tree house platform framing..?

[cbc58]

Has anyone built a tree house?? and if so how did you attach the platform to the trees?

I am looking for ideas on how to build a small guest cabin that can use trees as it's foundation, partially for the "coolness" factor and partly because I'm cheap.  I don't want to hurt the trees and was thinking of using an old tire to wrap around the tree(s) and then affix a platform to that using friction as support.

I think drilling into a tree would hurt it but maybe I'm wrong.  Anyone built a tree house before ?

[JRR]

Drilling into the tree definitely causes "pain".  Does it kill the tree or make it stronger?

I have never built a treehouse.  Thought about it.  Making a self-supporting structure that enveloped/embraced the tree but was not attached.

"Baumhausen" are quite the rage in northern Europe.  Here's a Youtube production that shows a competition of sorts ... may give you some ideas.  Be sure to look at the follow-up sequence (I did not):
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8k0DTI44lnc

[Redoverfarm]

Build it self supported and as stated before "just build around the trunk and any limbs".  Give it some room because it will grow larger with time. 

[glenn kangiser]

Some people put Zinc nails into trees for zinc deficiencies.  Galvanized nails are zinc coated.

I use trees for bracing and hold downs on some of my out building sometimes -- haven't killed one yet doing that.

I used regular 60d or 70d spikes.  Lag bolts would probably do fine.

It's just what I do - no guarantees on your results.

[glenn kangiser]

Pix






Note that this roof is fastened well enough it could have been a tree house.  It's a hold down and bracing for the patio roof.

[Redoverfarm]

cbc58  maybe one of these sites will help.

http://www.google.com/search?q=buiild+a+tree+house&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-SearchBox&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7GGLF

[ScottA]

I heard galvanized nails will kill a tree.

[John Raabe]

If you have a small, flexible building in mind you could use stainless steel cable with a reversed tire wrap supported by three or four tree trunks and tied into and under the platform. However, if this gets very big and heavy it will either bend or break the trees and/or tear itself apart in a storm.

Most "tree houses" you see in photos are supported by an alternative foundation and are only "up in" the trees.



Here's an IMAGE SEARCH on google that will give you lots of ideas.

[cbc58]

tks all for the info...

[glenn kangiser]

I don't know how many nails it takes to hurt a tree,  Some apparently don't care much and some are less.

In researching this I find that it is copper nails that will kill a tree and anything over one is a danger to it, however Copper nails aren't common.

I couldn't find much problem with zinc.

[MountainDon]

For what it's worth my mountain property has several trees used as fence posts for barbed wire fencing. Galvanized staples and galvanized wire. Both are imbedded an inch or more into the trees. Thay all seem happy.

[glenn kangiser]

Right - now that you mention it I have seen tons of trees here with embedded fences all along our roads - mostly Oak.

[davidj]

Our neighbor, who was a logger a few decades ago, said that lag bolts are the way to attach stuff to trees, as opposed to nails.  I think this is less about protecting the trees than ensuring the attachment doesn't work its way out after a few year's of tree growth.

[glenn kangiser]

I'm sure the lag bolts are better.

[desimulacra]

My 2 cents opinion is build it separately. The experience is drawn from years of building tree blinds, some could probably be lived in. Not all the trees died but enough to make us start putting treated posts in the ground for our fancy blinds. . We like to build 'em close to a tree but far enough away to allow for swaying and growth.
One of the biggest messes I ever saw was when a realitor built a house with trees going thru the decks and porches. Really nice looking home but the trees had grown and been wind blown causing the wooden decks and porches to break.
Check out the www.thetreehouseguide.com (ok to post link?)

[mvk]

I built one for my nephew about 25 yrs ago. I used threaded stock which I bolted on both sides right to the tree. Washers and nuts both touching the tree. I applied some stuff for tree wounds to the holes first. I then used 2 double 2x12's for beams and built the deck on these. I bolted the 2x12's about 4" from the tree. I used some big threaded stock since they carried all the weight 2 bolts at each tree. It was pretty big with the deck about 12'x14' at least. The tree grew around the bolts, nuts, and washers. The tree house is long gone but the trees are still there. They are real big white pines.

Mike

[mechengineer13]

Try doing a Google Search for "Garnier Limb".  Here's a link to one site.  http://www.treehouseworkshop.com/garnier.html.  I've done some research and purchased some books for a planned future project and that's likely what I will be using.  It allows for motion due to wind but still provides a solid attachment.  A cable, rope, etc around ("girdling") a tree will choke off a tree and kill it by choking off the path for water/nutirents to get to the crown.  A localized hole by nail, screw, or other attachment would not as the "flowpath" for is still available for the rest of the diamter around the trunk.  I don't know about materials, but the above copper comment makes sense.  We use copper sulfate to keep roots out of the septic system.  (try digging at 1:30 in the morning at 28 degrees to pull the lid off the tank to get the roots out because it backed up into the house once and you'll look for a solution.  It did get warmer right around me once I got the lid off)

[mechengineer13]

Sorry, it would have helped if I had sourced the part for you.  You can order them directly from Michael Garnier.  Here's a link to his website.  They seem reasonably priced once you consider alternative solutions.  Just make sure whatever method you choose, that the tree is sound structurally.  You can do this by hitting it with a wooden baseball bat.  A  dull thud indicates potential hollowness or rot.  A sound tree will have a "solid" sound to it, for lack of a better term, like a piece of 2 X 12 hitting the floor.  Luthiers use this method to select trees for their raw material.  Inspect the crown for evidence of dead limbs, die off of leaves, needles, in certain areas, etc. and look for lightning strikes by cracks in the bark, weeping sap, etc.  You don't want to build one in a tree that could come down, drop large branches (especially if it's for little ones), or might be diseased and die in a few years wasting your work.

[glenn kangiser]

(ok to post link?) No problem - it's educational.