Building a treehouse advice?

What kind of trees can hold up a treehouse?





How should I start building it?





If the place I live gets a lot of rain, will that effect the treehouse?





What kind of maintenence will the treehouse need?Building a treehouse advice?
Basically you want a tree with enough thick branches to support your beams. Pine trees are generally poor choices. Some maples are very good choices. It's a good idea to ';anchor'; at least some of your floor beams in the ';crook'; of a branch.





Beams are 2x6 lumber, and you'll want to get a few of these beneath your ';floor.';





Also, realize that your tree is a growing, changing, living structure -- and your treehouse isn't. That means your treehouse is temporary - eventually the tree will grow and twist (and your beams won't) and you'll need to start over.





And if you're in a rainy climate, you'll want to paint your treehouse to protect it. Otherwise the wood will rot within about 3 years, and you'll fall through the floor.





The fun thing about treehouses is the view, and breezes. So I wouldn't worry about putting up 4 walls, of if you do, make huge windows. With no windows or small windows, you're just sitting in a box that happens to be in a tree.





Most of my treehouses have been a roof and a floor, basically a pavillion up in a tree - affording a 360degree view and wonderful breezes.





Some ideas for you. I've built numerous treehouses, and they're alot of fun, but they're temporary. Enjoy.Building a treehouse advice?
I would build a self standing platform around the tree. No nails in the trunk. Then you can be more liberal about your tree selection.





1. draw it on paper. graph paper works best, make each graph intersection equal one foot and go from there. this makes counting your lumber easy.





2. concrete piers in the ground are best. dig them at least 16';x16';x16';. stand them out of the ground about three inches to keep the wood from contacting the soil. the post should be 4x4 or 4x6.





3. floor joists should be at 16'; intervals. use 5 1/4 deck board on the surface. use 2x10 boards for the joist members. place the handrail at 36'; off the deck with boards at 18'; below that. Use pressure treated lumber throughout the project. Either run the deck at a 45 degree angle, or nail sway bracing to the underside of the floor. Either method will stabilize the treehouse and keep it from flopping over.





4. if you plan to install a roof on it, keep it simple and build a flat roof. Elevate one side of the roof one foot higher than the other side for drainage. build walls instead of handrails. use 2x6 rafters to support the roof. and use roll roofing to dry it in.





5. all wood structures left outside need maintenance. pressure treated lumber will last a long time. but you will need to apply wood sealer to it every year.





6. if you live in metro atlanta, IM me and i will come build it for you. if you are cute and single, you get a discount.
This site has a lot of the answers you need including a video as well as step by step instructions with pictures and a list of materials needed. Sounds like this will be fun! :)





http://www.ronhazelton.com/archives/howt鈥?/a>