Pole Barn Repair

[realmstalker]

I am trying to repair a friend's old pole barn and one of the corner poles has shifted in the ground and is now bowing out (as in the portion in the ground has moved outwards, not the pole warping), taking the whole wall with it. It is a two sided barn with horse stalls with an open walk-way going down the middle. We have heavy clay soils here, so I'm not sure what kind of effect the ground might have had on this. Can anyone give advice on how to fix this?

Can I just sink another pole where it should be and nail it to the bowing pole with boards, or does the whole pole need to be replaced?

[marksr]

Welcome to the forums!

Is it feasible to jack the corner up slightly, install temporary supports and then remove the pole so you can dig down to stable soil and pour a footer? That way once the pole is reinstalled and the temporary support removed, it shouldn't ever be a problem again.

[realmstalker]

how would you jack that up? I've never done any serious construction, so I'm a little confused about the logistics of it...

[marksr]

Basically you just take a bottle jack and lumber long enough to reach and jack it up about an inch, maybe less. You need plywood or something on the ground to disperse the load so you don't push the jack into the ground. You also may need some lumber to secure the top. The main thing is to do it slow and safe! Once the wall and roof have been raised just a little, you should b e able to remove the post and put it back in place making sure you've fixed the ground so it will be more stable.

[XSleeper]

I'd probably jack it up as marksr suggested... with either a bottle jack or an auto jack... just enough to take the weight off the post and raise it up a little. Plumb down from the top inside corner of the post using a chalk line as a plumb bob. Then dig a post hole where the post SHOULD be.

If you can't gently push the post back where it should be, maybe a come-along winch would help you pull it back into plumb. If you backfill with dirt, make sure you tamp it as you go.

Not sure how the pole barn is constructed, but those corners usually need to have corner bracing that extends down from the ceiling/rafters at 45° angles onto the pole. Burying the pole deeper helps too, but is no guarantee the barn won't shift in high winds.

[realmstalker]

Thanks! The damage was sustained during a hurricane that flooded the area for over a week, so wind damage is an issue.

I'll try the jack up and dig a new hole method.