Steel Building Accessories And Features

All good buildings require a solid foundation. Our concrete crew offers a range of options to both enhance your buildings foundation and add to it.

We offer a range of floor thicknesses. For most of the buildings we construct, a 4-inch 3000psi concrete floor is sufficient. 4-inches is plenty for RVs, personal vehicles, workshops, etc. However if you plan on using heavier vehicles or machinery in your building you may benefit from a thicker floor. Our team is dedicated to making sure you're building fits your unique needs.

Occasionally our customers have special considerations when if comes to foundation design. One that comes up regularly is vehicle lifts but we've also had customers need grease pits, mechanical trenches, footings for large machinery and more. Reach out to us so we can help plan a foundation that fits your unique use case.

Often our customers want concrete features in addition to the building foundation: ramps, driveways, uncovered parking etc. We group these features under the generic term "aprons". The easiest time to build these is with the rest of the foundation, before the building itself has been erected. If you're planning on additional concrete with your buildings foundation we'd be happy to provide that for you.

It's a small detail but one that we do as standard on all our buildings. Any rain that hits an overhead door will run down it and onto the foundation. To prevent that water from flowing back into and pooling inside the building we add a turn down at all overhead door openings.

If you plan on running electricity to you're building it will need a grounding feature. The best way to do this is to tie into the buildings foundation. Unfortunately we don't offer electrical wiring services but we can add a grounding wire so that it's available for when you do hire an electrician.

For most of the building that we make a concrete floor is easily durable enough. In some cases you need something a little more wear resistant. As an example; if you plan to use your space for manufacturing, the regular sliding of materials across the floor and dropping of metal tools and components can chip, scratch, and grind at your concrete floor. Soaking the concrete in a densifier can harden it against this regular wear. This process may be done long after the concrete has set, so don't worry if you're not sure if you'll need it or not. You can always apply it later. If you do decide you need a concrete densifier we'd be happy to apply it for you.

The sheeting we use is a 26ga steel PBR panel. Our supplier warranties the paint for 35-years and the steel is easily durable enough for the class of building we provide. Learn more here.

You may have seen these used as sky-lights in steel buildings. We strongly recommend against using these in steel building roofs. They are difficult to weather seal, sun-damage quickly, and attract dirt. A similar lighting effect can be achieved by placing them high up along the buildings walls. This maintains the integrity of the roof, avoids the majority of sun damage, naturally attracts less dirt, and serves as an inexpensive alternative to windows.

Structurally unnecessary, but uniquely stylish. Some of our customers have wanted a stripe of a different color on their buildings walls. This can be achieved relatively simply and inexpensively by adding a second sheet of a different color over the base one. Because the painting is done in a factory it can be less costly than having a painter on site and is guaranteed to last 35 years, same as all our sheeting.

This state that we live in and love is, let's face it, extremely hot. Whether you're planning to use your building for storage or work, avoiding temperature extremes can make an incredible difference in the quality of your space.

All our insulation comes standard with a vinyl backing and a radiant reflective barrier. The vinyl backing provides a final barrier to air flow between the hot air within the insulation and the building interior as well as preventing dust build up in the insulation. (it also looks better than bare fiberglass) And the radiant barrier reduces the amount of infrared heat that can pass through the insulation. You'd be amazed at the temperature difference just on either side of this backing.

Typically we recommend a 4-inch thickness of insulation for the roof of the building and 3-inch thick for the walls. The increased thickness at the roof helps offset the heat from the greater sun exposure the roof gets. This setup works well for most of our customers. If your use case requires something different we'll happily help you get the level of insulation that's right for you.

As you're planning out your space; it's important to consider ventilation.

Our go-to solution for ventilation is wall mounted louvers. You may have seen ridge vents in the roofs of other building. We can install those if you want, but we find that ridge vents are harder to weather seal and don't operate as reliably. We find that louvers are a high quality reliable solution for ventilation

A steel buildings doors define it's usefulness almost as much as the space itself. Getting the right number, size, and placement of doors is key to getting the most use out of your new space.

Sometimes called garage doors these are by far the most important features of your building. Our most common door type is steel sheeted on both sides with an R-6.8 insulated core. It's a durable design with a level of insulation which matches well with our most common building insulation package. If that doesn't fit your needs we can install more exotic designs including (in the case of one job) full glass panels.

Not strictly necessary, but if you'll be accessing your space frequently it can make a big difference. The door lift that we offer doesn't have a trolley or middle rail making it much quieter than most door lifts and includes an automatic dead-bolt for added security.

Human scale doors for human scale use. Our most common walk-through door is an insulated steel 3070. That's 3-feet wide and 7-feet tall and works great for general use. We also offer a 4070 that's 4-foot wide. It's a bit heavier but can make a big difference if you're regularly carrying large objects through it.

The natural lighting that windows provide is both cheaper than electrical lighting and generally a more pleasant experience. Help us make sure your new building has the widows it needs.

Typically installed at eye-level. This type of window can serve as both a lighting and ventilation solution

Typically installed high up on the building walls similar to translucent panels.

As the name suggests these features are not part of a buildings structural shell but are still important in fitting the space to its use case

Sometimes referred to as a loft or balcony. This feature allows for small item storage on two floors and is a great solution for those looking for both vehicle storage such as an RV, and extra floor space that doesn't have to be vehicle accessible. This is not part of the engineered shell of the building, and as such, must be installed after the building itself has passed a final municipal inspection. It is however simple for us to design and order components for this from our steel supplier along with the steel building kit.

Some of our customers need exterior shaded space in addition to their interior space. For this need we offer shade covers. These can come in the form of a roof extension, or a lean-to against the side of the building. Whatever kind of space you need, whether interior or exterior, we'll work with you to make sure your new steel building meets your requirements.

For many use cases leaving the interior of the building unfinished is a perfectly acceptable solution. In some cases, however, a solid interior wall is important. It's possible to hire a contractor to do 2x4 framing and drywall on the interior of your building, but our recommended solution is ¾-inch plywood sheeting. That's a heavy duty material which is admittedly expensive, but it can fasten directly into the steel members of the building eliminating the need for additional framing. When considering the lower cost of materials for drywall will also cost more in labor, both solutions will end up costing roughly the same. Plywood is by far the sturdier material which makes for a durable interior finish even in the face of punishing workloads. It also makes the installation of shelves and cabinets secure and easy. This is the solution we use for our own workshop and has served us well for years.

Some of our customers need a physical divider in their new space. The process for these is much the same as for mezzanines. The steel components for any interior wall will be ordered along with the steel building package. Then after the building has passed final municipal inspection our build crew will add this feature inside your building.

If you haven't seen a feature you need mentioned here. Reach out to us. We'll do everything we can to ensure that you're metal building fits your needs.