Peaceful Ambitions - 14 x 24 House

Started by Peaceful Ambition, March 20, 2017, 04:45:24 AM

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dablack

That is a good sized room and very similar to our attic trusses.  Our span 24' and have a 8/12 pitch.  This gave us a six foot ceiling and a 8' wide room (ceiling is about 7' wide before sloping down) that is the length of the whole house.  We use it as a attic but it is fully floored and has full size steep stairs going to it.  I've got the HVAC, pex distribution block and hot water heater up there.  Plenty of room left for storage.  My oldest wanted her bedroom up there and it wouldn't have been a problem for someone that is 5' 4".  HA!
I think a bedroom up there will be fine as long as you have the matress on the floor.  No bed frame!  Maybe a box spring.  NOTE!  Our last mattress that we got, we ordered online and it is fully foam and cost less than $300.  We love it.  Was delivered in a big bag that I could get my arms around.  You carefully pull it out of the bag and cut off the plastic.  Then it spends the next 24 hours expanding to its full size.  They don't need a box spring at all and would be great on the floor.  We have some friends that have had their's for 5 years and it has held up great.  Let me know if you want more info. 

Peaceful Ambition

Well I'm dead tired, worked sunup to sundown and nurising a hernia so I'm pooped! Got all but about 3 trusses up, we had rented a manual (crank operated) forklift to lift these suckers and it worked great. My help had to leave due to a family emergency so couldn't get them completely done but here's just a basic pic for now of the progress and I'll try and upload lots more detailed ones in a day or so.

I forgot to grab the actual measurements for the loft but I'm curious now so I'll post those tomorrow. And yes I'm very interested about the mattress you got! Ours is in need of replacement and even when we lived in a house we had it on the floor, just feels better to me; I don't like squeaking and rocking and stuff anyway so that'd be great especially for the price (as long as it's comfy)

Glorious progress-
You are not illiterate


Peaceful Ambition

Ok lots of pics incoming! This includes the days we raised the trusses as well as whats been done on the roof so far as of yesterday. We are getting a pretty windy storm now so I spent most of today bracing them against wind and trying to get on as much housewrap as I could.

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Getting the first truss rolled, plumbed and nailed.




The next few went alot quicker than the first


Patient doggo wondering what all the fuss is about


One of those trusses was ugly as hell


End of the first day


View from the loft


A nice profile of the house on the 2nd day


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Now we time travel a bit, all the trusses are up and we started sheathing the first row, one of my friends had an idea for a DIY scaffold which has been working out great!


Roof slowly closing in!



It's actually starting to look like a house! Woot!  Thanks everyone for your help so far! [cool]

I do have one small concern, and I'm hoping it will iron itself out as we keep sheathing, but if I stand in the loft and rock side to side facing the long end of the building, I can get some pretty decent wobble in the walls, almost making the whole building rock. This doesn't happen when I turn 90 degrees and rock.. I'm hoping this may have something to do with the final corner I haven't sheathed yet or perhaps just because there are other unsheathed spots still, but nonetheless its concerning.

Granted, this is with me TRYING to wobble it and normal movement doesn't do that. And being that high up I do have alot of mechanical advantage..
Also, it's just the walls which seem to be doing it, the floor and posts stay solid. Should I be concerned? Add more nails/screws/hardware to the bottom plate? Or should I save my panic until I'm completely done with the sheathing on the whole building?
You are not illiterate

Don_P

I'm not looking at much bracing in the end wall of that pic. 

It's not uncommon for us to pass a bar clamp up while we are sheathing to pull ornery trusses into line. On the barn we just sheathed I sawed out the white oak fascias. That was some very strong, very lively wood

Do keep an eye on your back, you'll be compensating, and take care you're predisposed to tearing the other side.

It's looking good  :)

dablack

I wouldn't worry about the rocking yet.  What I'm getting from reading your description is that you are facing the long wall and then rocking left to right.  Finish sheathing the roof and then see if it does it.  I bet it will stop and if it doesn't then you need to put something rigid on your loft side walls.


OlJarhead

I found my post and pier foundation needed a lot more bracing than I though it did.  Once I started putting in some concrete all movement stopped.

Peaceful Ambition

Alright! Update time! Progress has slowed a bit as I've run out of saved funds for the house  so far and I'm having to budget for more plywood, man that stuff is expensive. 35 bucks a sheet for the 5/8 size!  [shocked] We've got the house mostly wrapped and all installed windows are flashed and plumb!

For anyone curious, I haven't been keeping detailed logs so far but I believe at this point I'm into this thing roughly 8k. Luckily it is raining right now and although the gable ends are still open the rain is coming straight down and the inside is nice and dry! Wooot!

