Monthly Archives

May 2012

May 31
Love0

Instructor Chris Newman Joining 2012 Timber Frame Workshop

By Natural Building Workshops, Timber Framing, Strawtron

sillbeam-angletenonWe are pleased to have Chris Newman joining the 2012 Timber Frame Workshop team as an assistant instructor to Tom Cundiff. Hailing from Michigan, Chris has 10 years of timber framing experience, making for 30 years of timber framing experience between both Chris and Tom. Wow! Chris is a Timber Framers Guild member and has helped teach several workshops.

Things are shaping up very well, and the two week Timber Frame Workshop promises to be a very comprehensive, packed, and well-rounded event. I can’t wait to meet and work with everyone who is making it out! The excitement is definitely brewing, as we are 10 short days away from the start of the course.

For any latecomers out there, we can still squeeze a couple of participants into the class. If you have any interest whatsoever, please contact me immediately, or send in an application. It’s not too late!

Expect regular updates during the Timber Frame Workshop here on The Year of Mud to catch a glimpse of what we are up to, and how work is proceeding. Oh yea.

 

May 27
Love0

Timber Framing Moment of Zen: Scarf Joint

By Timber Framing, Strawtron

sillbeam-scarf

When two timbers join to become one unit, they are mated with a so-called “scarf joint”. Scarf joints come in many different styles, some more elaborate than others. This sill beam scarf joint is a rather simple one, as far as layout and cutting, goes and it is wisely located directly above a support pier.

This photo was taken before pegs were driven into each tenon, but if you look carefully you can see on the upper half of the scarf where the peg hole is marked.

Scarf joints were developed when taller trees became scarce and long spans had to be created with shorter pieces of timber. I think that timber framing is beautiful for its ingenuity and effective use of materials.

May 23
Love0

Replacing Concrete with Wood: Pier and Beam Foundation

By Strawtron, Hand Tools, Timber Framing
Timber frame pier and beam foundation

Standing at the future floor height... we are way up there!

Many people are shocked at the giant size of the sill beam timbers we are using (myself included), as they are very burly 8×12 white oak beams. They are no joke. Lately I’ve been thinking about a concise way to describe our foundation design, and I’ve decided to make clear sense of it by explaining that we are replacing concrete with wood. These are serious pieces of wood, and they ought to be as they are supporting a heavy straw bale house with a living roof.

Anyway, we’ve had a lot of excitement the past week wrangling with the 8×12 beams, and setting the first three onto our concrete pier foundation.

Read More

May 17
Love0

Timber Framing Begins: Building the Strawtron House Platform

By Timber Framing, Strawtron, Workshops, Natural Building Workshops
Timber framing

Making wood chips... er, timber framing beings!

Today was a historic day in the “Strawtron” building timeline — we began timber framing and building our house platform. Yahoo! A few nights ago, we got our delivery of massive sill beams and floor joists, including some honking 8×12 white oak beams at 16 feet long each — requiring no less than ten people to carry them 30 feet into our newly erected “wedding tent”, the temporary shade/weather structure we constructed for our Timber Frame Workshop.

Read More

May 09
Love0

Only 30 Days Until Timber Frame Workshop!

By Natural Building Workshops, Timber Framing, Workshops
Timber Frame Workshop

Reserve your spot today in the 2012 Timber Framing Workshop!

Wow, it’s hard to believe only 30 days remain until the Timber Frame Workshop begins. From June 10-25, we’ll be hosting our first workshop dedicated to traditional timber framing, led by Tom Cundiff, a talented builder with 15 years of experience.

Build a House… Without Nails

It’s going to be a great chance to learn how to build a home — without nails, screws, and lackluster dimensional lumber, but instead with beauitful, durable posts and beams that will last for generations. A timber frame house is the kind of home that can stay in your family for literally hundreds of years!

Anyway, we’ll be teaching participants the skills necessary to build their own timber frames, using hand tools and traditional techniques, of course. Not only that, students will get a valuable look into life at a functional ecovillage powered by renewable energy, complete with a range of various natural buildings.

Guarantee Your Timber Framing Workshop Participation

It’s going to be a very fun time, and I hope you’ll consider joining us, because there are still a few spaces available. Apply today for the Timber Frame Workshop to get a guaranteed chance to be a part of our comprehensive building course!

And did I mention you’ll get fed delicious home-cooked, organic meals while you’re here? Mm, mm.

May 08
Love0

Thoughts About Tiny Houses: When is Small Too Small?

By Uncategorized

The Good Life

I have zero doubts that the average American house is way, way too big and consumes far too much energy (in its construction, and especially through its use), and produces far too much waste. This is a huge problem.

Thankfully, there is now a shift towards a tiny house movement, with some forward-thinking folks designing, building, and residing in ever smaller homes, in opposition to the “bigger is better” mentality that has plagued modern American homes. But when is small just too small to be practical? How realistic are tiny homes for a non-consumer lifestyle?

Read More

May 04
Love0

Precut: Mechanized Timber Frame Construction in Japan

By Video, Timber Framing

Leave it to Japan. Seriously. I recently stumbled upon this video, which demonstrates the mechanized timber frame building technology that is being employed in Japan to build homes quickly, with little human labor involved.

Japan has one of the richest timber framing traditions, with centuries of experience and a host of complicated styles and techniques that have developed over that time — take a look at The Complete Japanese Joinery book for some intense examples of the work of traditional carpenters.

Well, some of that same timber joinery is now being completely created through the use of highly precise machines. As this video explains, a single factory with less than half a dozen human employees makes all of the timber for 800-1000 homes in a single year using this “precut” method. Gulp.

Read More

May 02
Love0

Building the 8×12 Tool Shed

By Small Tool Shed
Small 8x12 Tool Shed

Building an 8x12 tool shed

It’s funny that I never built with dimensional lumber before building my cob house. This is a new world to me, and while I scoffed at building with sticks before, it was based more on ‘philosophy’ than first-hand experience. Well, now that I have gotten my feet wet with some more dimensional lumber construction, I can at least scoff at it with some more actual experience.

Although, I have to admit, it is nice to build something really quickly, and with little thought involved. But I think that’s part of the problem, never mind the absolute lack of aesthetic value, chintzy materials, the overall lack of inherent strength…

Well, moving on, here’s a little update about where the 8×12 tool shed is going.

Read More