Installing Steel Siding on a Pole Barn, Trimming Windows, and Cutting Tools - Nibblers or Shears?

Have you wondered how to install steel siding on a pole barn?
In this video I show how easy it can be. The sheets cover 3 foot so it goes up pretty fast. I ordered my siding pre-cut to the lengths I needed so both the top and bottom edge had nice clean factory edges. Cutting the siding around window and door openings will be necessary though and for that I used a couple different tools. Hand shears from Wiss worked the best for cutting across the ribs. For ripping length-wise, I found that mechanical shears worked best. I used pneumatic shears because the cost savings over electric shears was significant. I also used an pneumatic nibbler when I only needed to go part way across a sheet. These allowed me to create and opening big enough to get the shears in to finish the opening.
This video also shows how I trimmed around my windows with a metal drip edge on top and then using J-channel around all the sides. I miter the corners for a nice picture-framed look.
Here's a link to some more great videos:
• How to Build a Pole Ba...
Here's the link to the Wiss W14L Shears:
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Here's the link to the Powermate Air Shears:
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Here's the link to the Ingersoll Rand Air Nibbler:
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Here's the link to the Bosch 18V Drill:
amzn.to/2TOKjMG
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[@feliziagraye2812]

Hi from France. Just getting ready to repair storm damage to our 70 year old shed. Thank you for speaking soft and slow without music back drop. One of the best videos we watched!

[@kennethperian4370]

Love the color and great job showing and telling, wish me luck on building my first pole barn. Watching people like you sure helps, thanks for the great video have a one see ya bye.

[@davidfraser3344]

Good job , been contracting in exteriors for 25 + years, I don't care if someone said you messed up , you did a great job in explanation and install.

[@scott.baierscott2198]

You don't care if someone says he messed up because you're on the way out you don't have tonfix the fuxk up. That's cheap siding that has faster showing in a climate region it'll leak in 5 years time. That's not good work it's crap work. Even my autistic brother know faster showing is bad

[@KimMcComas]

Great job. Love the color. Taking time to point out the side difference of the metal was a great point. Appreciated the explanation of the miter cut. Your delivery and video were excellent! Keep up the good work.

[@floyd4311]

The explanation of the two different sides of the metal sheeting…boom! Thank you. I’d have never known. Great work sir.

[@ajb657]

Love the color. That was my grandpa's color of choice for his farm, and I've inherited some leftover steel from him, so it seems it will be mine as well!

[@11baddog77]

Thankyou! I am a contractor not use to working with metal sheeting, this video answered all my questions and gave me many valuable pointers.

[@CountryFamily]

You're welcome! Thanks for watching.

[@BlueRidgeEd]

Great color for the siding! Appreciate that you appear to think things out as you move along; appears to be a quality job, buddy!

[@dolphinliam888]

Wow! That's some barn! I was raised on a farm with horses and cattle in the English countryside. Our barns were tiny. Nice sheet work. You Americans have great products! 😁🤠 🇬🇧

[@mere_cat]

Thanks great to see how different folks do this.

[@gabegjl3265]

I love that colour. Great job! It’s going help me install this stuff

[@AMIR-nm7fo]

I LOVE THE COLOR. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I WILL DO IT NEXT YEAR ON MY CARPORT.

[@kimcouasnon8349]

Love that shade of green!

[@vjc8341]

I like the color. It is like an olive green. Nice.

[@barbarchibald6255]

Love the color!

[@kneewall49]

Excellent. Thanks for sharing your knowledge/experience.

[@snygar11111]

Outstanding video. Brief and to the point.

[@Rodayeboss]

Very Neat! Good Job. Love it. And the colour is very nice!

[@kevinlabrun6542]

Looks awesome! Love the color. I'm starting my building tomorrow. 😁

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Kevin. Good luck with your project.

[@tomwaldenofficial]

Thanks for posting . . . enjoyed watching.

[@petehall8287]

Man, looks so good! I really love the colour!

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Pete!

[@hanafiewaslie9889]

Colour looks good.

[@Hayden-sp1ol]

I am a rookie and will be attempting this with lots of angle cuts.......this helps. Love the color.

