I've had the urge for some time to build a shed with logs and finally had a go at it. A tremendous amount of work compared to buying lumber and constructing a frame building, but very satisfying. I made a lot of mistakes but also learned a lot in the process.
A forest fire a couple years ago has left me with an unlimited supply of trees. Many thousands of acres burned, so rather than see it all rot or be used strictly for firewood, why not make more use of it?
A look at the type of area that I'm getting my materials from
Starting out. Flattening the tops of the logs and getting it all together in preparation to start the walls
The first wall going up. I wanted the door offset rather than in the centre
Along with the side walls
The walls are up. The sides need to be cut to the roof slope yet, but the back wall is having a half log top plate put on first, as well as the wall where the door is.
And now the side walls are cut and the half log plates are on
A centre log has been added for additional support but really wasn't necessary on a building as small as this. I just wanted to
Here I'm using a straight 2x4 to make the two walls and centre log to the same slope
A supply of logs that I've ripped in half for the roof
And up where they belong
I ran them long and cut them to length afterwards
I wasn't sure if I would have time to do the floor before winter so I left it till last, and concentrated on the walls and roof first, just in case. Fortunately I was able to carry on, so it was off to the bush to rip more logs for the floor.
After dropping a suitable tree I simply ripped it in place. No problems with trying to hold the pieces from moving about when leaving them attached to the tree until finished
This is where they're going
And now for the door. More ripping leaves me with some rough boards
Snapping chalk lines to straighten them out produces these
And the finished door. As you can see, the roof logs have gaps between but I simply didn't think it necessary to fit them as tightly as the floor or walls because the roofing material will span such small gaps easily
This is quite a crude little building but very functional. And the price is right. It cost practically nothing but my labour. Actual costs so far have been nails and chainsaw fuel and oil, as well as quad fuel to haul everything out of the bush, but was minimal as the distance to haul was within shouting distance of the building.
Even the hinges are salvaged from an old cabin that burned. The only extravagance is the new door handle
A forest fire a couple years ago has left me with an unlimited supply of trees. Many thousands of acres burned, so rather than see it all rot or be used strictly for firewood, why not make more use of it?
A look at the type of area that I'm getting my materials from
Starting out. Flattening the tops of the logs and getting it all together in preparation to start the walls
The first wall going up. I wanted the door offset rather than in the centre
Along with the side walls
The walls are up. The sides need to be cut to the roof slope yet, but the back wall is having a half log top plate put on first, as well as the wall where the door is.
And now the side walls are cut and the half log plates are on
A centre log has been added for additional support but really wasn't necessary on a building as small as this. I just wanted to
Here I'm using a straight 2x4 to make the two walls and centre log to the same slope
A supply of logs that I've ripped in half for the roof
And up where they belong
I ran them long and cut them to length afterwards
I wasn't sure if I would have time to do the floor before winter so I left it till last, and concentrated on the walls and roof first, just in case. Fortunately I was able to carry on, so it was off to the bush to rip more logs for the floor.
After dropping a suitable tree I simply ripped it in place. No problems with trying to hold the pieces from moving about when leaving them attached to the tree until finished
This is where they're going
And now for the door. More ripping leaves me with some rough boards
Snapping chalk lines to straighten them out produces these
And the finished door. As you can see, the roof logs have gaps between but I simply didn't think it necessary to fit them as tightly as the floor or walls because the roofing material will span such small gaps easily
This is quite a crude little building but very functional. And the price is right. It cost practically nothing but my labour. Actual costs so far have been nails and chainsaw fuel and oil, as well as quad fuel to haul everything out of the bush, but was minimal as the distance to haul was within shouting distance of the building.
Even the hinges are salvaged from an old cabin that burned. The only extravagance is the new door handle
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