The Frame

Once the design process has been completed the crafting of the Frame can begin. Our frames are usually cut from Douglas fir timbers but other wood varieties can be used. For example, western red cedar in a sunroom or solarium. Douglas fir is an excellent wood for a timber frame being both strong and beautiful to look at. On the west coast of British Columbia it is also abundant. Sometimes we produce our frames from fresh cut timbers, sometimes from salvaged, and sometimes from recycled, depending on your preference and material availability.

The joinery takes place in our shop in Powell River. For the most part it is traditional with the addition of some fasteners where necessary for earthquake protection. Timbers are planed smooth, carefully fitted, edges chamfered, and coated with a protective oil finish.

While your frame is being crafted in our shop, your site would be prepared and the foundation and main floor deck installed in preparation for the arrival of the frame.

Frame components are shipped by truck or barge to your building site where they will be assembled and erected.

Erecting the frame is an experience you will not soon forget. We use a crane to raise the house cross sections or Bents. An average home can be raised in a day or two by our experienced crew.

Your frame is now ready to be enclosed.

 

Enclosures

The most common enclosure system used today utilizes stress skin panels. A dense foam core bonded to an exterior and an interior skin forms each panel. The "skins" are most often made of oriented strand board (OSB) or drywall. The stress skin panels are installed as a curtain wall wrapping the frame in a superior insulation "blanket".

Stress skin panels are highly insulative - from R4 to R 8 per inch. They are relatively quick to install, reducing on site labour time, and they can be pre-cut for window and door openings at the factory virtually eliminating waste on site. The result is a home superior to an R2000 design.

Other enclosure systems:

There is a wide choice of alternate enclosure systems being used today. These range from compressed wheat panels, straw bale, cob, to stud framed infill. In many areas building codes may not permit the use of some of these alternatives. The owner/builder may choose to proceed with other alternate materials on his own after the frame has been erected.

We can help you to decide which type of enclosure system best suits your project.

Check out our services here.