Raindrops and Rafters
As we build the roof, rain soaks my house-in-the-making every night. It rained so much on Monday that we didn’t work at all. That Advantech subfloor is getting a real test, and it’s holding up well. Each morning I sweep the water off the subfloor and we get to work. It doesn’t seem to be doing damage but it will be reassuring to get it all under roof.
All the rafters over the main portion of the house were finished on Friday. We also put most of the studs in one gable end. I’m still trying to finalize the design for openings in the gables. Put in a high window or a vent? And how are we venting the roof at the top? There’s nothing like making up your mind at the last possible moment, but that’s been our process so far. All the details are worked out as we build.
The roof ventilation question is difficult because the cathedral ceiling space in the bedroom has turned out to be very dramatic and I don’t want to mess it up. More thought is required.
Getting the 24-foot-long 2×10 ceiling joists up on top of the second-story walls was an adventure. Luckily the delivery man from OBS Building Supply went beyond the call of duty to help me and Marshall muscle them up there. Great service!
Two ceiling joists bolt to every other rafter. The reason the joists are so long is that we’re running them the full width of the house — including over the porch and stairwell. They tie it all together. It’s all 2×10 lumber and makes a heavy-duty roof frame. As always, click on my house building pictures to enlarge:
Add comment June 9th, 2006
