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Adirondack Lifestyle ™: Jul 9, 2010

Friday, July 09, 2010

Adirondack Lifestyle Building Project Update


As promised, today's blog will be an image-rich status update on our Adirondack timber frame post and beam home building project. In today's post I will describe how we went from first floor decking to having all second floor posts and beams in place and ready for joists in one weekend.
First, it was essential to recruit strong young men with building experience to the effort. The groundwork was laid for this 29 years ago with the arrival of young Edward.
It was also important to have much of the preparatory work done ahead of time, such as procuring the trees and peeling the selected logs.
The posts are then cut to length and leveled, and a hole is drilled in the center of the bottom of the post. The post is then placed on big, fat steel pins that have been inserted into the floor decking. You can see the boys placing a post in the photographs above and below.
After the posts are placed and secured with temporary bracing, pre-notched beams are placed on top and secured with timber lock screws to connect the posts.
Jason, Chris and Eddie prepping beams; notching and sanding.

Ed on the chisel.

 
This is the mortise, into which goes......


....the tenon.

Big strong boys haul the beam up ladders to the top of the posts.


Jason makes the fine adjustment on the fit.


Chris places the end of a beam into its appropriate  puzzle spot.

Eddie admires the fit, "Like a glove."


A finished joint.

This photo shows the view out of what will soon be the great room picture window. There was originally another beam in the middle spot. When I saw the curved top of this beam however, I knew it had to go in the middle of the main living space; it makes a nice frame for the south facing view. So the boys took down the beam that had already been placed. After they notched, sanded and placed the new curved beam, we all agreed it was worth the effort. This is one of the best aspects of building our own house: we get to make it just right.
Photographs courtesy of Anya Esonis Reed, Edward Robert Reed and Joann Sandone Reed