how to make a tree house (tips)
The most unique challenge for treehouse builders is how to fit your floor into the tree. The method must be strong, long lasting and avoid tree damage as much as possible. First of all, a few simple facts about trees.
Trees grow ,This problem most people get stuck on. Forget about tree growth for the time being, the important thing to remember is that trees sway all over the place when it gets windy. You need to decide if your attachments to the tree will be fixed (bolted) or flexible. Flexible joints (also called floating point or suspended point depending on situation) hold up the support beam but still allow the tree to move.
Trees don't react well to structures close togetherTo begin with, don't use nails or screws to mount beams. They are not made to carry bigload. You should use bolts instead, and large ones at that (¾" diameter or more). Trees can deal with bolts quite well, but you should not place bolts too close together (less than 12"). If you have two bolts just a few inches apart, the space in between can die and become unstable, reducing strength dangerously
Keep the suports simpleBecause trees move, you should use the minimum number of joints necessary to hold up the treehouse. If, for example, you are building a treehouse in a cluster of three trees, consider whether it would be possible to support the structure using just two of the trees, thus avoiding the complications of an extra moving attachment point
Trees grow ,This problem most people get stuck on. Forget about tree growth for the time being, the important thing to remember is that trees sway all over the place when it gets windy. You need to decide if your attachments to the tree will be fixed (bolted) or flexible. Flexible joints (also called floating point or suspended point depending on situation) hold up the support beam but still allow the tree to move.
Trees don't react well to structures close togetherTo begin with, don't use nails or screws to mount beams. They are not made to carry bigload. You should use bolts instead, and large ones at that (¾" diameter or more). Trees can deal with bolts quite well, but you should not place bolts too close together (less than 12"). If you have two bolts just a few inches apart, the space in between can die and become unstable, reducing strength dangerously
Keep the suports simpleBecause trees move, you should use the minimum number of joints necessary to hold up the treehouse. If, for example, you are building a treehouse in a cluster of three trees, consider whether it would be possible to support the structure using just two of the trees, thus avoiding the complications of an extra moving attachment point