Hay Storage Buildings Ontario
Engineered MegaDome hay storage buildings preserve dry matter, eliminate condensation drip and deliver clear-span access for Ontario farms.
Built for purpose. Built for Ontario.
Hay stored under tarps loses 15–25% of dry matter to weather and rot. Hay stored in insulated metal barns risks condensation drip ruining the top bale layer. MegaDome fabric buildings solve both problems — the breathable membrane prevents condensation while the translucent panels naturally dry residual moisture from incoming bales.
Clear-span widths from 40 to 140 feet accommodate any Ontario hay operation, from small dairy round-bale storage to large cash-hay export buildings. Front and rear endwall doors let tractors and forklifts drive straight through; no interior posts to navigate around.
Building Depot, Ontario's Authorized MegaDome Dealer, has installed hay storage across every Ontario hay-belt county — from Renfrew to Wellington to Huron. Foundations are typically precast L-block or pony wall concrete, sized to your chosen bale stack height.
The MegaDome advantage.
Explore related building types.
The complete guide to hay storage buildings.
Building Depot is the Authorized MegaDome Dealer for Ontario and hay storage buildings are one of the most-specified MegaDome configurations across the province. Engineered hay storage buildings combine a hot-dip galvanized steel arch frame with a high-tenacity PVC membrane to deliver a clear-span, naturally lit, corrosion-resistant envelope that lasts decades with a fraction of the operating cost of conventional steel or wood construction.
Hay stored under tarps loses 15–25% of dry matter to weather, leaching and rot — a margin every Ontario producer feels in their feed budget. Hay stored under conventional insulated metal barns risks condensation drip ruining the top bale layer through every freeze-thaw cycle. MegaDome fabric hay buildings eliminate both losses: the breathable PVC membrane stops condensation from forming on the underside, and the translucent panels naturally dry residual moisture from incoming bales without firing up a fan or burner.
Clear-span widths from 40 to 140 feet accommodate any Ontario hay operation, from small dairy round-bale storage through to large cash-hay export buildings serving U.S. and overseas markets. Front and rear drive-through doors let tractors, telehandlers and forklifts move straight through without backing or column conflicts — a major safety and labour win during a fall harvest push.
This page is the complete Ontario reference for hay storage buildings — covering benefits, applications, construction process, engineering, foundation options, installation, warranty and ongoing maintenance. Every Building Depot project is delivered turnkey under one accountable contract: in-house engineering, stamped Ontario drawings, municipal permit management, foundation construction, fabric installation and full commissioning. One contract, one project manager, one phone number from kickoff to keys.
Headline benefits.
Where MegaDome fits.
Round Bale Storage
Dairy and beef round-bale storage. L-block foundation, drive-through ends, 60'–100' clear-span.
Large Square Storage
Cash-hay and export square-bale storage. 80'–140' clear-span, 20'–24' stacking height, telehandler access.
Custom Hay Operations
Custom-baler and contractor operations storing client hay through the season. Multiple bays and segregated stockpiles.
Straw & Forage
Straw, baleage and dry forage storage. Same breathable envelope, same drive-through layout.
Operators we build for across Ontario.
From contract to keys.
Every Building Depot hay storage buildings project follows the same disciplined sequence. It starts with a site visit and a needs interview so we understand the operation, the equipment moving through the building, the access routes and any local zoning or conservation constraints. From there our in-house designer produces a stamped engineering package — building dimensions, foundation, ventilation, door layouts and any internal partitions — sized to the application and engineered to the site's snow, wind and exposure category under the Ontario Building Code.
The stamped package goes straight into the municipal permit submission. Building Depot manages the back-and-forth with the local building department and coordinates any conservation authority, site plan or zoning approvals required for the site. While the permit is in review, the foundation crew is mobilized and the steel order goes into production so the project moves the day the permit is issued.
On site, the foundation runs first — pier, slab, L-block or curb wall, depending on the configuration. Steel arches are raised next using a mobile crane and the Building Depot install crew, the fabric membrane is tensioned over the engineered ratchet system, end walls are framed and clad, and any door, lighting or ventilation systems are commissioned. The owner gets one accountable contract, one project manager and one weekly status update from contract signing through to keys.