I'm also happy to report that I added another sheet of plywood on that corner (still haven't completely closed it cause thats the easiest way to get inside right now) and after throwing up the second set of roof sheathing that wobble I was concerned about has all but disappeared! So my stress level about that is way better! There are still a few minor build hiccups I'll detail but nothing major.

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First off, here is a view of the roof from the inside as of now, it's nice and stable and we have the billboard vinyl thrown over the top and it's shedding precip like a champ. I'll likely leave it like this for now while I finish up other stuff and come back to do the last sheathing after the weather dries out a bit.



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Here is a pic from the attic side gable end, just curious about the best way to sheathe this sucker. I'm going to be standing the plywood up, I don't know if it will make much of a strength difference but I figure if stood up I have 3/5 plies running perpendicular to the direction of force the wind would apply, so why not.. Should I just cut some 2x and almost make little wall studs here just so I have something to nail to?
I also think we are gonna need/want a small window up here, so I'm planning to make a basic header just using flat 2x4s. It shouldn't have to be too beefy because all the downforce is going to the wall plates anyway right?



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Speaking of windows, we got a good deal on used ones for our house (good as in nearly free), but one of them has smudges inside the double pane, do people clean those and just re-seal or is it way more trouble than it's worth? I hate the idea of permanently smudged windows. There is also some kind of gnarly tar on an outside corner I took a pic of that I'll probably have to scrape off with something.
Window tar


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A view of the inside with the windows and woodstove in!


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We got some snow before the roof was covered and it just looked kinda cool and surreal so I took a pic


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I realize now I did make a mistake with the eves that & I should have extended the sheathing PAST the eves, I'll either have to attach a really thin piece of plywood later before the final roofing goes on or maybe they make a drip cap that will fix the problem for me

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and finally a picture of the whole shebang




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Next on the list is going to be the fascia/soffit, closing those gaps near the eves and blocking inside, wood stove chimney stuff, and a door!
Stay tuned!
You are not illiterate

Don_P

Lots going on, it's looking good.
First, cost of plywood, I switched to osb a number of years ago. The plywood quality went down as the cost went up. I was having to pull and replace too many sheets. At the same time osb quality went up and the cost was more stable. It is also flatter and stiffer. Some folks prefer ply and that is fine but it does come at a cost.

Fogged double pane glass. The tar is usually a polybutyl type of sealant holding and sealing the spacer between panes and there is a break in the seal somewhere. If the glass is hazed it is usually time to replace it. I've known of folks who have drilled a hole through the edge of the spacer and poured in dessicant beads and then reseal the entire edge with a polybutyl caulk. That will dry it up but if there is a haze it will not remove it. The windows are probably near end of service.

On framing the gable. Lay a 2x plate on the floor flatways and around the opening in the same orientation nailing it into the truss making a sort of angle iron type frame around the opening. Then stand studs over the studs below and cut them to fit the opening created and nail them to the upper and lower plates. Finally nail framing on top of the wall and ceiling plates to provide nailers for the wall and ceiling finish goods. All edges of exterior sheathing should land on framing or blocking to transfer shear. The goal is to effectively create one big sheet bracing the wall.

The tail area, I normally install a subfascia of 2x material, you can bevel the top edge to creat the upper surface in plane with the upper roof surface plane at this point. Then I nail on the finish fascia usually hanging it beneath the bottom edge of the sub enough to provide around 1/2" of hangy down below the soffit material. Then, the first row of weatherproofing on a roof should be the self adhering ice and water shield. Lap it over the edge a little and stick it to the face of the finish fascia but not so far down that the drip edge will not hide it. That'll cover the little oops, and you are not the first, no worries just think like a raindrop and shed any water that gets under the roofing out and off the roof.

Stay warm, it's brutal out there right now!

dablack

I came here to answer your questions about the fascia board and how to frame up your gable wall but Don beat me to it.  Do it just like he said and it will be great. 
In a gable roof like what you and I have, that gable wall is the weakest point and that is how roofs get torn off in a storm.  My point is, do that gable wall right and do it strong. 

Austin


Peaceful Ambition

Great! Thanks guys! Dablack, did you have any more info about that matress you mentioned before?

And Don, if I'm understanding right I'm basically just building a mini framed wall to fit precisely inside the attic gable end, but the 2x plates will be offset so that the edge of the plates and the truss are in the same plane, correct? Can I lay a 2x4 flat for the header for the attic window since it won't really be bearing any load?
Also thanks for the info about OSB, I'm not sure what it's priced at but hopefully it'll be cheaper when I go and check!
You are not illiterate

ChugiakTinkerer

I'm considering Tuft & Needle for my next mattress purchase.

