Good point- Matt, there are some incredibly old barns and out-buildings around here. Some are still in use, but some are just melting. What does it take to keep an old barn in good repair and useful? Is it just a matter of replacing bits and painting once in a while?
Secret to keeping an old barn or shed is in keeping the rain on the outside
A lot of old barns like my families' have steel roofs than need the nails driven back down once a year. We've started using screws now. If the rain is allowed to leak in on the beams and floor then she heads south in a hurry. The only other thing we do is replace some of the posts in the basement, which is actually the ground level. This fall, we used bottle jacks mounted on some pedistals we built to raise the floor beams to replace the posts which started to rot on the bottom. While we were at it, we also put it back to level again. As long as you stay on top of it they last a long time....kind of like an old bike I guess
Thanks for the nice compliments fella's, the lights are really my father's handy work. I just got the tree and put it on the wagon for him (the forklift helped a bit too)
Matt.
