse Barns?

Four types of anchors are used for horse shed installation at your property. These anchors are used depending upon your building foundation.

• Rebar Anchors: Rebar anchors are the standard anchors that come with your metal horse stall without additional charges. It has 1/2” x 32” size which is fixed in the base rain and is settled in the ground.
• Mobile Home Anchors: Mobile home anchors are used for all types of foundations like asphalt, soil, and concrete, but ground leveling is crucial before horse metal barn installation. The installation team will install mobile home anchors in a gap of 25’.
• Concrete Anchors: Metal barn experts recommend using concrete anchors for a concrete foundation. Once the foundation is ready for installation, the installation team mark different points to set the base rail correctly. The installers then drill the foundation about 3”-4”. The concrete anchors are settled in the hole and tighten with the base rain using nuts. The concrete anchors come in different sizes, i.e., 1-1/8”, 1-1/4”, 1-1/2”, 2-1/4′, 2-3/4”, 3-1/4”, 3-7/8”, 4-1/2”, and 5-1/2”.
• Asphalt Anchors: Asphalt anchors don’t leave a hole in your asphalt foundation. Instead, it directly settles in the ground with a minimal opening in your asphalt base. The asphalt foundation is sensitive to excessive pressure; hence, these anchors have screw-like thread added with extended shafts that give better hold on the ground.

Question 5: What is the right metal barn size for your horse?

Horse barns are available in different sizes, which might confuse you in selecting the right metal building. There are three categories of barns which you can order depending upon your horse size.

• Average size Horses: For the average size horses, the best-suited barns will have the dimensions of 10’x12’.
• Tall size Horses: For tall horses, you need 12’x12’ horse barn.
• Miniature Horses: For miniature horses or ponies, you can install the barn of 8’x10’ dimensions.

Question 6: Can I move my Steel Horse Barn?

The size and type of horse metal barn is a crucial point that decides whether your metal horse barn is portable or not. The run-in horse sheds are the most common type of metal buildings that can be relocated to new pasture, which you can customize according to your needs.

Question 7: Does your building provider have different styles of horse barns?

Every horse owner prefers buying the best horse barn but doesn’t know the right barn type to choose. The type of horse shed depends upon the number of horses, horse size, and your customization requirements. The various horse barn designs include:

• Horse Barn with Lean-To – In the horse barn with lean-to, you will find front overhanding that provide shelter and protect your horses from direct heat & cold winds.
• Monitor Modular Horse Barn: Some horse lovers prefer the monitor modular horse barn as it comes with an extra loft area that can be used as the second-story of your horse steel barn. You can install windows on the loft sides to maintain proper ventilation in your barn. You can choose from full loft, partial loft, or no loft to get the best horse barn building.
• Horse Run-in Shed: Horse run-in sheds are best used to protect your horses from heat, rain, snowfall or even the pests and flies. It is a standard metal covered structure that gives adequate protection to the horses.
• Shed Row Horse Barn: The shed row horse barn is the best investment when you are looking for a portable horse barn. It has inline shed rows that can be used to house your horses as well as keeping farm equipment, horse-related equipment, hay, etc.

Question 8: Which essential things should you include in a Horse Barn?

The horse stalls are the basic need for every horse owner but apart from this, other items are also required to make it a complete horse property. Besides horse stall, three major requirements every horse owner must buy, which are:

• Feed Storage: The feed storage chest is essential to keep sufficient food for the horses. Mostly, horse owners prefer adding 2-3 feed storage chests in the metal structure plan.
• Tack Room: You need a separate tack room to keep your horse-related equipment. The tack room must be separate from your feed storage to store the tack, saddlebags, harness, etc. protected from unexpected damages.
• Wash Room: For regular horse grooming, a separate washroom is essential. The washroom is most preferred, with a concrete base, drains, and an overhead sprayer.

Question 9: What Post-Construction Services Are Offered?

Most of metal building manufacturer offers a workmanship warranty that covers post-construction services. Some manufacturers offer 90 days workmanship warranty, whereas some provide one year warranty. So, it depends on your manufacturers’ terms & conditions.

To know the warranty period for your metal building, you can call the dealer. Almost every metal building manufacturer provides a safe building for horses but still, if you encounter any issue/problem, you can use the post-construction warranty services.

Question 10: Can you provide Horse barn with Living Quarters?

Many manufacturers also provide you the hub to house your horses as well as your residential home with endless customizations. Manufacturing specialists analyze your entire list of customizations and provide prefabricated metal parts that are easy to assemble at your property. So, you can have a horse steel barn with living quarters. You can even call metal building experts to know more about the customizations.

