Aesthetic Considerations

It's simply not good enought to build a strong treehouse, it also has to be good looking. That's why you aren't going to see rough plywood walls or any junk like that. Here is another little cosmetic touch I think will look fantastic. Check out the before and after pic, with the cedar shake installed to cover the somewhat less than attractive 2 x 8 end beam.

A Brace of Braces

For the past five weeks or so I have been putting in a lot of work helping Jeff out at H2O Composites building canoes. I was working roughly 4 or 5 days a week 9 to 3, then at least 2 or 3 evenings 7 til midnite or so. So finally this weekend I got the second support brace installed, and pulled away the temporary support holding the main platform up. These two braces were fairly fussy, as I had to cut a couple of compound cuts by hand with the chainsaw to fit them in place properly. I still have to trim them slightly to improve their fit to the angled beam holding up the four floor beams, and after that I plan to install an additional cabling system for support. It is nice to see the treehouse up and supported the way it is meant to be. If you take a look at this photo and compare to one in the previous post, you should notice quite a difference with the temporary support removed.

Why I Have The Best Dad In The World! Reason # 23 944 813

So maybe I am exaggerating a bit on the number of reasons why I think my dad happens to be the absolute best. In reality, I (and my sisters) am very fortunate to have two very wonderful parents - the worlds best, in my opinion - and there are countless reasons for this. What follows is just one of many.

In the construction of the treehouse, I needed a way to keep the four floor beams lined up at 90 degrees to the main beams that support them. I decided that in the back a metal framing bracket would do, and although the appearance was ugly, it would be hidden from view. On the front however, I opted for wood blocks, as they would provide excellent strength, perfect alignmnent, and nice aesthetic appeal. I decided that the 'post blocks' (short lengths of 4x4 post) would look nice if they were designed to resemble an ornamental 'hanging' finial, like you would find on a staircase or the like. Who better than to contract this job to than my father, master of all things creative, and an experienced home woodworker. Giving him nothing more than the specific dimensions of the total length of post block, length of finial carving, and a general idea of what I wanted, I let him get to work.

As usual, his work far exceeded my expectaions! Not only did he source a length of cedar post at no charge from his neighbor (who was removing a deck and giving away the scrap), he produced four absolutely beautiful turned finials, each with distinctly different designs. And not only were the designs different, they were all extremely detailed, and very creative in their appearance. To top it all off, the dimensions and fit were also absolutely perfect. as evidenced by the photographs of one of the four in place.

Dog Days of November

We had a beautiful nearly full week of weather here, Monday was wet and warming up, but Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (today) were glorious, highs of about 20 degrees each day, with sunny skies.

I finally cut and installed a 2x8 end beam which attaches to three of the four main deck beams (It doesn't span the four as I am leaving space for a suspension bridge to a third tree. Yes I am a bit crazy!) This end beam provides strength, alignment and proper spacing for the three deck beams. I decided that the deck of the treehouse would be irregular in shape, so this end beam is set at about a 65 degree angle to the deck beams, which made for an interesting couple of hours measuring, cutting, and installing. A bit of ingeneuity was required to singlehandedly install a 14ft long 2x8 (weighing about 40 lbs) seven feet above ground with no support!

More of the 2x6 floor joists have been raised and installed, and some brackets to prevent unwanted flex or movement have also been installed where necessary. The two steel sliders for the main support beams over the wooden bracket on the small tree have also been painted, drilled, and installed. It seems the weather is going to turn to more wintry conditions, so I am looking to finish the floor joists, and hopefully the main support for the platform on the smaller tree before the end of November.

Engineering or Art

Yes. Neither. Both. Hey, does it even matter? The following two photographs show the custom wooden bracket attachment to the smaller tree (note the spreader block installed to keep the longer clamp blocks from snapping as the bolts are tightened), and the simple 3/4 inch through-bolt attachment to the larger tree. Evidently the bolt will break at around 14000 lb under tension, so I am guessing there shouldn't be a big problem holding the treehouse up. The wooden bracket on the other hand...... In the spring, I will want about a dozen male volunteers to climb up and walk around the treehouse in a group, and if it doesn't fall down, I thnk it will be fine!

Slow and Steady (Wins the Race?)

Got back to construction after getting a few other home improvement projects started or finished as the case may be. The four floor deck beams that will support the floor joists under the main treehouse have been put in position, and fixed in place with metal framing flanges. It took quite a while to figure out how best to locate and fasten them, since the twin main beam supports will constantly move away from one another over time. The tall sawhorse support is temporary, and will be removed as soon as the permanent support fixed to the tree trunk is designed and installed. I am mulling over a few different design options, as this single brace will have to support a large portion of the treehouse deck frame, which will extend out approximately 10 feet from the main tree. I have finished the design of the staircase which will rise around the smaller tree to a landing platform there, and hope to begin building those, and the platform next week sometime.

Construction Begins!

I imagine there are some of you out there who, for one reason or another, think that I am all talk and no action. I won't claim that this is nowhere from the truth, but I would more realistically describe myself as all talk and a reasonable amount of action when required! On Saturday the 23rd of August, the main support frame went up, and on Sunday, the final adjusment and tightening was done, and it was stained. Have a look! I am very happy with the results, as the beams are completely level and edges upright, and the two main beams support easily my weight as I walked across from one tree to the other to test them out.