Steel Buildings On the Farm

Steel buildings are nothing new on the farm. Farmers have been using Quonset buildings for storage on the farm for decades. And that’s part of the appeal of steel buildings for farm use. The virtual indestructibility of steel means that the already low cost of pre-fabricated steel buildings earn their keep for decades longer than traditional brick or wood construction.

New technology – particularly new insulation technology – has greatly expanded the many uses for steel and metal buildings on the farm. Today, many farmers use steel buildings to house livestock, store farm machinery and warehouse crop storage over the winter. Even with all these expanded uses for metal buildings, though, there are still creative farmers who find unexpected ways to use steel building kits and metal buildings on their farms.

Put Up Kitchen

When harvest time rolls around, many farm families find that the home kitchen is completely out of commission for daily use because it’s being used to put up produce for the winter. Even a farmhouse kitchen can prove too small for the constant stream of corn, beans, peas, cucumbers and other produce, though. Many farmers have taken control of the situation by installing a put-up kitchen in a steel building on the farm. Since the building doesn’t require a dug foundation, it goes up quickly and costs far less than a traditional structure. With the appropriate venting and insulation, it stays cool enough to work during the hot days, and can double as a spring house during the cooler weather, freeing up storage space for jars of preserved fruits and vegetables.

Cheese House

Making cheese and butter requires cool temperatures and space. With many farmers turning to artisanal butters and cheeses, steel buildings offer an inexpensive option to an air-conditioned spring house for churning butter, paddling cheeses and storing cheeses for aging. A stand-alone cheese house is separate from the house, making it easier to sort out expenses for tax purposes, adding to the advantages of using a steel building for this purpose.

Farm Store

For those farmers who sell their own produce on site, steel buildings are an excellent option to traditional wood stores. Because they don’t require traditional posts and beams for structure, the shopkeeper has the entire inside floor space to arrange goods for sale. Installing a garage door in the back provides easy access to haul produce in and out, cutting down on the work of stocking the store – just haul in a flat of bins full of produce and back the tractor out.

Steel buildings provide innovative and creative solutions to typical farming situations. If you’re considering expanding storage space or constructing an outbuilding on your farm, discuss your options with a manufacturer of steel buildings to learn how many advantages they offer for agricultural uses.