Blog - Page 25 of 123 - Handmade Houses with Noah Bradley

Log cabin living… a simpler lifestyle

One day a very wealthy father took his son on a trip to the country for the sole purpose of showing his son how it was to be poor. They spent a few days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.

After their return from the trip, the father asked his son how he liked the trip. “It was great, Dad,” the son replied. “Did you see how poor people can be?” the father asked. “Oh Yeah,” said the son.

“So what did you learn from the trip?” asked the father. The son answered, “I saw that we have one dog and they had four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night. Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.

We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight. We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.

We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have walls around our property to protect us, they have friends to protect them.” The boy’s father was speechless. Then his son added, “It showed me how poor we are.”

Too many times we forget what we have and concentrate on what we don’t have.

Originally posted 2015-07-22 12:32:35.

Log cabin living… a simpler lifestyleNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:50+00:00

A “camp” cabin

Here’s a special little cabin that I was once called out to inspect, and repair, if necessary. I found very little that needed my attention.

This cabin had served for many years as a “camp” for family members to enjoy this rural wooded area. Perhaps, to do a little hunting, but more likely just to get away from the stresses of the city. Who can blame them?

I’ve got four exterior photos to share with you… here’s the first.

Originally posted 2015-07-21 22:38:34.

A “camp” cabinNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:49+00:00

The raising of a timber frame

Once we completed the floor deck above the basement we set to work assembling the timber-framed wall sections.

All was going like clockwork.

We scheduled for a crane to come in the following day. Within 24 hours we would have a completed standing frame for the world to see!

As fate would have it, when the morning came to raise the timber-frame that the sky opened up and poured upon us.

The forecast called for the rain to pass quickly so we held to our schedule.

The crane was on the way.

Within minutes of the crane’s arrival the assembled timber-frame walls began to rise.

The heavy duty forklift begins hauling the trusses to the area where the crane can lift them into place. Each of these trusses weighs about the same as a small car so without all of this heavy equipment we would be assembling this frame one piece at a time… or be calling in a hundred of our closest Amish friends.

The first of four timbered trusses floats down onto the top plates. I’ve always loved these moments when men reach out as far as they can and first touch a timber as it is set into place.

One after another the trusses are set in place.

Originally posted 2015-07-19 16:07:01.

The raising of a timber frameNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:48+00:00

Insulated Concrete Forms

Once we had the timber-frame members created our attention turned to building the basement foundation that would support this section of the home.

We chose to go with insulated concrete forms (ICF’s). I’ve used these several times now and I really like them. They are easy to use, even for the novice, and they create an incredibly strong and well insulated wall.

The window and door frames are created and set into place and then the area in between is filled in with these hollow foam blocks that are later filled with carefully placed re-bar and concrete.

We then called in a concrete pumping truck to fill the insulated forms… by the end of the day we had a solid concrete basement… with R34 insulated walls… ready for a stucco finish on the exterior.

Originally posted 2015-07-19 15:13:14.

Insulated Concrete FormsNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:47+00:00

New joinery, old wood

Here’s closeup of “a wood intersection” on one of the barn frame’s trusses.

Originally posted 2015-07-18 21:54:18.

New joinery, old woodNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:46+00:00

Timber frame roof trusses

There is no better feeling than that felt at the end of the week in seeing what has been accomplished.

Originally posted 2015-07-18 18:40:04.

Timber frame roof trussesNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:45+00:00

Laying out a timber frame roof system

For this particular timber-frame structure I believe 90% of the work was in creating the complex joinery in the top plates and the rafter trusses that would set upon them. The exterior walls of this building were, after all, merely a collection of posts, cut to length, with simple tenons protruding on the upward ends.

Obviously it made sense for us to cut and assemble as much of this roof system on the ground as we possibly could. So, we began by laying out the top plates as seen in this photo.

I cannot express the giddiness that carpenters feel when given the opportunity to put together something like this. For us, it was Christmas in July. (Of course, being men, we wouldn’t let anyone know that we were giddy… that wouldn’t be very manly would it? lol )

Originally posted 2015-07-18 17:49:20.

Laying out a timber frame roof systemNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:44+00:00

Building with antique wood

I needed a large pile of antique timbers to create this barn frame. So, I began calling all my suppliers to see if anyone had something I might use.

I was tickled when one had just gotten in a load of hewn 9by9″s out of Canada. The salvager had just enough to meet my needs. Sweet!

Originally posted 2015-07-18 17:08:34.

Building with antique woodNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:43+00:00

Timbered roof trusses

Here’s the ceiling of the barn addition…

Originally posted 2015-07-18 14:05:40.

Timbered roof trussesNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:42+00:00

The challenge of designing a barn addition

The architect for this home struggled with the challenge of adding a barn to an existing home… in not overwhelming the house, yet meeting the client’s vision. She was concerned in what size barn I may be able to find.

I fully understood her concern.

I freed her of the limitations of the dimensions of an existing barn by assuring her that I could adapt antique barn timbers to whatever barn dimensions she felt was most appropriate for this home.

Here is a photo of that barn addition, per the architects design, assembled by my crew. I’d like to share with you over the next couple of days the construction of this barn addition… I think you’ll enjoy the process. 🙂

Originally posted 2015-07-18 12:43:26.

The challenge of designing a barn additionNoah Bradley2019-06-29T10:39:41+00:00