[@snarf114]

you've got to be the fastest siding installer I've ever seen

[@jackm4825]

Very helpful, thanks. You're a good teacher 👍🏻

[@StonnieDennis]

Very nice!

[@happyhood8155]

Love the color!!

[@Bugsandlakes]

Love the colour.

[@skliros9235]

You did good. I've installed a lot of that menards steel. I don't miss it one bit!

[@shednut2666]

Menards steel is junk steel coil made and painted in China colors don't last 29 gage after paint

[@elberthardy961]

Nice build and I like the color.

[@hendriklegrange4696]

Good job, I can see that you know what you're doing

[@shannonpayne4478]

Great video save me some time this weekend on my window install

[@dereklindow7179]

I think the color looks beautiful

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Derek.

[@josamsantana1441]

Oh and by the way you do really good work. I enjoyed your video and love the color of the barn

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks so much for the comment. Glad you liked the video and the color. 😃

[@MorninTripper]

Excellent video. The detail was very useful... thanks.

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks for watching

[@EasyAim1]

Good job. Every detail you discussed was pertinent to someone doing the work. We didn't like the look of the flanges due to the J-channels and similar trim around the windows, so we went with the Haslet frame kits which were easy to install.

[@dalebechtel8904]

Thank you for the video. Well done and explained

[@mauroperez343]

Excellent work

[@randylavine3003]

Nice job . . .color is in the eyes of the buyer!

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Randy!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Wow! So easy and it looks great too👍

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks so much.

[@MsFarmer567]

Great job, ; love the color too, keep it

[@tonyspivey5336]

great color

[@00ChronicMan00]

good job im thinking of residing my trailer with steel sheathing. Not that expensive either and looks way better then lots other siding options out there.

[@redcloud870]

You make it look so easy! Good job!

[@jeanhagen16]

Like the color and the install it does look nice.

[@CountryFamily]

Thank you

[@carlospowell5315]

Looks good and you did a great job.

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Carlos!

[@leilanivevang6233]

Nice job.Love the color

[@CountryFamily]

Thank you

[@TiffanysTechniques]

Great tips and advice.

[@patrickkeating2860]

nice video. love the color!

[@matthorn3302]

Really like the color.

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Matt!

[@streamproperty]

Great video well done! Thanks!

[@hashkat]

great job, thanks

[@jasonbisher6211]

Nice color helpful video thanks

[@richj2709]

Great information!

[@artintelcorner3985]

New subscriber here, I want to this on my extension soon... thanks for sharing this video 😍

[@jamesbanjomanjohnson]

good job, i like the color

[@robburke8867]

Well done!

[@CountryFamily]

Thank you!

[@eded9742]

good video, nice color !

[@joelewis2401]

Great video

[@Carlusho]

Really nice! I like the way you explain all the details! I like the color too, wondering how would it look in black or dark gray.

[@oddbe260]

Nice color choice

[@Melicoy]

Great thanks

[@jakeschisler7525]

Watch R&R Buildings these 2 guys build one heck of a building.

[@CountryFamily]

I agree. Kyle and his crew have one heck of a system going on.

[@alanheadrick7997]

I saw a house nearby me that someone did the exterior in metal, actually looks real good, kind of surprised.

[@grimmspectre9660]

great video, though I'd love to see how you installed the metal and j-channel around the doorway. The color is awesome, it's like an olive drab which is my favorite color.

[@maxbird2003]

my favourite colour

[@92foxcarguy21]

Grest video thanks

[@markmartinez2448]

Nice color Green is good

[@deniseignatowski5302]

very nice video and explanations. I have an old Hay Barn that the current cheap wood siding is falling off. I would like to strip it off and re-side with metal. Im thinking of converting the hay barn into a larger structure for both hay storage and goat shelter. This is all new to me but I hope I can do this.

[@marcusmaddox7809]

Had same old barn. Was an embarrassment. With no experience did it all. Looks like brand new pole building. Reversed the blade on skilsaw to cut metal. Cheap, quick and easy

[@psfsclarksvilleteam431]

Nice

[@margueritemcnair1784]

Thank you for teaching me my husband is doing it all wrong

[@airyfast]

Great tips, I'm putting one up at this time also by myself. Nice work you are doing, nice clean job.

