Aoraki's build

[Aoraki]

Hi all, I'm starting this thread to share my build progress with you. I'm about two weeks in so please be patient while I get the photo's resized (Is 1000 pixles on longest side ok?). There's quite a few so I may be gone some time!

Edit.. it didn't take long to resize once I found that Photoshop would do a whole folder with a couple of clicks.

[Aoraki]

This is where it all begins! Only 4 weeks earlier I removed all grass from around the pampas, put weed control barrier down and put 2 tonnes of gravel down.... Not to self..plan ahead better in future!

The pampas had to go as I was limited as to where the shed/obsy could be sited.

[southernman]

Great start!! As a matter of interest where are you situated??

[Aoraki]

September the 18th 2011. This is the day I started and dug up the pampass, and dug the hole for the pier.

The hole for the pier is approximatly 70x70x70cm with a further 30cm Ø hole extending to about 1.4m below ground level.

Pier hole approximatly (hopefully!) in the middle of intended scope room.

And this is the steel framework that will be going in the hole.

[Aoraki]

Great start!! As a matter of interest where are you situated??

Ha, it's all in the name isn't it? Well, no actually, I'm in Mansfield UK! Aoraki comes about as me and the Mrs got married half way up Mount Aoraki/Cook at the neve of Fox Glacier five years ago. Really fell in love with NZ and maybe, just maybe will ditch the UK for there one day.

[Aoraki]

20th Sept 2011

Pier concrete mixed and poured, it also extends about 10cm above groud level and at this point is 80 x 80cm square.

[Aoraki]

21 Sept 2011

Collected about a third of all timber required. Did I mention it's going to be in the region of 4.8m x 2.4m by 2.1m high.

It is 2.1m high for one reason....I had permission to build "a good looking structure that doubles as a summer house" ie full size walls!

Here we have about 300m of loglap siding, 9 4.8m of 6"x2" joists and 4 8'x4' 20mm ply for the floor. I know I'm mixing metric and imperial but that's how timber comes!

[Gina]

Great start Looking forward to seeing your photos of the rest of the build

[Aoraki]

23 & 23 Sept 2011

Levelled site and placed 6 60 x 60 x 5 concrete slabs as foundations.

Making steady progress.

[southernman]

I wondered about the "Aoraki". What a great place to be married! As you can tell I'm in Christchurch New Zealand.

[Aoraki]

24 Sept 2011

Time to bring in help! In the photo's is Mick, a good (really good) friend who also happens to run his own joinery and property maintenance business.

6"x2" joists going down.

All nogged out aroung the pier opening and a start made on laying the floor.

Floor layed and being inspected by my old man.

Rear wall built flat on the floor and then lifted into position, it was heavy!

Mick's number 1 daughter giving a helping hand. That was about enough for the day, beer and pizza awaits.

View from the rear of the shed from up the waste of space banking! I do like that loglap, but what colour should we paint it? All timber on this project will be Tanalised apart the ply floor and roof deck.

Much beer and pizza consumed whilst we talked over plans for Sunday.

[Aoraki]

I wondered about the "Aoraki". What a great place to be married! As you can tell I'm in Christchurch New Zealand.

Beatifull place to get wed. Didn't spend as much time in Christchurch as we would have liked, really only had time to meet with wedding planer, get licence and then we travelled up Highway 1 to Kaikoura. I say highway, nice winding road really!

I hope things are getting back to some sort of normality in Christchurch, terrible times for you all I would think.

[Freff]

Looks like the start of a great build you have there Aoraki. I quite like the look of the Loglap effect.

Looking forward to seeing more of the build.

I spent a week in Christchurch in Nov 09. I liked the place a lot and was shocked by the earthquakes there recently.

[southernman]

I don't things will ever be normal here again. Just hope we don't get another major quake. More than 300 shakes above magnitude 4 in the last year alone.

Did you got a chance to have a look at what the southern skies have to offer while down here?

[Freff]

I do hope things do get back to normal, and they at least rebuild the cathedral. I use to love the poached eggs and bacon on toast they done in the attached cafe. Best eggs in NZ.

I never got to do any seeing through a telescope only by eye and that was stunning enough. I'd love to go back to NZ, we have family in Auckland.

[Aoraki]

Southernman - we certainly did, we know nothing of dark skies here in the UK compared to what you have on the South Island. We were very tight on time to go star gazing, we only had 16 days to cover both islands and that was in a camper van.

