Metal Building Frame Types
Please note that Buck Steel does not sell metal building components separately. The frame options listed below are only available to our metal building customers.
Images are displayed for presentation purposes only.
Clear Span Frames
Clear span frames require no interior support beams which allow for unobstructed use of the entire interior space of the building. Clear span frames are one of the benefits of commercial red-iron (or I-beam) steel buildings as they can easily span 150′ without the need for internal support columns. Clear span frames can be either gable symmetrical, gable asymmetrical or single slope.
Gable Symmetrical
Gable symmetrical frames have double-sloped with the ridge in the center of the building and both eaves have the same height.
Gable symmetrical frames are the most common and with a higher roof pitch, can provide a significant amount of overhead space for a car lift or framing out of additional space for loft/storage use.
Gable Asymmetrical
Gable asymmetrical frames have double-sloped with the ridge off-center and both eaves can have either the same OR different heights.
Gable asymmetrical frames are less common and sometimes used in instances where the drainage of the site benefits from having most of the rain/snow drain off one sidewall.
Single Slope
Single slope frames have a single-slope with no ridge with both eaves having different heights that allow for minimal roof slope.
Single slope frames are common in areas with heavy rain or snowfall, because they allow the roof to shed excess rain and/or snow to one side. Single slope frames are also ideal for retail buildings where a parapet is used to hide the single slope frame.
Leanto Frame
The Leanto frame attaches to and is partially supported by the main building frame. While a leanto frame can follow the existing building roof slope, most leantos are below eave. Leantos can be expensive as they increase the costs of both the main building as well as the foundation engineering for the project. For customers looking for roof-only shelter for equipment or materials, a building designed with an inset bay is a more cost-effective alternative.
Modular Frame
Modular frames make use of interior load-bearing columns to more evenly distribute the load of the entire building. A modular frame works very well for projects that require extremely large steel buildings. The addition of an interior, or intermediate column on wider buildings, especially those with high snow loads helps reduce the size of the rafter and column, making the project more economical.
Gambrel Frame
Besides being a traditional architectural style, Gambrel Frame offers aesthetic and practical advantages. Roofs that spring from the first-floor wall plate, the way gambrels and capes do, rather than from the second floor. Such roofs are more interesting and visually pleasing. But the gambrel has some advantages over the cape: in particular, gambrel allows more useful space within the framed volume.