[@CountryFamily]

Thank you.

[@dwayneloftice2326]

Exactly the same color I am using on my barn. It will match my house.

[@BrockoM]

Great video! Have you done the video where you trim the garage doors yet?

[@GrammelVideo]

Great video, thank you! Can you recommend cutting shears & nibbler for me to purchase? I just bought a cabin where I will be needing to make some cuts on siding similar to what I see in this video - thanks. Air tool style would be fine...

[@danbyrne6501]

Doing a great job,very good explanation of your processes, i get a kick out of all the Karen's telling you you messes up !

[@GrampiesWorkshop]

How's she goin'? The barn is looking great!!! I like the color. Sort of pastel and not too dominant in the yard. Neat idea for punching the holes with the nail set. We put roofing on and drilled the holes and went through about 40 drill bits!!! The mitered corners rock!!! Is it easy for you to source steel siding and roofing in your area? Nice job pal. Looking good. Take care!!!

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Mike. The color is Sage. I had to talk my wife into it. As you can see from the house, she doesn't like to veer far from the beige family. 😄 I really like it though plus there will be a darker color up above in the gable ends to really set it off. We have a Menard's in town that sells steel siding/roofing like mine. My roofing though, I got from an Amish gentleman that bends it all by hand with a huge brake in his barn. I went with him because he had the matte finish I was looking for to match the shingles on the house better. I don't care for a shiny roof. Thanks for watching.

[@fredstanley5758]

Looking real good, my friend! I really like that color, what’s it called? 👍

[@CountryFamily]

Thank you. The color is Sage from Menard's

[@mwangimuturi1091]

I like the color. U are putting it so well am sure it’s kinda therapeutic to u if it was to me just by watching. Can I put this on a house after OSBs? Seems like metal siding could provide 100% moisture free house.

[@CountryFamily]

Yes a lot of times when I'm working alone it is therapeutic and takes your mind off other things. I don't recall seeing this type of siding used on a house before, but I don't see why not. You definitely could put it over OSB. That would be similar to how I did my roof. A standing seam metal siding would be even better moisture protection. Thanks for the comment.

[@thomasweeks7992]

I have a metal house yes OSB is a great substrate be careful not to over tork screws

[@pensive69]

Great job! Like the color. Around this area we have lots of snow rain and general damp weather. Try to elevate the lower sill plate of these with some concrete berm or perimeter to keep the treated lumber up from ground level. That way the precip all drains down and away.

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks, yeah that's a good point. The front and back will both have concrete slabs draining away. The south side has a planter box that drops down a bit and the north side has stonecrete that slopes away. I had to build the area up around the barn so it all slopes away really well. Thanks for the comment and thanks for watching.

[@darrenwillis4897]

Very informative video and nice job on the project! Could you tell me the name of the trim that the panels slip under at the top, underneath the soffits? Thanks for taking the time to make this!

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Darren! The trim at the top is a J-channel. Here's a link: www.menards.com/main/building-materials/siding/steel-siding/10-residential-steel-siding-j-channel/white1550306-01/p-1444448461086-c-5837.htm?tid=472930711005416000&ipos=2

[@darrenwillis4897]

@@CountryFamily Awesome. Thanks!

[@michaelwas8549]

So on an inside corner would I start with that small flat edge against the corner and have the overlap out?

[@robertmorris9998]

Nice job! I was wondering how you did the corners...did they come with the siding precut or did you custom fir them? Are they generic or specific to the type of siding?

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks Robert, the corners are standard for metal siding. They are bent deep enough to fit over a siding rib. To trim the angles on top just takes careful measurements and even a sample template if you have enough length to cut some off.

[@jtoler5498]

I use rat guard trim on the bottom and j on top slide right in

[@MrSprintcat]

Barns are supposed to be red LOL awesome video thank you

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks!

[@joeymomma518]

Did you have to paint the siding screws to match or do they come that way? PS, you asked how we like the color and I for one, love it !!!

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks for the comment, I bought matching screws from Menards where I bought the steel.

[@kylewoodward7078]

Ok, what do you do if your 24 inch window falls right in the middle of the panel on a remodel?

