The Benefits Of Choosing A Raised Center Barn For Your Livestock

Every farmer and rancher knows how important it is to care for this livestock. They need a comfortable space to rest, safety from external threats, proper feed, and a healthy environment to be productive. One way to achieve this is by investing in raised center barns, which offer a number of benefits and improve the well-being of precious livestock.

Let’s see how a raised central aisle metal barn can benefit livestock owners, enhance their productivity, create a safe space for them to rest, and contribute to profit.

What Are Raised Center Barns?

A raised center metal barn is known by various names such as Carolina barn, step down barn, raised central aisle barn, and monitor barn. You can recognize a metal Carolina barn by its distinct design featuring a raised central section with sloping sides, which creates a multi-tire-like roof structure.

The middle raised center gives additional benefits for livestock such as cattle and horses, such as ventilation and light. The slopes on both sides create a separate area for activities like organizing tools and equipment, creating a tack room, milking parlor, storing feed, etc. Let’s see some of the benefits of raised barns.

How Does Raised Central Aisle Barn Helps Livestock? – 7 Advantages

Superior Ventilation

A raised roof barn improves airflow by creating a natural chimney effect. The central part is higher than the two side-lean-tos, which allows warm air to rise and escape while letting cooler air in from the sides. Of all different types of metal buildings, a step-down barn offers a better vent for airflow and removing foul smell.

Good air circulation is important for livestock health and productivity. It helps remove harmful gases like ammonia, which can irritate respiratory tracts or cause infection. Ventilation also removes excess humidity and reduces the chances of molding and mildew growth that can contaminate feed and bedding.

You can opt for a wider aisle and narrower lean-tos, depending on your specific needs. For example, this 42×26 metal horse barn with 12 ft. height can easily shelter 6 horses in a moderate weather region. You can customize this design to include a tack room and enclosed space.

Enhanced Natural Lighting

The step down metal farm barns allows more natural light to enter inside from the elevated central section. You can strategically place windows or skylights to increase the barn's lighting. When plenty of daylight enters in, it makes the interior bright and well-lit for everyday farm operations without the need for artificial lights.

Exploring natural light helps regulate the circadian rhythm of animals, which promotes better sleeping patterns and brings positive effects to their overall health. For instance, this 84×52 metal barn has a central height of 16 ft. while the two side-lean-tos are 9 ft. tall. So, you get enough spacing to install multiple windows to let air and light inside.

Reducing the need for natural lighting also lowers energy costs and lets livestock owners save on electricity bills, making raised center barns an economical choice.

Cost-Effective Investment

The initial investment might be a little higher than traditional stick-built barns, but when calculating the overall costs, a metal barn shines. This is mainly due to its higher durability and low maintenance needs with time. You can save big on steel building costs by opting for a prefab-raised steel barn, choosing the right customizations, and opting to buy directly.

We offer all metal structures directly from manufacturers without any third-party fees, so all our customers get the best value-for-money deals. When compared to traditional barns, a metal Carolina barn offers a balanced combo of durability, functionality, and affordability.

Enhanced Aesthetics

When raising the center design, you can add visual appeal to the farm and ranch. Its distinct silhouette makes the barn stand out, enhancing the overall look of the property. A well-designed farm barn can increase your land value, making it a valuable asset.

With eco-friendly design and sustainable material, a raised aisle center barn can become a hot property among new buyers for livestock management. Not to mention, you can benefit from various tax-saving schemes with properly designed metal barns.

Protection Against Elements

Raised center farm barns offer superior protection against rain, snow, and wind due to their robust design. The slopes facilitate easy water run-off that otherwise would have a pool on the roof and cause leaks. To ensure the longevity and durability of step-down barns, you must prepare the site for metal building installation correctly.

A metal building is as good as its installation. That’s why we provide final quotes on our metal barns, which include shipping and construction charges, to ensure each client gets the best steel structure that lasts. Unlike traditional barn materials, our 12-gauge frames are less susceptible to rot, decay, warping, and termite infestation.

You can even opt for certified metal farm buildings that withstand up to 180 mph or wind speed and up to 80 lbs. sq. ft. of snow load. The cherry on the cake is – that our steel buildings require minimal maintenance and last for decades, providing consistent protection to livestock and everyday tools.

Increase Space And Accessibility

With wide aisle space in the center and two side-lean-tos, center-raised barns offer a flexible space for a no. of options, such as storing feed and equipment, sheltering different types of livestock, and creating an office or a tack room to manage day-to-day activities. For a cattle barn, one lean-to can be repurposed as a milking station, while the other can be used as a birthing area.

You can also add custom features like additional lean-to, colors, wainscoting, structural trim, etc., and choose roof style and its pitch to create a livestock barn that meets your needs. With growing herd size, you can expand a metal barn to accommodate more livestock without needing to install a new barn.

Tip: Ensure to plan for expansion in advance, during the time of installation, for easy expansion in the future. You can contact us for more details.

Durability And Longevity

With a metal step-down barn, you don’t have to worry about frequent repairs and replacements, regular pest inspection and control, or reinforcing structures to prevent sagging. The only problem with metal is that it may rust. Wondering how to avoid rusting in metal barns? You can opt for 100% galvanized steel that is coated with zinc to avoid direct contact with moisture or water. Hot-dipped galvanized steel can protect against rusting for up to 75 years [source: AGA].

Tip: For larger metal barns, we suggest choosing 12-gauge steel frames with 26-gauge metal panels to maximize the durability and lifespan of the metal farm building.

Why Farmers And Ranchers Should Buy A Raised-Center Barn?

With its innovative design and functional space, a raised central aisle barn offers versatile solutions to farmers' and ranchers' needs. It is a fully customizable design that lets owners have control of look and appeal.

For Cattle: Cows need spacious and well-ventilated areas for good health and productivity, which a raised metal barn can easily fulfill with its ample headroom and enhanced airflow. Ranchers can even organize feeding, cleaning, and resting areas for a large herd.

For Horses: Monitor-style barn offers enough headroom for the equine to move freely without feeling confined. You can opt for barns as tall as up to 40 ft. or even more to create a loft/ deck space for storing riding gears or animals’ supplements. Side lean-tos can be used as a grooming area, feed storage, etc.

For Poultry: Chickens need proper airflow and regulated temperature for a comfortable living. Here, poultry owners can opt for insulated metal raised center barns, which ensure better ventilation and temperature control for birds. You can customize lean-tos for nesting and roosting.

For Sheep & Goats: Livestock owners can customize a raised-center steel barn to include pens and separate areas for feeding, birthing, and shearing. Better ventilation decreases the risk of diseases, too.

Make Smart Choice For Your Livestock With Raised Central Aisle Metal Barn Today!

Compared to traditional barns, a raised central space barn offers superior airflow and natural lighting that can reduce respiratory-related illness and improve overall animal health. By choosing a metal raised barn from Carports Advisor, you can ensure that your livestock receives the best possible care and enhance the efficiency and productivity of farm / ranch operations. To know more, call us at (336)-914-1654 today!