Question 11: Why Steel Horse Barn is Preferred over Wood Horse Barn?

Wood barns were the most preferred choice in the old days. But, the sustainability of wood structures is low as compared to steel structures. Also, rot is one common problem that degrades the life of the wood. These problems are overwhelmed by Steel Barns, which is the significant reason why wood horse barns are replaced with steel structures.

For barn-building manufacturing, there are multiple benefits of using steel over wood. Below-listed is the advantages of steel horse barns over wood.

• Quick Construction: Prefabricated horse steel barns are easy to install and require less time in assembly on site. The steel barns take about half the time needed for wood structure installation. Wood structures face transit damages, which is not present in the steel.
• Durability: Steel is more durable and sustainable for long-term use. Steel horse stalls are free from rot, cracks, and unexpected damages. These features make it a long-lasting material for horse shed installation.
• Low Maintenance: Wood require regular maintenance to retain its life, whereas steel doesn’t require frequent maintenance. You need to clean the roof to clear the debris and gutter and allow easy run-off of water. Most horse lovers consider ordering vertical roof horse barns as it provides you prolong life. Such a roof can tolerate high wind speed and heavy snow load.
• Competitive Pricing: The steel horse stall is available at a low cost as compared to wood. You can own a horse metal barn with a small upfront amount. For customers who cannot pay the entire amount, dealers also provide Rent-to-Own /Financing options to serve you a dream building for your horses.
• Eco-Friendly Horse Barns: Steel is an eco-friendly metal that can be recycled. Furthermore, the production of steel releases minimal energy that doesn’t harm the environment. Therefore, steel is preferred over other building materials.
• Build Versatile Structures: While buying horse sheds, you can choose from a wide range of metal buildings added with countless customizations. You can finalize the barn that fits into your requirements and serves your needs.

Question 12: What is the Final Price of Custom Horse Barn?

Prefabricated steel horse barns are available with countless customizations. You have the option to make modifications to make it suitable for your purpose. However, the price of your steel shed for horses will increase as per your customizations. In short, the final cost of your custom metal horse barn will change with the number of modifications you add to it.

These are the questions that every horse owner must ask the barn-building specialist to select the perfect metal horse stables.

Metal Horse Barn Buying Checklist: 10 Insider Tips to Choosing a Horse Barn

Once you get all the answers to your queries, it’s time to find the essential checklist points that you should never miss. Below is the metal horse barn buying checklist that every horse owner must consider.

• Know Your Land: Before buying any land for horse barn installation, you should know whether it is suitable for installation. Property with steep slopes and marshy area are not ideal for horse stall installation. So, find a clear land with no slop, still water, and other problems.
• Take Required Permits: In the United States, it’s essential to take legal permits from the local authority before metal building installation. Different states in the United States have different laws that govern the installation of any metal structure on your property. That’s the reason you are always recommended to take adequate permits ahead of barn installation.
• Choose the Right Foundation: Concrete, gravel, asphalt, and ground are the most common foundation types that you can choose for steel horse barns. The right floor selection is vital as the horses spend most of their time in the horse barn. You have the option of Soil, Sand, Clay, Concrete, Crushed limestone, Gravel, Rubber mats, and Asphalt. The selection of right flooring depends upon the nature of the soil, the availability of resources, and your personal needs.
• Decide Your Budget: Budget is integral to your metal building installation decision. You need to decide your budget that can let you find a budget-friendly metal barn. Before making an order, you can ask for the metal barn prices and choose the one that fulfills all your requirements without moving out of your budget. Two significant factors affect the final cost of any metal horse barn, i.e., Location and Customization. The cost of a metal building is dissimilar for different locations. Furthermore, the customizations you made in the metal barn will also alter the final price of your steel barn building.
• Finalize Your Custom Requirements: You should have the list of requirements that you want in a custom horse barn. To shorten your efforts, you can use our 3D Building Designer Tool to visualize your Horse barn and make endless customizations. You can select braces, extra trusses, steel gauge, number of doors, windows, roll-up doors, and more. You can also choose from the list of available colors to match the horse stall with your home.
• Arrange Adequate Power & Water Supply: Water is a basic need for horse health, but electricity is equally important. Most of the grooming items run on electricity so, power will help a horse owner to care the horses correctly.

You can easily find the right steel horse barn based on the details mentioned above.

Viking Steel Structures provides unlimited customization options that will help you buy a dream horse metal barn at your doorstep. Our experienced metal building specialists are also available to help you to resolve all your doubts.

So, what are you waiting for?

If you are looking for durable and well-structured horse barns & stables for your horses, you have come to the right place. So, don’t delay to buy a metal horse barn, and call us at 877-801-3263.