Blog - Page 77 of 123 - Handmade Houses with Noah Bradley

The Free Union house… part 5

I believe the feature that separates this cabin from all the other cabins that I have known over the years is her profile.

She is very tall, and very narrow, in appearance. If you imagine her with siding covering up the logs suddenly she is transformed into a Virginia farmhouse… I can hear the theme song of the Walton’s playing in my head.

The vast majority of log cabins are known for their low and squatty appearances… like a rock they are. This cabin though appears more delicate, more feminine perhaps, yes, this cabin is a she.

Originally posted 2015-04-18 13:18:48.

The Free Union house… part 5Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:08+00:00

The Free Union house… part 4

This cabin was found less than a mile away from where she stands today.

She was located in a thicket of woods and vines such that very few people knew of her existence.

The land she sate on was scheduled to be cleared for pasture… and the house would have been erased along with the rest. So, this is a rescued pup.

Originally posted 2015-04-18 12:59:46.

The Free Union house… part 4Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:07+00:00

The Free Union house… part 3

So, here is the log cabin that we moved and rebuilt as an addition to the little house in Albemarle.

The first thing that really jumps out at me when I look at the photos of this cabin is how brown she was. The cabin’s logs are all heart-pine and when the cabin was built she was sided over quickly so the logs had never been exposed to the greying effects of the rain and the sun.

Originally posted 2015-04-17 14:10:54.

The Free Union house… part 3Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:06+00:00

The Free Union house… part 2

This little house, as cute as it was, had acquired over the years a lot of “what were they thinking?” alterations, that needed to be be extracted.

And, since a log cabin addition was planned, someone really needed to give serious thought to coming up with a master plan to ensure that the home was attractive when finished and served the needs of it’s new owners.

The firm that the family hired did none of the above, but they did drain the family’s wallets considerably, and added more “what were they thinking” elements to the home.

I won’t get into details.

It’s too depressing for me.

And, I’d rather not dwell on the negative.

But, I will say this, that this is not an uncommon situation… that I turn down a LOT of work like this… of fixing someone else’s mess.

I could have easily doubled or tripled my workload over the years if I had said “yes” to every request along these lines.

But, this house was so cute, and the family so sweet, and was a place that I drove by often.

I did develop a master plan for the house, but the funds were no longer there to carry them fully out. I did add an old log cabin to their house (that they had purchased) as part of that plan.

And I’d like to share with you some photos of that cabin’s construction over the coming days.

Originally posted 2015-04-17 13:54:03.

The Free Union house… part 2Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:05+00:00

The Free Union house… part 1

This cute little house was originally built in the 1830’s.

She was placed right in the center of a scenic thirty acre farm in Albemarle County, Virginia.

Nearby are a few outbuildings, including a barn, all of which are in fairly good condition. The pastures are fenced for horses, and the driveway leading to the house is lined with cedars.

The place is a bit of heaven.

The farm was bought by a nice family of four who found the house charming, but it had been neglected, and, it was too small. So, they decided to renovate and build an addition.

They then hired the wrong contractor…

Originally posted 2015-04-17 13:19:14.

The Free Union house… part 1Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:04+00:00

The Sugar Hollow house… part 21

The Sugar Hollow house was coming together…

Originally posted 2015-04-16 14:32:50.

The Sugar Hollow house… part 21Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:03+00:00

The Sugar Hollow house… part 20

As each panel goes up on the house it’s hard to resist the urge to take a quick peak in the house to see the effect that is created.

This vintage timber frame is quickly converted from the look of an old barn into a dramatic home. It appears as if rooms, one-by-one, suddenly come into existence.

Homeowners are often blown away when they visit the site at the end of a day after we have been putting up these panels.

Originally posted 2015-04-16 14:25:22.

The Sugar Hollow house… part 20Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:02+00:00

The Sugar Hollow house… part 19

One by one by we covered the rebuilt Sugar Hollow timber frame with stress-skin panels.

The best way to describe these panels is by comparing them to ice cream sandwiches… the white center core is made of a high R-value foam, the inside layer is drywall which gives the interior a finished wall, and the exterior is some kind of laminated wood product which provides strength and a nailing surface for the upcoming siding.

There are builders who will build homes entirely out of stress skin panels. I haven’t tried that yet, but it does demonstrate the potential application of these products. So, by adding these panels to a home that is already strong we create a house that is two to three times the strength of any modern home.

I like everything about these panels except the fact that they “fatten up” old timber frames… adding nearly a foot and a half to the width of the house… but, if we want to see the antique timber frame on the inside, it’s a price that has to be paid.

Originally posted 2015-04-16 14:13:33.

The Sugar Hollow house… part 19Noah Bradley2019-06-29T10:14:01+00:00

The Sugar Hollow house… part 18

We put a new roof on top of the antique timber-frame that we built in Sugar Hollow.

I have found that old roof systems often have their share of “issues”.

For one thing, there always seems to be a few rafters that are unusable… either rotten or broken due to rain getting in or perhaps a tree landing on the roof. So, it’s rare to have a complete set.

And, I have found that rafters are often “baked’. I guess having spent a couple centuries in an attic that that would be expected. They feel “dried out”, light as balsa wood, and their ability to hold a tight grip onto a nail has severely diminished.

I have always been impressed with the excessive over-build in old houses. The floor joists, bracing, and walls in these antique treasures are often two to three times the size that they need to be, but for some reason the rafters on old houses appear to be too small.

I once took down an old workshop that had 24 foot long rafters on it, that were only 2by4’s, with a low pitched roof, and it had a slate roof on it! Amazing… but it had stood for nearly a hundred years.

Maybe it’s just me, but I like knowing that I have a very strong roof. I’ve never used pre-made roof trusses, preferring to hand pick the individual rafters myself.

My clients have never had a roof problem, nor will their children, nor their grandchildren, nor their great-grandchildren. I guess you get my point… when you build… build it so that it will outlast you.