[@jturn4646]

I'm just about to finish a bare bones pole barn on the property I moved onto. Your video is giving me hope I can do it by myself! I'm a little stumped at the corners though. Do you wrap around the siding or is there a special kind of panel? Also I don't see a video about framing the walls, does it vary state to state or is there a universal distance to put the 2x4s up the walls?

[@CountryFamily]

The siding panel starts at the edge of the purlin (2x4) then the corner piece fits over it. The corner trim is bent deep enough to cover a siding rib. Just make sure the rib is close enough to the edge so the corner encompasses it. The wall framing is strictly for attaching interior finish. It is not structural at all so you can go 24" on center. The poles are the structure of the building. You could also run horizontal purlins on the inside similar to the outside and finish it that way too. Good luck with your project!

[@jturn4646]

thank you!

[@CyndiRollTide]

I like the color! Did you screw your metal walls to the concrete form?

[@CountryFamily]

No, there's a 2x6 pressure treated toe board all around the base.

[@rusiapeng9979]

around 5:34 😗am I the only one enjoy that sound? btw great video.

[@sparky5860]

Lol... I noticed it sounds like a Benny Hill skit...... nice work.... great video...

[@freesoul4346]

Nice color for type of weather. Could you please the window type and specifications? Also the siding you used (J). Are they standard size? I really don't know but I need to install a pair of windows over R panel walls that are in a horizontal setting. I am closing a carport. Any input will be greatly appreciated. Thank you and God Bless.

[@CountryFamily]

Hi Roberto, the windows I used are Jeld-Wen from Menards, but I think you can get them many other places. They come in many standard sizes. www.menards.com/main/doors-windows-millwork/windows/sliding-windows/jeld-wen-good-series-vinyl-sliding-window-with-nailing-flange/jw1385-00825/p-1454045264952-c-1482327569455.htm

[@kevinkociuba8052]

Any problem with water leaking at either end of the drip edge? I guess if there was any it would be minor/acceptable for a shop/shed/barn, but on a house? Could be a problem with sheetrock. It would be nice if the drip edge had dams at each end but thats a job for a metal shop.

[@CountryFamily]

Thanks for the comment Kevin. I have had no issues at all with water infiltration. That piece of drip edge above the window is more for extra protection than the primary protection. Most of the time that drip edge trim isn't used just the J-channel. The ends of the J-channel are bent over into the side pieces so the water flows away down each side. I am actually a little concerned about the bottom corners because it seems that some water from above could seep through there. That's why I used the synthetic roof felt around the window and taped everything with the window sealer tape.

[@JamesValentineBaja1000]

Turbo shears are the correct tool. Or single cut shears.

[@whereitallstarts]

How do you trim around corners and roll up doors?

[@nathanpike1908]

What do you do if the window is small and it's in the middle of a piece of metal I can't get the trim in around it

[@josamsantana1441]

I have a barn that I turned into an apartment. I think I might have bought the wrong window. Would it be easier to remove the siding then put window in and then put siding back on? Or is there special windows to order for a barn that's already built?

[@CountryFamily]

It's not too bad to remove a couple sections of siding to replace the window. Unless it's nailed instead of screwed. Or some companies can make a replacement that fits into the opening. Good luck with your project.

[@blakedudley4692]

Am I nuts or shouldn’t the base flange of the window not be taped to allow the drainage plane to allow water out?

[@triciahill216]

We like the color. What color is it?

[@jasonsmith1835]

Where did you buy the siding from and what is the manufacture of the siding? Thanks J

[@CountryFamily]

Hi J, I got the siding a my local Menards. They sell Pro-Rib from Midwest Manufacturing.

[@garydaniels3599]

How do you get the window out if it gets broken? Looks like you'll have to remove all the metal (due to metal overlapping) up to the window just to replace the window. Why didn't you put some kind of molding (brick mold) over the flanges of the window and then place your j-channel around the molding?

[@danielsmith7935]

You just loosen the two panels around the window. Take screws partially out of next piece that falls over the side of the one panel to remove only. This will allow you to slip the one underlayed out and remove the panels you need to remove the window. I know because I installed windows after my barn was finished!