How Should I Insulate My Pole Barn Ceiling?

It is a pole building - there will be plenty of ventilation above the insulation!

Exactly!!! And I live in the desert. Low humidity.

Time to update this thread. I am amazed it has almost 10,000 views. :eek1 Don't you people ever ride? I finally started in December and I have the main part of the project done. The tedious cutting of styrofoam to fit around all the obstacles. When it warms up I will tape all the seams.

Looking good! I am considering doing the same in my shed. But NOT when it is -18F. Gonna be a springtime job.

50F is only 18 deg. above freezing. How can you work in such cold? Long underwear and a parka? :eek1

50°F is comfortable with a coat and something on my bald head. We were riding and camping last month with daytime temps in the teens with 20-30 mph winds at the sand dunes. It got down to -1°F overnight. See this thread: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=931730

ahhhhh....you dang "flatlanders" are funny

shoot, it was 53F for the high yesterday at my place outside of Show Low,
and I was out in the garage (unheated) in Shorts and a Long Sleeved Pullover Shirt working from 11am tip 4pm :eek1

what I'm wondering is what the heck keeps the roof up? it looks like a huge distance between rafters, and with the purloins setting on top of the rafters instead of between them and the way purloins are spiced . looks weak. hope it never snows where you are. and the winds stay down.
also i would opt for some sort of vented heating system. a knipco is not meant for an enclosed space.

Um, yea, our mama's taught us how to dress. The heat is in the tools, the more you work, the warmer you get. You only get cold when you stand around and drink too much.

Looks like I am a little late to the discussion-- at least as far as the ceiling project goes.

I suggested that a friend of mine try a housewrap underneath the siding of his pole barn. It was just outstanding in how the drafts shut down in the space. I am thinking that housewrap under rigid foam would provide a nice level of insurance and might eliminate the necessity to tape the joints of the rigid insulation.

Some guys place fan fold insulation beneath the roof to cut down on condensation,but unless you install bird stops on the rafters between the purloins, those little buggers will ruin it in a hurry

So if you are anticipating using rigid sheet insulation on a ceiling or are concerned about adding a vapor barrier to the cold side of the insulation,consider that the housewrap lets the moisture out and provides a superior barrier against air infiltration. The stuff is just as tough as nails and there is also joint tape available. A 9x150' roll is a little more than a hundred dollars and money well spent

I am also doing a bathroom in one of my rentals that will get rigid foam sealed with spray at the joints between the joists [treated] because of the high moisture conditions beneath the floor. Therefore, fiberglass insul is out. Then either tar paper or synthetic tar paper to protect the underside of the plywood from condensation,in the event it should occur. there is a ceramic tile floor and thick mud shower going in,so the floor is permanent with only one chance to do it right

It is not a perfect solution,but it will easily outlive the rest of the house

Looks like I am a little late to the discussion-- at least as far as the ceiling project goes.

I suggested that a friend of mine try a housewrap underneath the siding of his pole barn. It was just outstanding in how the drafts shut down in the space. I am thinking that housewrap under rigid foam would provide a nice level of insurance and might eliminate the necessity to tape the joints of the rigid insulation.

Some guys place fan fold insulation beneath the roof to cut down on condensation,but unless you install bird stops on the rafters between the purloins, those little buggers will ruin it in a hurry

So if you are anticipating using rigid sheet insulation on a ceiling or are concerned about adding a vapor barrier to the cold side of the insulation,consider that the housewrap lets the moisture out and provides a superior barrier against air infiltration. The stuff is just as tough as nails and there is also joint tape available. A 9x150' roll is a little more than a hundred dollars and money well spent

I am also doing a bathroom in one of my rentals that will get rigid foam sealed with spray at the joints between the joists [treated] because of the high moisture conditions beneath the floor. Therefore, fiberglass insul is out. Then either tar paper or synthetic tar paper to protect the underside of the plywood from condensation,in the event it should occur. there is a ceramic tile floor and thick mud shower going in,so the floor is permanent with only one chance to do it right

It is not a perfect solution,but it will easily outlive the rest of the house

I guess I need to put a final update on this thread. Here is my home brewed ventilation. I removed the foam plugs under the metal roofing. Cut a piece of aluminum to form the screen pieces. Put some silicone in the hole and shoved them in. Added two Whirlybirds on top. Should work, although I'm sure some "expert" will post up how I should have done it.
Big difference in interior temps summer and winter. Don't have to run the heater any time at all to get it up to 50°F for winter projects. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The link I added for the Whirlybird didn't work on the previous post and this POS won't let me edit the post. Here it is:
http://www.amazon.com/Lomanco-BIB-1...nco+BIB-12+MILL+Whirlybird+Turbine+Ventilator

Lookin' good! Nothing like some insulation to help the heater work. May want to keep an eye on those bird screens - I have had birds get into places I thought was impossible.

Birds suck. I agree. I finally got my tractor, rv, pickup and bbq sealed up to keep the bastards out. Nest making, shitting nuisances. I think they are worse than mice.

Wow great thread! I can't believe this is the first time I really looked through this garage section. I also need to insulate a similar shed but it is welded steel framed, and was built with the white bubble insulation under the roof panels. Unfortunately that material has disintegrated and it snows white plastic bits in the garage. Miserable. Obviously what remains has to go. Is sprayed foam my only option? I weld and grind quite a bit.

Stupid question- with my propane heater now running on low, I'm getting condensation on the garage door. I insulated it with a Corning batt insulation door kit but when I open the door, I get condensation dripping on my head. Not a lot but a few drops here and there.

Thoughts on how to prevent this?

It sounds like you're running a vent-free propane heater. A 28000 BTU heater produces almost 5 gallons of water in 24 hours of operation:
http://www.abe.iastate.edu/extensio...nvented-gas-space-heating-appliances-aen-204/
All that water vapor is going to want to condense on a cooler surface. A vented heater is a better & safer choice, for H2O & CO.

Sorry I just saw this thread but I had a pole building and used chicken wire stretched across the rafters. First we put up plastic then the wire,it is about 4' wide I think and just tied it together at the seems, laid the insulation on top of that and the plastic made it easy to slide it in place. No pics as I sold the place.

Finally put a heater in! What a luxury! Mr Heater Big Maxx 80,000 BTU propane.