A timber frame cabin memoir

[caver]

Yes if I had to do this all over again I would have burnt my last years vacation on contract or checkups before I retired. Legacy has a builder they work with who can erect them and get them as far as you want but they were 6 months booked out. Anyway I would have sold my house and just moved to my cabin. But i wanted to DIY major parts of it. Juggling two homes and the cabin being about 120 miles away makes it difficult at times. I had an old back problem flare up in January so for two months I did not work on it then 2 became 3 became 4. When I neighbor rented her cabin to me over a year ago that was so helpful. Once I'm living over there progress will go quick. I looked into a log home but went this route. Putting about 30 rough cut 2x8's up in the loft area was kicking by butt. I could only get them so high on the backside with the tractor. I had an IBC tote cage on my forks. I would put a half down boards on there then cinch the load and raise as far as I could go. Then get up on my scaffolding and slide them off one by one. You can see two bundles here and there's another out of sight.

 

[civilian]

I heard these are good screws for vinyl windows. Something about recessed bit allows you to loosen screw and fudge window into level. I can't find them except amazon in way bigger quantities than I need. I painted my window jambs and will try and mount the basement windows next time I go over. I may just get some regular flathead screws. Andersen says minimal 1.5"View attachment 3540918

I have never seen that recessed diameter under the head. On Kreg screws or elsewhere. That smaller diameter under the head I assume allows the window to adjust some when you back the screw out a tiny bit. Did you try Anderson themselves? Jon

 

[caver]

That's what I read in some forum but they seem hard to find so production may have ceased. they were made by GRK. These are too long but this is the screw.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003VCGASU/?coliid=I1K9PHLZ16GIB3&colid=3P14HTE51SK9F&psc=0&ref_=list_c_wl_lv_ov_lig_dp_it

 

[JJT]

I heard these are good screws for vinyl windows. Something about recessed bit allows you to loosen screw and fudge window into level. I can't find them except amazon in way bigger quantities than I need. I painted my window jambs and will try and mount the basement windows next time I go over. I may just get some regular flathead screws. Andersen says minimal 1.5"View attachment 3540918

I use deck screws and fender washers. Overkill I know. The manufacturer, (Pella) calls for roofing nails.

 

[EddieWalker]

I use Hardie Screws for windows. I like the coating on them, they have a bigger head and shank then regular deck screws, and I always have a bunch of them in my truck. Probably 99% of the windows I've removed have been installed with roofing nails. Very few of them are sealed in anyway. I use caulking around the window, then tape them to the house wrap.

It's amazing to me how much money people will spend on new windows without realizing that they are not sealed, and some of the gaps are so big that they fill up with leaves!!!

 

[caver]

That's the plan. Tape and caulk except no caulk on the bottom to let any water that gets in a way to leave.

 

[caver]

A short couple days putting basement windows in. First one went easy, second one fought me and the door...well that concrete guy didn't put the bracing on or check his walls after he poured them. I would guess over an inch out of plumb top to bottom and my 4' level has been babied. I put the hinge side level and thought how will i trim this out down the road? This door had no trim flange and I mounted it almost flush with the inside. Part of said juts make it flush with the wall but now the threshold is glued down. This will bug me. I've been looking online for like a Schlage deadbolt and entry handle all three (actually 6) keyed alike. I hear you can order them from build.com and say you want them keyed alike. I may talk to the local locksmith tomorrow so I can get a lock on that door when i go back. Currently that concrete wall will not have any siding but I have considered some fake rock type panels. Those used to look janky many years ago but now you have to be right up on it and still think it's rock. I found some 1.5 inch GRK screws and tried out Eddies suggested Big Stretch caulk.

 

[ponytug]

A short couple days putting basement windows in. First one went easy, second one fought me and the door...well that concrete guy didn't put the bracing on or check his walls after he poured them. I would guess over an inch out of plumb top to bottom and my 4' level has been babied. I put the hinge side level and thought how will i trim this out down the road? This door had no trim flange and I mounted it almost flush with the inside. Part of said juts make it flush with the wall but now the threshold is glued down. This will bug me. I've been looking online for like a Schlage deadbolt and entry handle all three (actually 6) keyed alike. I hear you can order them from build.com and say you want them keyed alike. I may talk to the local locksmith tomorrow so I can get a lock on that door when i go back. Currently that concrete wall will not have any siding but I have considered some fake rock type panels. Those used to look janky many years ago but now you have to be right up on it and still think it's rock. I found some 1.5 inch GRK screws and tried out Eddies suggested Big Stretch caulk.

Thanks for this thread. It is fascinating to read.

Good luck on the door. That would bug me, too.

If it were me, I'd pressure apply a bonding agent to that crack above the non-hinge side of the door. (E.g. Sikadur crack repair kit.) I have the concern that the crack will get worse with time.

Some of the faux rock panels that I have looked at are plastic, which I personally wouldn't use on a gorgeous house like yours, and some are cement. FWIW: James Hardie makes a faux shingle siding panel, and it can be applied over a couple inches of densified insulation, e.g. rock wool.

All the best,

Peter

 

[caver]

Good eye. That crack showed up maybe a couple months after the pour? I was considering anchoring a piece of metal across it. As you said it will likely get worse. There was plenty of rebar so something shifted. Having poured foundations during the summer as a teenager working for my dad this guy had some weird ways of doing stuff. I have to pour 3 -30" piers about 10' out for the deck on this end of the house. I already have the Sonotubes for it. I'll do that myself with a helper or hire someone else.

 

[dstig1]

You can buy a kit at Menards/HD for a few bucks (very cheap) that can rekey up to 6 locks to the same key. It will be a new key, that comes with the kit, but they will all be the same. Your locks all have to be the same type, typically Schlage or Kwikset patterns. It's not hard but it is tiny parts and delicate, so you need a nice clear spot over a floor where you can find tiny parts when you drop them (no shag carpet or gravel...). Tweezers advised. I went and got a full kit from Amazon for $35-40 to be able to add a couple more locks to the mix.

And yes, if you order multiple locksets from Build.com at the same time they can key them alike on request for free. I just did it in fact. I gave them a key code number from our current keys so we could reuse all our existing keys without having to change anything.

A locksmith will charge you $50-200/lock depending on if they come to you or you come to them.