A Guide To Girder Trusses

With both machinery and sheds getting bigger, the need for wide access in sheds has increased, meaning girder trusses have become a much more common addition to farm sheds. This is primarily because a girder truss can achieve a wider bay opening than can usually be built with standard engineering.

If you aren’t sure about incorporating a girder truss into your shed design, here is what you need to know about including a girder truss in your farm shed project.

Let’s start with; what exactly is a girder truss?

What is a girder truss?

A girder truss is a heavy-duty steel truss that runs between columns to provide a double opening. The girder truss supports the main roof trusses in the bays in which the column has been removed.

 
Does my shed need a girder truss?

Girder trusses are a popular option for large cropping operations, hay growers and harvesting contractors.

A girder truss provides larger openings to cater for wider machinery such as a header with the front attached or an airseeder bar. This makes storing machinery out of the weather quick and easy.

For hay growers and export hay facilities using girder trusses reduces the amount of columns in shed,  to make loading and unloading hay more efficient.

If these benefits of a girder truss are something you would also benefit from in a shed, it would be worth considering a girder truss. Our building consultants are more than happy to price up several design options for you to consider. 

Girder truss versus girder beam

Column removal can be achieved with either a girder truss or a girder beam, which are shown in the photos below. 

The advantage of a girder truss, compared to a girder beam, is its strength as the truss structure tends to be more rigid than a girder beam.

One advantage of a girder beam though is that a girder beam is normally shallower than a girder truss, so a girder beam may provide a slightly better clearance height for your machinery. 

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