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Timber Framing

Jul 10
Love0

Building the Timber Frame Outdoor Kitchen

By Natural Building Workshops, Timber Framing

timber frame outdoor kitchen plans

I’ve been excited about building a timber frame outdoor kitchen since we moved to this land in 2015. It’s taken until this summer to get started but for good reason(s). The scope of the project has evolved to include a patio with dry stone retaining walls, which will be a vast improvement from the previously uneven slope that unceremoniously terminated at the back of the house porch.

Our 2019 Timber Frame Workshop brought the 10×16 outdoor kitchen frame to completion in 7 days. We had 15 participants from across the country — Maryland, Oregon, Washington, Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio, and more… Here’s a glimpse at our first few days together working on the small oak timber frame. 

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Apr 08
Love3

Decked Out Hammock House Timber Frame

By Timber Framing

I’ve been bouncing around between various projects this winter, but the timber frame “hammock house” has not been forgotten. With the help of a few friends, I installed the decking over the rafters this weekend. We also put some ice & water shield over the decking so that it’s protected against the weather until the metal roofing goes on… which is hopefully soon. Spring is definitely here, so suddenly it feels like there’s a million things to do. 

For some reason, I purchased pine for the decking, which is probably my least favorite wood (in terms of appearances, anyway). I guess I wanted to avoid the weight and hassle of working with oak, ha! Next time, though, pine is out. If I’m feeling ambitious, I might actually plaster over the decking — just imagine blackened rafters punctuated by creamy white lime plaster… now there’s an idea. 

We’ll be working on this fun little building in our upcoming Natural Building Essentials Workshop. Very excited to continue with the progress on this one. 

Nov 11
Love10
ready for top plates

Tiny Timber Frame Raising

By Timber Framing

timber frame assembly and raising

The best part of timber framing is, of course, the finished product. Raising up a timber frame is an exciting prospect, even a tiny project like this. I finally had time in the late summer and early fall to wrap up work on the charred oak timber frame that our intrepid students started in our summer Timber Frame Workshop. My excitement hit a peak when the day came to stand things up.
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Oct 28
Love2
true cost natural building

Interview About the Reality of Natural Building

By Media, Timber Framing, Cob Building

true cost natural building

Oliver Goshey of Adundant Edge recently interviewed me for his podcast series. In our chat, we talked about the reality (or realities) of natural building, including the importance of building for your climate, the true cost of building a natural home, and some common misconceptions about natural materials. One piece of our conversation focuses on getting real about the expenses associated with natural building and the myth of the “$1000 house” (for lack of a better term). Although materials may be affordable, labor costs can be spendy for folks who aren’t able to do the work themselves.

We also talk some about the shou-sugi-ban wood preservation methods I’ve been experimenting with lately. Check out the full interview and tell me what you think. Questions and comments welcome.

Listen here: The reality of natural building and designing for your climate with Ziggy Liloia from “The Year of Mud”

Oct 20
Love7

Yakisugi: Japanese Charred Wood Finish

By Carpentry, Timber Framing, Woodworking

shou sugi ban finish with propane torch

Yakisugi is a traditional method of wood preservation. Charring wood is not specific to Japan, but charring sugi (Japanese cypress) for cladding use is a traditional feature of some Japanese architecture. It’s been used primarily for practical reasons — charred wood is less susceptible to rot and moisture damage, insect damage, and ironically enough, it’s more resistant to fire. Plus, it looks pretty badass if you ask me.

I first saw a video of a guy burning sugi boards several years ago and was entranced. I knew that I wanted to try it sometime, and I decided to use our first timber frame as an experiment. So I bought a torch and lit up our white oak timbers. Read ahead for more…

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Sep 18
Love8

Planing Large Timbers with a 7″ Electric Planer

By Carpentry, Timber Framing

electric hand planer - triton 180mm planer - TPL180

If you’re thrifty and building a timber frame structure for yourself, you’re most likely going to buy green (or unseasoned) timbers from a local sawmill. If you’re lucky, you might acquire timbers from a bandsaw mill, which produces relatively clean cuts when compared to a circular sawmill. However, if you’re not partial to the rough sawn look and texture, you have a few options to smooth and finish the timbers. Perhaps the most economical option is to plane the timbers yourself, but how?

6×6, 8×8 and larger sized timbers can be intimidating to consider planing. There’s always a hand plane, but that is challenging work for more than a few pieces or tough wood like oak. I was faced with this dilemma and opted for the electric hand planer route, picking up a Triton TPL180. The TPL180 is a 7″ wide electric hand planer designed for large dimension lumber. Here are my impressions of the tool.

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Aug 07
Love5
japanese timber log saw

2 Useful Timber Framing Saws

By Carpentry, Timber Framing, Hand Tools

z saw 333

If you’re building a timber frame with hand tools, it’s helpful to have a few types of hand saws in your arsenal. There are many many types of saws that you could use, and at the end of the day it boils down to personal preference. Me? I like to try new tools from time to time, and these are two that I find very effective in the cutting process — a Japanese anahiki saw (or timber saw), and a Japanese ryoba saw (or two sided saw).

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Jul 27
Love4

An Exercise in Visualization

By Natural Building Workshops, Timber Framing

dealing with irregular timbers

We just wrapped up our 7 day Timber Frame Workshop and I’m finally catching my breath. Whew. Timber framing has a steep learning curve so it’s not the kind of thing you can easily jump into, willy-nilly. It takes some warming up and getting used to lots of new terms, tools, methodologies, etc.

Timber framing is, first and foremost, an exercise in visualization. Looking at plans and applying layout to a timber, imagining a timber oriented in the building — these are all skills that take some time to hone. It’s a totally different way to approach building the bones of a house because everything is laid out and cut in advance of the pieces being assembled. So it’s immensely helpful to be able to see things in your mind, before they exist in front of you. Essential, even.

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Jun 27
Love7
timber-frame---green-white-oak-timbers

10,000 Pounds of Oak

By Timber Framing, Natural Building Workshops

timber-frame---green-white-oak-timbers

White oak is impressively heavy. Green white oak timbers are that much heavier. Today we got our order of white oak, pine, and sassafras, in-between massive bouts of rain. There was flash flooding for most of the day except for a tiny window in which we were able to get 10,000+ pounds of timber on-site and loaded off the trailer. I’m thrilled this day is behind me now. Jeez. Onto the next step! (All of the wood is not pictured here, by the way.)

p.s. The “wedding tent” is still going strong after all these years! Granted, we replaced the canopy once, but… this thing has been a lifesaver for shade and rain protection during our workshops. So goofy looking. Maybe a barn is in order next year?

p.p.s. Oh, how do I know it’s about 10,000 pounds of wood? This handy dandy lumber weight calculator, of course.

Jun 16
Love7
10x10 timber frame workshop preview

Sneak Peak: 10×10 Timber Frame Pavilion

By Natural Building Workshops, Timber Framing


We’re just about one month out from the start of our July Timber Frame Workshop. Happily, the pieces are starting to fall into place. This year we’re collaborating with Brice of Timber Frame HQ on this very simple and beautiful pavilion design. Brice is doing the drawing work — we’ll have super tight plans that students will be referencing during the course. I’m excited to have these plans available. Clear drawings contribute to a better understanding of the entire layout process.

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