Nestled at the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, alongside the Saluda River, is the 400 acre Riverstead community. A focus on nature, sustainability, and community living, all within commuting distance to Greenville, South Carolina, makes this setting unique and special. We were excited to be a part of this vision by cutting and raising a timber frame community barn.
A building project starts when we meet with our client to discuss their vision and what the timber frame's use will be. Next we design the frame and send the plans to the timber frame engineer. We spent weeks in the shop, cutting timbers and test fitting the frame of the community barn. Once we delivered it to the site community members gathered to sign timbers and watch some final cutting and mortising.
Raising a Community Barn
With the bents assembled, we lay out the frame on the slab in the order it will be raised. Watching the first bents of the timber frame go up is always exciting! The equipment we use for a raising depends on the size of the timber frame, as well as the type of job site. On this raising we used a crane, a forklift, and a scissor lift.
Rigging timbers to be lifted during a raising takes skill and experience. Communicating clearly with the crane operator and having a crew who knows what needs to be done makes raisings go smoothly. The posts are set on specialized timber connectors that we installed in the concrete slab.
As the frame goes together, knee braces are installed and we pound in the pegs that secure the timbers.
Thanks to all of the preparations done in the shop and advance laying out of the frame on site, raising just takes a day.
We were so happy to see these pictures of roof on the barn and the community goats taking a look, thanks to Johannes Aartun, one of Riverstead's farmers.
For more barns, click here.
