Post date: Jun 19, 2015 2:23:44 AM
The roof trusses and beams arrived yesterday morning, but the construction crew was finishing a plaster (stucco) job elsewhere. The first photo shows carrying the beam that will be across the front of the entry porch (portal). It was very heavy (10" x 12" x 18') but, surprisingly, did not seem particularly green. That was the largest timber we got. Smaller ones go over the doors and windows (called ‘lintels’) and there are some yet smaller to provide shade for the south windows in summer.
But today we installed all the roof trusses before noon. They are light enough so that one man can carry all but the longest. We started with the short ones over the study, then moved to the garage and worked west to east. Two people stood on the top of the wall and two people handed up each truss, then helped nail it in place.
I knew the labeling scheme, so ensured that they went up in the correct sequence and location.
My scheme of stepping up each truss as it was installed away from the central roof drain seems to have worked like a charm. It meant that we had 18 different trusses (32 in all, some pairs north and south), but each was labeled with position, top side, and short and long ends, so it went very smoothly.We also added two more parapets on the west side — after waiting until the trusses were installed. That meant I was cutting curved parapets again. (That work will not be complete until we finish the mechanical room and the front porch.)
The plumber came today and did much of the rough drain and vent plumbing. In the photo on the right you can just see the white vent pipe rising above the tops of the trusses, with the mechanical room in the background. He will return tomorrow to work on the water pipes, which run through the ceiling space. I was able to convince him to use only one vent through the roof for both bath and kitchen. Next I have to work with him to install the roof drain pipe so it will work best for me.This is probably the last time-lapse video for a while, because most of the work will be behind walls. I'll try to find a way to capture the activity inside.