[Aoraki]

25th Sept 2011

Framework for North wall laid out on floor (yes it rained over night and no I didn't sheet over) awaiting the fixing of cladding.

North wall erected and South wall framework made, again awaiting cladding.

Looking good!

Then the rain came, again. Just got South wall up and sheeted the floor. Rain stopped play so we had lunch, surpising how often you have to feed a joiner...

Rain eased and we managed to get the front built. Door and window opening to the left (warm room) and window opening to right which should be in line with the pier.

Studding for interior wall between rooms now erected, slidding door to make and fit to the right of photo.

And here ends the first weekends work, I think work is progressing well.

[Aoraki]

26th - 30th Sept

Evening work continues at a slower pace after a full day at work. Two 2" conduits in place from warm to scope room. 2.5mm armoured run to shed from main outdoor electrical panel.

The large task of getting the 2" conduit from shed to garage was also completed, this consisted of lots of digging, going under two sleeper walls, through a breeze block retaining wall, cutting a 3" wide track through stone patio, more digging of about 30' to reach garage and then core drilling through double skin walls into garage and finally pulling through draw rope.

Conduits seen below, armoured attached to blue draw rope.

[Aoraki]

1st October 2011

The weekend arrives. First job was to install the 4" x 4" corner posts.

Colour samples can be seen at base of shed. We're probably going with the lighter for the main field of timber with the darker for the windows, door, corner posts and other trim detail.

Detail of corner posts can be seen below. Posts and siding actually overhang floor by about 3/4" for cleaner look.

We then started on the pergola/RORO track surpports. These are rough sawn timbers. 6" x 2" joists and 4" x 4" posts.

Siding trimmed to allow pergola to be fixed to main frame. I was going to attach a 6" x 2" along the front of the shed to fix to but my tame joiner shot me down in flames. But he was right, it looks better this way.

And that's that for Saturday, much beer and bbq food consumed, F1 2011 on the PS3, late night, sore head and off to bed.....Sunday morning is not far away!

[Aoraki]

2nd Oct 2011

Late(ish) start today, see previous post! Anyway, we set to work to frame the roof. 6" x 2" timbers, smooth not rough sawn this time, were used here. Ripped down to 4" at rear (West) to provide enough fall to shed rain.

The roof frame over hangs the shed inclusive of siding by 10mm on all sides, just enough so when the facia is fitted travel of the roof isn't impeded.

Looking down onto the roof, you can see the main runner timbers at each end are actually set inside the main framework of the shed. This will allow me to keep the gap between walls and roof to a minimum by being able mount the wheels where needed inbetween roof joist on custom made brackets (not fabricated yet).

The roof was decked out with 4 sheets of 20mm ply to be strong and substantial. I forgot to take a photo at this point.

Roof in position, 10mm overhang and raised 10mm above walls. This is the point where the strong and substantial part became a drawback. Along the front edge, the roof sagged by about 1mm in the centre, however, at the rear the roof was firmly sitting on the wall at the centre point. A deflection of 10mm which by the feel of it would have been considerably more but for the wall!

So, a central set of wheels are required. I say central but they will run over the dividing wall which by chance is under the 4th roof joist from the left on the above photo so about 40cm off centre, which fortunately runs directly in line with one of the pergola timbers. Crisis averted.

[Aoraki]

3rd Oct 2011

Nothing done today apart from placing order for the tracks and wheels. I should be able to start the drawings to fabrication of the brackets tomorrow if the track and wheels arrive at a reasonable time. As stated above, a third set of wheels are needed centraly be these will only be weight bearing and not guided, all the guiding will be done via the track.

I am using THIS TRACK and THESE WHEELS which will provide a smooth and easy operation of the roof and have enough weight carrying capacity (200kg each) for my heavy roof.

[RogerTheDodger]

Is the whole roof going to roll off? what about the warm room?

[Aoraki]

Yes the whole roof rolls off due to my main worry about weather proofing a joint between roofs and also the Mrs main worry for the cosmetics of the structure. The warm room is to have a false/suspended cieling.

[RogerTheDodger]

Ahh... makes sense now

[Gina]

You'll want a separate roof on the warm room then, underneath the main roof. Must admit your design makes for a good looking building. Using the roll off support structure as a pergola is good too A good, solid and neat looking build