Building a large dome hut in the scrub
May 31, 2020 10:04:45 GMT 10
SA Hunter, frostbite, and 3 more like this
Post by spinifex on May 31, 2020 10:04:45 GMT 10
Click on pictures to enlarge)
This is the next level after the experimentation work with the pallet wrap huts last year. The intention is to also set it up with a simple little scrub garden that looks after itself as well. Part of this project is to confirm what the essential hand tools and BYO materials are required to build a long-term hut in natural scrub/forest.
The new structure is a 4.5m quarter sphere. Main structure of the frame is from Eucalypt saplings and wattle saplings. I'm still pondering over wether to waterproof it with builders plastic or a really thick layer of pallet wrap. I like the durability of the former but it will be hard to apply neat and tight like the latter. Ultimately the waterproofing will be clad over with natural materials so it blends in with the surroundings. A simple rectangular/triangular shape would have suited the use of builders plastic very well but I like the look of rounded shapes and they blend better with natural environment.
Step 1. Find a suitable location. Must have suitable height and diameter tree saplings to build with, be relatively flat ground and nicely concealed. Then two trees are selected to form the main structural arch. The 'open end' of the arch is aligned north to let in winter sun and keep out prevailing winds. A forked branch is used as a kind of ladder to enable me to get a rope tied as far up each sapling trunk as possible. The saplings are pulled towards each other in stages using ropes until they can be wired together loosely. Ropes are then removed, the tree tops cut off, the trunks are twisted around each other and then tightly wired. The process took about 2 hours. These are live trees and I expect then to remain so and re-sprout sucker growth all along the main arch this spring.
Basic tools - Bow saw and carpenters hatchet. To mark the shape of the hut floor, and thus where posts for wall up-rights need to be dug in, I set up a sturdy stake at mid point under the main arch. Then attached a rope tied with a loop at each end (half the length of the arch) with a sharpened stick to mark out a semi-circle. The bow saw makes really quick work of tree saplings upto 120mm thick.
By happy coincidence there were 2 saplings exactly on the marked line so I set about bending them into part of the structure as I thought it would save work of digging post holes and provide good strength. However, being 120mm thick at the base it was damn hard work. Lots of rope work (2 ropes just visible in this pic) and heaps of force exerted. A couple minutes after this shot, as I started wiring it into place, the tree snapped about a metre from the ground. A lot of effort, and one injury, went for no result. I learned my lesson and decided to only cut and use carefully selected trees of a sensible thickness for bending. For sugar gum this about 75mm at the base and tapering to 30mm at a length of 4.4 metres.
Post hole tools. Small tuna tin works wonders: way better than bare hands for mucking loose material out of the holes. The wooden rod is for tamping the clay back in the holes after the posts are set. Holes are kept as small in diameter as possible to keep things tight. I make them as deep as the screwdriver will go (40cm).
Tamping the soil back in the holes nice and tight. I use the back of the hatchet to give it a good thump.
The carpenters hatchet has a hollow handle containing a thermal blanket, file and capsule full of matches.
Crazy-ass temporary wiring showing where the 5 curved uprights are attached to the main arch. I've given away cable ties, they are inferior for this kind of work. I'm going to bring out a hand drill, bore thru the ends and do a 'permanent' wiring job.
All the uprights are now in place. Total build time about 9 hours. (The remaining trunk of the snapped off tree is at the bottom of the picture - now neatly trimmed.)
This is the next level after the experimentation work with the pallet wrap huts last year. The intention is to also set it up with a simple little scrub garden that looks after itself as well. Part of this project is to confirm what the essential hand tools and BYO materials are required to build a long-term hut in natural scrub/forest.
The new structure is a 4.5m quarter sphere. Main structure of the frame is from Eucalypt saplings and wattle saplings. I'm still pondering over wether to waterproof it with builders plastic or a really thick layer of pallet wrap. I like the durability of the former but it will be hard to apply neat and tight like the latter. Ultimately the waterproofing will be clad over with natural materials so it blends in with the surroundings. A simple rectangular/triangular shape would have suited the use of builders plastic very well but I like the look of rounded shapes and they blend better with natural environment.
Step 1. Find a suitable location. Must have suitable height and diameter tree saplings to build with, be relatively flat ground and nicely concealed. Then two trees are selected to form the main structural arch. The 'open end' of the arch is aligned north to let in winter sun and keep out prevailing winds. A forked branch is used as a kind of ladder to enable me to get a rope tied as far up each sapling trunk as possible. The saplings are pulled towards each other in stages using ropes until they can be wired together loosely. Ropes are then removed, the tree tops cut off, the trunks are twisted around each other and then tightly wired. The process took about 2 hours. These are live trees and I expect then to remain so and re-sprout sucker growth all along the main arch this spring.
Basic tools - Bow saw and carpenters hatchet. To mark the shape of the hut floor, and thus where posts for wall up-rights need to be dug in, I set up a sturdy stake at mid point under the main arch. Then attached a rope tied with a loop at each end (half the length of the arch) with a sharpened stick to mark out a semi-circle. The bow saw makes really quick work of tree saplings upto 120mm thick. 
By happy coincidence there were 2 saplings exactly on the marked line so I set about bending them into part of the structure as I thought it would save work of digging post holes and provide good strength. However, being 120mm thick at the base it was damn hard work. Lots of rope work (2 ropes just visible in this pic) and heaps of force exerted. A couple minutes after this shot, as I started wiring it into place, the tree snapped about a metre from the ground. A lot of effort, and one injury, went for no result. I learned my lesson and decided to only cut and use carefully selected trees of a sensible thickness for bending. For sugar gum this about 75mm at the base and tapering to 30mm at a length of 4.4 metres. 
Post hole tools. Small tuna tin works wonders: way better than bare hands for mucking loose material out of the holes. The wooden rod is for tamping the clay back in the holes after the posts are set. Holes are kept as small in diameter as possible to keep things tight. I make them as deep as the screwdriver will go (40cm).
Tamping the soil back in the holes nice and tight. I use the back of the hatchet to give it a good thump.
The carpenters hatchet has a hollow handle containing a thermal blanket, file and capsule full of matches.
Crazy-ass temporary wiring showing where the 5 curved uprights are attached to the main arch. I've given away cable ties, they are inferior for this kind of work. I'm going to bring out a hand drill, bore thru the ends and do a 'permanent' wiring job. 
All the uprights are now in place. Total build time about 9 hours. (The remaining trunk of the snapped off tree is at the bottom of the picture - now neatly trimmed.)
... great at all other times.
... great at all other times.