Month: February 2020

How to Stop a Carport from Sweating

One of the great benefits of owning a metal building is the low maintenance requirements that come with these kinds of structures. Simply put, there isn’t a lot that needs to be done on an ongoing basis. However, that doesn’t mean you can ignore maintenance completely, as certain issues may come up from time to time that require your attention. Carport “sweating” is one of those potential issues, so let’s take a closer look at what it is and how to stop your carport from sweating successfully.

Are you looking to purchase a new carport? Use our Build & Price Tool at American Steel Carports Inc. to customize your carport, view a 3-D rendering, and receive an instant quote!

Why Does Sweating Matter?

If you aren’t particularly bothered by the presence of occasional moisture on the walls of your metal carport, you might be tempted to just leave it alone and ignore the issue. Unfortunately, that oversight can lead to problems down the line. Corrosion can occur if your metal building is exposed to too much moisture over time. Given the relatively simple and affordable solutions that are available, it’s worth your time and effort to stop the sweating once and for all.

The Battle Starts with Insulation

Having quality insulation that has no gaps—or as few gaps as possible—is important in preventing the issue of sweating in your metal carport. The action of warm air coming in contact with colder metal is what leads to condensation. To prevent this from occurring, we recommend purchasing a vertical carport from American Steel Carports, Inc. For an additional cost, we can equip vertical structures with proper insulation to help prevent sweating. Keep in mind for American Steel Carports, Inc., to insulate a unit, it must be vertical.

Check for Leaks and Cracks

Limiting the amount of moisture that is present in your building will also be a big move away from sweating. One of your first tasks should be to check for any leaks that may be allowing water to come in through the roof of the building. If there are leaks present—even if they’re small ones—you’ll want to take care of them right away to cut off the flow of water into the carport.

Likewise, you need to check the foundation of the carport for cracks. Even modest cracks could be allowing moisture to work up into the space, which could lead to dampness on your walls in certain weather conditions. Not only will fixing these cracks help to keep the moisture in the air down, but it will also make your foundation safer and hopefully allow it to last longer.

Keep the Air Moving

Allowing air to sit perfectly still inside of any building is a recipe for condensation. If possible on your property, consider the use of a fan as one way to keep the air moving, which encourages evaporation to occur. Even if you aren’t in a position to use a fan easily, you can open a door (if your carport has one) regularly to help air move around.

Smart Placement of Your Carport is Important

This tip won’t help you much if you have already built a carport on your property, but it’s smart to keep this in mind if you are in the process of ordering a new metal carport. When picking the site on your property for the carport to reside, keep water in mind and try to keep it away from areas where water will regularly collect. This will reduce the likelihood of creating high-humidity conditions in the carport and should cut down on problems with sweating.

For instance, the lowest spot on your property probably tends to collect water when heavy rains roll through the area. If you put your carport on this low spot, or close to it, you’ll always be dealing with humidity issues. Likewise, grass and other vegetation hold onto water and create humid environments in the immediate surrounding area. Going with a site that has plenty of bare ground surrounding the carport, and is at a higher location on the property, is desirable if you have the choice.

Contact American Steel Carports, Inc. Today!

Now that you know how to stop your carport from sweating, you can see it’s quite simple and not much to worry about. Without a doubt, the many advantages of selecting a metal building will far outweigh anything on the negative side of the ledger. To learn more about our carport options, or to order your building, please contact us right away. Thank you for considering American Steel Carports, Inc.!

Metal Barn vs. Wood Barn Pros & Cons

When the time comes to build a new barn on your property, you’ll have a few important decisions to make. You will need to decide where the barn is going to go, how big it will be, and more. In this post, we’d like to take a look at another important choice in this process–the material that you will use to construct the barn. There are two main options available today, wood and metal, and each can offer some nice benefits. Let’s view the pros and cons of a metal barn versus a wood barn.

We sell more than just carports at American Steel Carports, Inc. Our fully customizable structures can be designed to fit your exact needs with our Build & Price tool. Try it today!

A Classic Look

Traditionally, barns have been made from wood. Using wood as a building material was a viable choice long before it was possible to use metal in the same fashion. That said, it makes sense that what you picture as a “classic” barn is a structure made from wood. So, if you are drawn to this traditional look and all the feelings it evokes, you might initially lean toward sticking with wood.

However, as you will soon see, nearly all of the performance advantages you will be looking for in your barn point in the direction of metal. And, once you start to view metal barn designs, colors, and other finishing touches, you might realize that a metal structure can look just as good as wood.

Managing Your Budget

Every project has a budget, and it is likely that you’re concerned with the cost of your new barn as you plan this job. To keep costs under control effectively, go with a metal barn. There are two reasons that a metal barn will cost less than a wood structure. First, the materials are less expensive, since you need less material overall to build a metal barn. Additionally, there is a shorter construction process for this kind of building, meaning you won’t need to spend as much on labor. Between those two points, you’ll keep more of your money in your pocket, while still coming away with a beautiful, functional barn space.

The Savings Keep Going

Speaking of saving money, you’ll keep saving well into the future long after the initial construction of your metal barn has been completed. Those future savings are a result of the low maintenance costs associated with a metal structure. There is less that can go wrong with metal as compared to wood, so you will need to perform less maintenance and repairs as the years go by. Where wood structures can deal with issues like rot and insect infestations, those problems are not an issue when metal is used.

Get It Done

Are you in a hurry to have your new barn completed? If you are trying to beat a specific deadline for this project, like the arrival of winter, it’s a good idea to opt for metal. As mentioned above, building a metal barn takes much less time than building a similar structure out of wood, so you will have a far easier time hitting your completion date when metal is your material of choice.

Depending on the design of your barn, and what you plan to do inside the barn when it’s completed, there might be less site-prep work required for a metal structure, as well. This is a point that depends on the specifics of the project, however, so you’ll want to consult with the appropriate expert before settling on how you will prepare the area for the new barn.

Easy to Customize a Metal Barn

No two barns are exactly alike. You may need certain kinds of access to your barn to move animals or machines in and out, or you might want to add custom elements to achieve a specific look. Whatever the needs of your project happen to be, it will be easy to compose the perfect structure by working with metal. In fact, right here on our website, you can use our Build & Price tool to put together the exact type of barn you would like to own—and you’ll get an immediate estimate of the cost. This kind of flexibility is not offered with wood barns, so you might not be able to get exactly what you want with this material.

Order from American Steel Carports, Inc.

After weighing the pros and cons of a metal barn versus a wood barn, you can see that metal will save you money and will provide you with a number of important performance advantages. To get started on your new barn project, use the Build & Price tool from American Steel Carports, Inc., to design your ideal custom structure.