It may be challenging to understand custom post frame builders in Pittsburgh if you aren’t familiar with pole barn terminology. If you plan on constructing a pole building in Pittsburgh or a garage hobby shop in Pittsburgh, you may want to learn the following terms.

Cupola

Cupolas are a staple of classic farm buildings in Pittsburgh. A cupola looks like a small tower or box sitting above the ridge of the roof on classically styled barns. They are used for ventilation and decoration.

Dutch Door

Typical in horse barn stalls, Dutch doors are doors that appear to have been cut in half horizontally. This allows the door’s bottom half to be kept closed and the top half of the door to remain open. Dutch doors are very practical because they aid ventilation while keeping the horse in its stall.

Girder

Girders are the top horizontal board in the wall of a post-frame building. Girders are usually either 2x10s or 2x12s.

Hurricane Tie

Plumbers’ straps and hurricane ties attach roof trusses to wall girders. Hurricane ties are essential to prevent severe damage from high winds.

Post-Frame Construction

Post-frame or pole-frame construction is a building method that relies on large poles or posts set into the ground as the primary building supports.

Purlin

Purlins are the boards used to attach trusses and for securing steel roofing materials to the building’s structure. Purlins run parallel to the ground and perpendicular to roof trusses.

Ridge

The ridge of a roof is the highest vertical point of a post-frame building’s roof. It is the point where two intersecting roof planes meet.

Soffit

The soffit is the covered underside of roof eaves. Soffit vents are often included in the soffit for roof ventilation.

Truss

Instead of using rafters and center posts, most pole barns use trusses to support the roof structure. A roof truss is a pre-built section of roof frame used to join walls and support the roof. Trusses can be built on-site or offsite, but they are already assembled before being joined to the building’s structure. Trusses determine the pitch, length, and height of the roof above the walls.

MQS Structures – Custom Horse Barn Builders in Pittsburgh

At MQS Structures, we are post frame and pole barn building specialists. If your barn needs repair or if you are interested in building a new pole building in Pittsburgh, we can work with you to make sure you get exactly the building you want. If you want to build a garage hobby shop in Pittsburgh, we can help with that too. We can build a highly functional and attractive building no matter what you need.

Our founder and owner, Caleb Miller, began his building career with his Amish Mennonite family and applies the same work ethic and expert craftsmanship to every building we put up. If you are looking for Amish barn builders in Pittsburgh, you found us!

Call us today at (855) 677-3334, or contact us online to receive a free quote on your next project. We look forward to hearing from you soon! We also offer a free mock-up service on our website to help you visualize what your new building’s colors will look like.