A Barn Raising!

A few blog posts ago I shared the pictures of our barn demolition (post here), what is even more impressive is the barn rebuild.  We went through a local lumberyard that employs the Amish to build its barns and I am more impressed then I ever thought I would be.  I am told that our project would normally only take 2-3 days but that since there was another customer's barn also being built at the time ours began it might take a bit longer then normal...a whopping 4 days. (note sarcasm here as that is very little time to build a barn).

The first day was the slowest as the workers (only 7 of them) arrived and set the posts.  There was another man not part of their crew who dug the holes but then the Amish workers set the posts and that was the end of day 1.

However, day 2 the excitement really started as we watched the barn take shape.  I have to say that the Amish do make me a bit nervous as they walk along 2x4 beams with ease 15-20 feet up on a roof.  They make it look easy and the entire set of all the trusses for the roof went on in less then 2 hours.

My husband and I both commented on how quiet the work was.  You never really heard much talking and it was just the hammering of nails and the sawing of boards.  The seamless teamwork was amazing, no one stood around, they all worked efficiently and quickly.  It was kind of like if you have ever watched ants working, they just make a line and work.  After the trusses for the roof were up I timed the amount of time it took to put insulation and metal on the roof...ready for this?  45 minutes and my whole roof was covered in insulation and metal.  Only 7 guys...I stand amazed!

So the posts were set on Monday, and the men finished up around 2pm on Thursday.  There are a few more touch ups they will be back to do next week but seriously, a 30x50 barn in essentially 3 and a half days!  We could all stand to learn something from the work ethics of men like this!