Steel Equipment Barn

An Australian reader wrote:

Our local golf club are in the planning stages of building a shed to house approximately 40 golf carts, 20 on either side with a central area for ease of access in and out. This would be in a green colourbond material to blend in with the surroundings. Roller door access from one end only. Kit form to be assembled by members.

Raising a steel equipment barn kit sounds like a great project for a crew of enthusiastic golfers!

I had to do some digging to find the definition of colourbond material. Turns out it's a steel panel siding with an oven-baked finish, first introduced in the mid-sixties. The manufacturer, BlueScope Steel, defines COLORBOND® steel as "one of the worlds most advanced pre-painted steel products in the Building and Construction industry." Sounds like tough stuff ... the ideal long-lasting siding for a steel equipment barn.

If I had input on designing the structure, I'd ensure that there was plenty of room in the equipment barn to maneuver the golf carts down the aisle and in and out of the shed doors. After all, some of the guys are bound to be better drivers than other (both on and off the course) ... especially if they put the golf carts up after they've been watered at the 19th hole. It's inevitable that things will get banged up ... whether that's the carts or the steel shed itself. With that in mind, it wouldn't be a bad idea to add some framing "bumpers" around the stalls to avoid those bumps and bangs to the steel panel siding.

A western-style monitor horse barn design might be fantastic for this application. The windows in the raised center roof area would allow lots of natural light into the center aisle and individual golf cart "stalls." Check out some of the handsome monitor barn plans on the Ashland Barns web page ... they might be an inspiration.