Stamped Ontario engineering on every project.
Every MegaDome hay storage buildings Building Depot delivers in Ontario ships with third-party engineering sealed by an Ontario P.Eng. and certified to CSA A660 — the Canadian standard for pre-engineered steel building systems. Engineering accounts for site-specific snow loads (1.6–3.5 kPa across the province), hourly wind pressures per the Ontario Building Code, unbalanced snow drift conditions and any seismic factors. Drawings include the full structural design, foundation reactions, anchor bolt schedules and ventilation specifications, and are submitted directly into the municipal permit package.
Engineering is included in every Building Depot quote — never billed separately, never outsourced to a third party the owner has to chase. The same engineering team that designs the building stands behind it through the permit process, the foundation inspection and any post-construction follow-up. That single accountable contract is why GTA developers, Northern Ontario mining operators and Eastern Ontario municipalities specify MegaDome through Building Depot as their default fabric building solution.
Engineered to your site, your budget and your soil.
Concrete L-Block
Pre-cast concrete L-blocks retain a working pile or commodity (salt, sand, aggregate, grain) inside a clear-span dome. Standard for bulk storage.
Concrete Pier
Drilled or augered reinforced concrete piers. Lowest-cost option, ideal for sites without a slab requirement and for sloped or rural builds.
Pony Wall
Short concrete pony wall (3–4 ft) under the perimeter — protects the bottom bale layer from snow drift and ground moisture without the cost of a full slab.
Turnkey installation by Building Depot crews.
Building Depot maintains its own installation crews across Ontario — based in the GTA, Eastern Ontario and Northern Ontario — so we never sub-contract the install to a crew unfamiliar with MegaDome's tensioning system. A typical hay storage buildings install runs 2–4 weeks for the steel frame and membrane portion, on top of 1–2 weeks for the foundation and 1 week for end-wall and door commissioning. Larger or column-free wide-span buildings (140'+) add an additional week for staged arch erection.
Steel arches are raised in sequence using a mobile crane sized to the arch weight. The PVC membrane is tensioned over the steel using engineered ratchet tensioners, with a 24-hour set period followed by a final tension check before sign-off. End walls are framed in galvanized steel and clad in matching membrane, insulated metal panel or owner-supplied finishes. Through the entire install, the client works with a single Building Depot project manager — no calling around for status updates, no finger-pointing between trades.
Backed for the long haul.
MegaDome hay storage buildings carry a 25-year limited warranty on the structural steel frame and a 15-year limited warranty on the PVC membrane. Both warranties cover materials and workmanship and are honoured directly by Building Depot — Ontario's Authorized MegaDome Dealer — so warranty claims are resolved by the same team that installed the building, not bounced between a dealer, a manufacturer and a sub-contracted installer.
Hardware components — ratchet tensioners, anchor brackets, ventilation louvers and door systems — are covered under the membrane warranty. Building Depot maintains a full inventory of replacement membrane panels, brackets and hardware in Ontario, which means warranty service is typically scheduled within days, not the weeks it takes a U.S.-based supplier to ship parts across the border.
Simple, predictable upkeep.
Maintenance on a MegaDome hay storage buildings is intentionally minimal — that's a core part of the value proposition versus conventional steel. Annual maintenance comprises a visual inspection of the membrane surface and ratchet tensioning system, a check of ridge vents and gable louvers, a tightening of anchor bolts where exposed and a wash-down of any accumulated debris. The hot-dip galvanized steel frame requires no painting, no rust treatment and no panel replacement over the building's design life, which is a meaningful operating-cost advantage over painted metal buildings that demand recoating every 10–15 years.
Building Depot offers an Ontario-wide annual inspection and re-tensioning service for operators who want a turnkey maintenance contract. A typical building requires a half-day visit once a year to remain in warranty-compliant condition. At the 5–7 year mark, our crews perform a full re-tension of the membrane to compensate for the natural relaxation that occurs in any PVC fabric structure. With that simple maintenance cycle, MegaDome buildings routinely deliver 25–30+ years of service before any fabric replacement is required.
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Hay Storage Buildings — questions, answered.
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