A Shed Raising

Any afficionado of Louis L'Amour books, people who know about the practices of the early settlements in the USA and Canada and people who watch movies about Mennonites and the Amish will know what I am talking about.

Someone decides to build a barn - in my case a shed. On the appointed day people come from everywhere and every one gets into it and either builds the shed or feeds the people who build the shed. Every one has a great time. The shed goes up and they all go home again feeling that very nice sense of community. Importantly, no one gets shot at a barn raising.

My Shed Raising happened on the weekend. Because we live a bit of distance from their residences the work gang arrived on Friday night complete with many pizzas and the occasional bottle of beer and red wine. The plan was to commence work at pretty close to first light and, as happens with good plans, we were at it at pretty close to first light.

The first portal frame was already in place and there were another 5 that had been constructed and packed in a careful pile near the construction site.

Raising the first portal frame had been a difficult job. It was built in 3 different ways and raised 3 times. Without spending too much time on it I should note that the first 2 attempts were successful in the achievement of an outcome of raising a portal frame but not successful in that the frame would not have held up its required element of a shed. The 3rd attempt had worked though and it stood supreme as a starting point. It took some weeks, much cursing, a couple of hits on the head (mine) with bracing and a bit of panel beating. Of course, it did only take one person.

The remaining 5 portal frames are now in place. Not only are they in place, they are held in place by foundations that were almost all (29 of 32) in precisely the right place, they are bound together by roof purlins and most also have eave purlins binding them together.

I trust this doesn't sound like an easy or insignificant achievement.

Each portal frame is constructed of columns, rafters, haunch brackets, an apex bracket, knee braces, an apex brace and lots of nuts and bolts etc. They are heavy and difficult to handle. They must arrive in their appointed position in as close to the state in which they leave their home on the ground. If they don't - if they go out of square - they will not fit the foundations and it will be impossible to get the rest of the frame or cladding to fit. Our team was able to raise the portal frames with only a little help on occasion from the tractor (yet again being used as a precision instrument).

All of this was done in 35 degree heat and 60% humidity.

The best teams are those who are fed well and we were. Liquid to replenish that which had been lost in the heat was required and consumed. We probably also replenished some extra.

Injuries? None that I know of. There were one or two almosts. Bracing came down pretty close to one head. Things occasionally became a little tense when the pressure was really on and those bloody frames were neither up nor down. But we came through and are still friends.

Amazingly for me everything fitted together. I had spent a lot of time on those foundations. Measuring, digging, cutting and welding structures and mixing concrete (almost 5 meters). I have complete faith that they will never leave the ground in the worst of cyclonic winds but none whatsoever that they would be in precisely the right place. One test was whether we could get the purlins on. Towards the end one did not fit, looked a long way out but a swing of the hips by our Amazon and, presto, the frame moved smartly into position.

So now it remains to put up the rest of the frame - the easy bits - and to clad it. I intend to finish this well before mango season - this week if I can.

What a birthday present eh?

Oh and I did find an extra 16/18mm ring spanner, an 18/16 open ender and a shirt that were not included in the tools that were intentionally left behind. I will return them.

And no one was shot.