I've got tarp envy!  I've wanted to buy one of those billboard tarps for a while, but shipping to Alaska offsets the great price.
My cabin build thread: Alaskan remote 16x28 1.5 story

Don_P

Exactly, think about the finish planes and then providing backup nailing for the finish materials. You can run a flatways 2x for header as long as there is less than 2' of unsupported wall above it. The truss horizontal is the last support. I'll usually make an upright 2x4 header even then to provide more trim nailing around the window but that is not a structural requirement.


dablack

Quote from: Peaceful Ambition on January 08, 2018, 10:35:54 PM
Dablack, did you have any more info about that matress you mentioned before?

Yes!  I just pulled it up on Amazon and it is cheaper now than when we bought it!  Zinus Memory Foam 12 Inch Green Tea Mattress, Queen.  Looks like it is $189 now for the queen!  We love ours.  It gets delivered in a big duffle bag.  Carefully open it up and cut off the plastic and then stand back!  It gets to full size in less than 24 hours.  I will never buy the old style mattress again!

Adam Roby

I've been looking for a mattress... I have 6 herniated discs and the $1000 mattresses I normally buy just don't cut it.  I sleep terribly, and within a month I can already feel a dip in the mattress where I normally sleep. 

How does the mattress hold up to compression?  Do you see a large pothole where you sleep?  :)
I might just order one, the price is great.


dablack

My wife and I kept getting firmer and firmer mattresses to try and fight the mattress getting a hole in it.  It got to the point that we were sleeping on a very stiff mattress that still ended up getting a hole in it.  I ended up working most of the time in another town so we needed something "cheap" to sleep on.  We saw the great reviews and ordered one.  WOW!  So comfortable and it doesn't get a hole built up.  It just goes right back to its original form.  My only issue with it is you can't sit on the edge to put on your shoes.  If you sit on the edge, it just compresses down!  Same with getting in bed.  If you sit on the edge to pull off your socks or whatever, then lay down, the spot where you were sitting is compressed for about 2 minutes.  It is very different than a normal mattress but I really like it.  In fact, we like it so much, we bought another one for our main house.  We are only back in the main house about half the time but we couldn't stand the old stiff mattress with the hole after sleeping on the new foam one.  Then the hurricane hit Houston and we had family that got water in their house.  They lost all their beds.  Now they have foam too.  Zero complaints. 

ChugiakTinkerer

I can't recall the planned usage for this building, and if it involves being heated full time then disregard my comment.  One downside to a memory foam mattress is that when it's really cold it takes a long time to warm up and be comfortable.  Here in Alaska where folks have cabins for winter weekend use, memory foam mattresses can take too long to warm up and soften.
My cabin build thread: Alaskan remote 16x28 1.5 story

MountainDon

We had a memory foam mattress topper and used an electric blanket to thaw the bed out when we arrived in the winter. The topper is now history.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

Peaceful Ambition

Wow awesome, thanks guys, I saw that tuft and needle and was thinking i'd just bite the bullet and get a king but after seeing the same 4.5 star reviews and the price difference I think we'll spring -heh- for the green tea one, worst case scenario I can always upgrade! The building will mostly only need to be heated in winter and fall, and since the bedroom is going to be the loft I'm sure there will be plenty of warm air up there to make it tolerable. Electric blanket is a good idea too but I'll have to check some out and see what the power draw is and whether out solar system would handle it. Anything electric that heats up draw a TON of power usually.
You are not illiterate

Toyotaboy

Hey Don,

That electric blanket was one hell of a great suggestion.  :)My wife got me one for the cabin for Xmas.
I tried it out when we went up right after Xmas. It was -20 below at night with highs of -5.
Warmed up the bed and was awesome to crawl into. Nice and toasty while the cabin warmed up.

Toyotaboy

MountainDon

Happy it works for you too. We've had ours since the first winter. Our solar and battery system is large enough we can easily run it for the few hours it takes to thaw out the bed the first night. We don't actually use it while sleeping.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.


Toyotaboy

We just run the genie till we go to bed. By then it's warm enough.

Toyotaboy

OlJarhead

We have a memory foam mattress and never have an issue with it.  Sure when we arrive the cabin is VERY cold but after getting it warmed up to 70F or close to it the bed is ready :D  Seems that's the key really.

We don't sleep in the cabin without first making it warm.

Adam Roby

I ordered mine last night, should be in tomorrow.  Can't wait to see if it helps with the back... it would be nice to sleep more than 4-5 hours without having to get up to stretch... I'll keep you posted. 

dablack

Please let us know.  I really hope it helps. 

Peaceful Ambition

Not too much to report as funds are still a bit tight although I'm hoping once taxes come in I'll be able to make the final push and get this sucker weathertight!

However, while doing odds-and-ends with the material I DO have, I noticed that a few of the scissor truss members have a gap between them, I'm not certain but I feel like this gap is either new or has widened to a point where I noticed it and naturally I'm a bit concerned.
Is this some kind of temperature or moisture related damage? Will it likely close under load? Or am I just nit-picking? The gangnails look fine and there are no splits or anything in the wood, just this gap.


You are not illiterate