Tag Archives: large structures

Structure Options

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We don’t bend any steel before we get an order. This allows us to customize our products for your structure requirements. We use 7 different lengths of steel, and can interchange the way we bend them to give you the same shape, with less height, or slightly different width if that’s what you require. You can see more about the profile shapes and heights on our profile page

We have engineered drawings for our standard buildings to help you get a building permit. It is impossible to have them for all the variations we offer though, but we do have them for most of our standard buildings. Please let us know if this is something you will require. PLEASE REVIEW OUR 2021 UPDATED BUILDING PERMIT ARTICLE

We have provided sample prices on each of these pages to give you a starting point, but have any width available from 10-36′, and can go any length you require. We’ve done them up to 300′ long! Typically we do structures at 3′ and 4′ spacing between hoops, but can go 2′ spacing for extremely high snow areas and 6′ spacing if it will be left uncovered in the winter.

Our structures have a standard Gothic Profile that comes to a peak, to shed snow more efficiently. Our structures are Canadian built for Canadian seasons. We add wind braces to ensure stability in windy areas, and can give you other tips for winter maintenance and snow if you are especially concerned.

gothic frame

We also offer our High Profile structures, which give around 2′ more clearance than our regular standard Gothic profile. Up to 20′ wide our high profile uses 1″x2″ steel, and we offer a heavy high profile option that is 20′ wide and uses 1″x3″ steel. 24′ and wider uses 1″x3″ steel as standard.

high profile

We have also created our Cathedral Series, which is our standard gothic arch flipped around, to give more usable height, with less floor space (for RVs as an example). see here. It is more susceptible to wind, because of the straight sidewalls. No snow stays on this shape at all, unless there has first been a wet slushy rain/snow, and then a freeze. This style is available in widths of 18′, 16′, 14′ and 12′

Cathedral frame

We welcome your unique challenge and look forward to helping you find your shelter solution!

Storage on Blocks or Shipping Containers

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Storage containers and over sized concrete blocks are the economical solution for needing to elevate structures to create more storage capacity.

One consideration is when the product being stored does not lend itself to stacking, such as salt, sand or soil, there is the added dimension of outward push on the wall. Not only does the pile push outwardly, but an operator scooping the product will create even greater push.

Storage containers and over sized concrete blocks are the economical solution for such a situation. The weight and the stability which both the containers and blocks give, eliminates the need to anchor into the ground.

Containers are often simply put on the ground.

When going more then two layers with the blocks, there should be a concrete pad or special preparation of the soil to provide stability.

When choosing this foundation method, it is important to consider how and where the shelter will shed water and snow.

The top of the wall or container must be sealed to the possibility of moisture going inside.

The other thing that must be given proper consideration is that the shelter is able to deal with the extra wind load created by elevating the shelter this much.

In most of these installations, the wind load on a building is at least double of what it would be if mounted on the ground.

sand storage on blocks Haystorage on blocksBrunelle Container pictures 001Brunelle Container pictures 012

Structure Options

Posted on by

We don’t bend any steel before we get an order. This allows us to customize our products for your structure requirements. We use 7 different lengths of steel, and can interchange the way we bend them to give you the same shape, with less height, or slightly different width if that’s what you require. You can see more about the profile shapes and heights on our profile page

We have engineered drawings for our standard buildings to help you get a building permit. It is impossible to have them for all the variations we offer though, but we do have them for most of our standard buildings. Please let us know if this is something you will require. PLEASE REVIEW OUR 2021 UPDATED BUILDING PERMIT ARTICLE

We have provided sample prices on each of these pages to give you a starting point, but have any width available from 10-36′, and can go any length you require. We’ve done them up to 300′ long! Typically we do structures at 3′ and 4′ spacing between hoops, but can go 2′ spacing for extremely high snow areas and 6′ spacing if it will be left uncovered in the winter.

Our structures have a standard Gothic Profile that comes to a peak, to shed snow more efficiently. Our structures are Canadian built for Canadian seasons. We add wind braces to ensure stability in windy areas, and can give you other tips for winter maintenance and snow if you are especially concerned.

gothic frame

We also offer our High Profile structures, which give around 2′ more clearance than our regular standard Gothic profile. Up to 20′ wide our high profile uses 1″x2″ steel, and we offer a heavy high profile option that is 20′ wide and uses 1″x3″ steel. 24′ and wider uses 1″x3″ steel as standard.

high profile

We have also created our Cathedral Series, which is our standard gothic arch flipped around, to give more usable height, with less floor space (for RVs as an example). see here. It is more susceptible to wind, because of the straight sidewalls. No snow stays on this shape at all, unless there has first been a wet slushy rain/snow, and then a freeze. This style is available in widths of 18′, 16′, 14′ and 12′

Cathedral frame

We welcome your unique challenge and look forward to helping you find your shelter solution!

The benefits of going to a bigger structure

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What are some of the benefits of going with a bigger structure over a smaller structure?

Budget often dictates that someone needs to start small, especially when a person is just starting out as a grower with a greenhouse.
There is also the perceived notion that staying smaller means less heating cost. In itself, that is true, since heat loss is in direct proportion to surface area exposed to the outside.

As I have mentioned before, it is very important to weigh expense
against return.

A smaller air volume has less natural circulation.
Proper air circulation for plants is critical regardless of the season.
Think of a deep pond versus a shallow pond. The deep pond never has algae on the surface because of the increased movement.

Going with a taller greenhouse will automatically increase the circulation the same way.

Another point to consider with a taller greenhouse, is that there is more open space above the plants.

This open space is where moisture can go, away from the plants even before the greenhouse ventilation system does its job.

With a lower greenhouse, moisture is always in close proximity to the plants. In a taller structure, the plants will be dry much sooner.

Moist plants in a stagnant air mass are prone to disease. These plants will, as a result, produce less.

As always, be aware of the bigger picture.

Putting up Structures after the Snowfall

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There always seems to be so much pressure and panic at this time to get a building before winter. The only thing that is important to get done sooner then later is the foundation work. There will be lots of decent weather days between now and Christmas to get the job done.

If you think that it is too late to get it done and you will simply wait until next spring, please remember that you said the same thing last spring (or even a few months ago) and as usual the busyness of life got in the way. Give us a call today to see how you can get that foundation taken care of before freeze up.

For those of you who want to get the structure up now and cover it in the spring, I urge you to cover the building sooner then later for a couple of reasons. First is that there will be lots of other things vying for your time in the spring and secondly, the more snow you have on that spot which has to melt, the more moisture you will have in the building. The more moisture you have in the building the more condensation issues you will have. You want to give that ground the most time possible to dry up before you need to start using the building.

In my humble opinion, even though putting the cover on in late fall or early winter is more difficult and not pleasant, the benefits of having more time for the ground to dry, far outweigh the time spent to adjust the cover  in the spring