A tree house is a magical hiding place for every child. Building a tree house requires careful planning and construction. After completion, however, you have a wooden sanctuary that your family will enjoy for years to come. Take the time to learn about local regulations before you start the tree house project. First, check if you need permission to build the structure. If you have protected tree species on your property, there may be restrictions when building a tree house. Confirm whether the height of such a tree house is limited.
Permission is generally not required to build a small tree house in your own garden for a child. However, the procedures differ from area to area depending on the size and scope of the tree house plans. Building a tree house without doing your homework can lead to potential legal problems. Here are some basic guidelines to keep in mind when building a tree house on your own property.
Choose the right tree
Check the health of the tree you want to build on, whether it is too young or too old. Note that the tree house you are building is said to last for many years, well after your children have grown up, your grandchildren may one day play in them. The tree must be robust, healthy, mature and a living tree. It may be advisable to hire an arborist to inspect your tree and confirm that it has deep roots and must be free of disease or parasites to support the tree structure and the technical aspects related to the design of your dream tree.
Make safety a top priority as your family plays in the tree house. Do not compromise on the design and quality of the material that makes up the structure. Pay close attention to the height – keep it at a reasonable height with all safety rails and secured access stairs.
Acceptance in the community
Talk to your neighbors out of courtesy, especially if your planned tree house is next to and close to their property. This will definitely avoid future complaints and even potential litigation should your tree house be in sight of the bedroom window. It may also be advisable to check with your insurance agent about possible future damage to surrounding property if unfortunate local storms occur.
Tree house design
Choose your design carefully before hitting the first nail. Tree house designs are available online unless you are familiar with building in general with wooden structures. Your tree house has important parameters such as size, circumferential size of the tree trunk, projected structure height from the ground, type of internal wooden floor platform, windows, roof covering and type of stairs for access. Don't forget to consider the future growth rate of the tree, as the tree may grow beyond the original design and cause heartache if the structure is no longer secure.
The type of support is very important as trees move with the wind. Choose your support method, usually (a) post method, (b) screw method or (c) suspension method. Research the various support methods thoroughly. The access method is also important. From a safety point of view, it is important to determine whether the access method is a stable staircase, a standard ladder or a rope ladder. At the end of the day, don't forget to design a simple roof for your tree house.
safety
Think about security. Falling out of a tree house is one of the greatest dangers. It is best to take some precautions to ensure that everyone in the tree house is safe. Don't build too high, especially for younger children. Construct a secure railing with balusters that are no more than five centimeters apart.
Safety is of the utmost importance when building a tree house. Building a decent tree house yourself is hard work. The project takes many hours to complete and the financial cost of procuring materials such as wood and assembly parts is high. A chainsaw is the best way to start with the raw materials that you need to cut to the appropriate tree house size. Not to mention the various tools and power tools that are required to do the job yourself. In other words, it's a job for fathers. You need a lot of materials and tools.
Here are some of the basic things you'll likely need:
(1) Carriage screws with heavy square washers, strong wooden beams, pine decks for the platform, wood for roof beams and walls.
(2) jigsaw power tool, cordless drill, jigsaw, electric table saw, spirit level, large drill.
(3) Pouch with hammer nails and a hammer.
(4) Ratchet wrench with a set of heads for tightening the carriage screws.
(5) Chisel for cutting trenches for the trap door hinges.
(6) Four eyebolts that can be screwed into the trunk.
And the list goes on!
The walls are the easiest – mount these rectangles on the floor and then lift them into place. That said, they are extremely heavy, so use at least ropes and two people. Please do not try to lift the section without it being held by a strong safety rope. To get started, before you can even use a nail, you definitely need a step ladder and a long ladder to get to the tree. It is absolutely important to have a drill bit that is strong enough to send screws straight into the wood without pre-drilling. As I said, it's a job for fathers.
Finally the roof
There are different ways to finish a roof. This is probably the most time consuming part of the whole process. It is extremely dangerous (for fathers only) to reach the top of the roof. When it is finally finished, the whole family can be proud and delighted in the tree house's extremely satisfying project to make it themselves. Enjoy nesting under the starry sky as the cool breeze rustles through the tree house when it rains or shines for many years. I hope the neighbors are not watching!
