I would have a difficult time setting any order of operation to Karl's barn without actually seeing it and exploring the structure. Even with his laundry list of repairs, and the photos on the website, you just have to be there. There might be things that are going "wrong" with the building that he might not be aware of, because they aren't as obvious as an open crack in the foundation, or a hole in the roof big enough to lower a crippled man on a mat through. (Luke 6:17-20)Eh?
But with that being said, I sometimes feel that restoring a barn often parallels the way in which it was originally built...from the foundation up. Putting a new roof on a barn can go a long way towards giving it the help it needs to make it through the next 30yrs, but if it is re-roofed before the frame is straightened then the roof will impede the straightening, or the straightening will cause the roofing material to fail prematurely...But if the frame is straightened and the foundation is shot (leaning, cracks, corner fallen out, etc.), then what do you straighten it to? So in essence the structure is a complete system that relies on it's individual parts working together to keep it standing. If one of these parts is compromised, then others could be affected instantly or over time.
One good example of this would be a barn that I was asked to look at in northern Illinois...it was a TF 42ft x 120ft, 22ft eave on a 8ft exposed stone foundation... MONSTER BARN!
The length of the barn ran north/south, and the west prevailing winds (on the flat open prairie) had slowly pushed the barn frame to the east. Since the barn frame was still very rigid, and was very heavy, it was the foundation walls on the east and west that had a noticeable tilt to the east (5-7 degrees)
At one point I believe that there was a snow load or snow overload problem on the roof, which caused the common rafters to push the top-plate out, causing a couple of posts to split just inside of the post's tenon. This split also traveled down far enough to affect the tie beam and post (mortise and tenon) joint, splitting at the trunnels. Evidence shows that someone tried to pull the top-plate back in with a cable but didn't get it very far. So with the frame still compromised they put a new steel roof on the barn...which was good because it saved the barn from water damage,...bad, because in order to straighten the frame and make it right, the steel roof would need to be removed. It can be a vicious circle sometimes.
Ok, back to Karl's barn. If I were to guess, I would say that the main problems stem from water/frost and cows...or rather, the lack of cows and the heat that they produce while housed in the lower foundation level during the winter season. Dairy cows and stone foundation dairy barns are thought to have a symbiotic agricultural relationship. The combined body heat of a medium sized herd (25 cows in 1910), along with a upper mow full of insulating hay and straw, helped keep the frost from penetrating the stone wall, which over a number of years, can cause the mortar to fail and turn into a crumbly mess, or cause cracks, which lets in more water which freezes and makes a bigger crack, and so on… So once the barn no longer housed cows in the winter, the frost started to mess with the foundation. Rain water that ran off the bank side of the roof, if not collected my eaves troughs/gutters, would have fallen straight down and permeated the ground/bank adjacent to the earth covered stone foundation, where it would be trapped up against the wall and absorbed into the mortar…add freezing temps, and you guessed it…Frost damage to the wall.
Another culprit is overgrown vegetation. The roots of trees can cause issues with the foundation, and the shade they cast, doesn’t allow the barn wood to dry thoroughly. Brush and tall grasses trap moisture and also can cause rot damage.
In terms of what should be done first, I would say,
1. Cut down any tree within 15 ft of the barn.
2. Address the sill beam problems, and the bottoms of the affected posts.
3. Straighten the frame as best you can.
4. Decide if the foundation should be replaced with either concrete or block.
5. Jack up the barn in the areas that the foundation is to be worked on.
6. Possibly excavate the bank side to expose possible problems with the stone foundation.
7. Repair or tuck point wall.
8. Back fill with 2”-3” stone for drainage.
9. Lower barn onto new or repaired foundation.
10. Strip off siding and save.
11. Make repairs to frame components.
12. Re-side with new siding, and sell old siding to offset cost of new.
13. Strip roof.
14. Make repairs as needed.
15. New roof.
16. Paint or stain siding.
17. Put on gutters with down spouts.
18. Break for lunch and a nap.
There are surely other things that can and will alter the sequence of steps, but I hope this helps get a better understanding of a typical bank style dairy, barn and what can be done to save your building.
Rooster
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