21/8/12

So today I had to go up onto the roof and finsh the last side.We laid all the sheets of iron out on the ground and marked it all out with a straight edge and whiteboard marker.We don't use pencil as we found out that the water will make it rust because it is made out of graphite.Once all was marked out,we then used the nibler to cut the marked lines.We then used the offcuts from the otherside of the building.I used the same pattern for the screws.screw one in,miss 2,screw one in miss 3.Chalk lines were used again to ping where the purlins are under the sheets.

The corner scribers are all cut to the right lengths and primed up.The batts all arrived today,So we will be getting stuck into the flashings,and batts tomorrow.Then we should be doing Gib and the rest of the flashings.

7/8/12

So yesterday,we started off in class with a small session of catch for the rest of the class.Steve came in and took the session for the morning.Me and Brad were already up to date with our assessments,Moodle,Blogging and quizzes.So we were instructed to go ahead and move on to the house.My first task was installing facing boards for the outside windows on the weatherboards.I had to cut go ahead and cut some weatherboards into small packers,Phil made a scriber for the blocks to sit nicely to,then a strip of timber is nailed to them with finishing nails.Then the facing boards are nailed on.The bottoms of the facing boards are cut on a small angle to sit flush with the outside sill under the window.Our boards were to overlap the outside of the window by 10mm.This is to prevent weathering from getting in from behind.We were going to move on with the head flashings for the windows but it turned out that the flashings we were sent were the incorrect lengths.

After Smoko we moved back on with the roof.Me Mark,Brad and Takey went out and carried on.We had all our sheets at 60mm from the face of the facia board,The overlap is needed for the run off into the guttering.The longer the better as water cannot run back up under the roof causing the materials to rott and or weaken over time.The tool used was called a "nibler" This was used to cut the sheets of iron for the roof.We used a chalk line to ping a line to have something to follow to give us a nice finished cut.We then fixed the sheets down with techscrews,These are not to be over tightned as these can put pressure on the sheets and burst the rubber seal under the screw.The offcuts we have can then be used on the opposite end of the house as the overlapping patterns will be the same but different to the ones you have just cut them from.We no longer staple the building paper down as we just lay it under the sheets of iron.The iron is more then enough to hold the paper down.And once its screwed down they ain't going anywhere.

31/7/12

Today we finally moved on to the ROOFING!We started with crimping the ends of the iron at the tops,as this prevents water from getting into the house under the ridge caps.We cut the paper to,4900mm for the underlay of the iron.Our screw patterns for the top and bottom are 1 in then two gaps then one in ect.For the intermediate purlins,It was 1 in,2 spaces,1 in,3 spaces ect.Less screws are required for the middle purlins.We used chalk string lines to mark down where our screws are to be placed.I had a rattle gun with the tech screw piece.The screws are not to be fully screwed right down as the pressure can crack the rubber seals underneath the screws causing small leaks.

To get the first sheet straight,We done a 345 on the roof,marked 3 on the top purlin and 4 on the sheet of iron,Then matched it up to 5.We then tacked the sheet in place with a couple of nails.Another way of checking it for square is to have a string line up the top of the roof and one at the bottom of the roof,then you can move them around till they fit nicely between the string lines.

The other part of the class went ahead with the exterior window facing boards.We will be doing that tomorrow when we rotate.The tools we will be using are routers,chizels and many more.Primer will also be used to keep the freshly cut timber treated from the elements.

18/6/12

So this morning,We all lined up for class with Mark.We went back over the session we had last week in regards to the Roofing.Rafters and Trusses.We went over various terms for each section of a rafter set up.

After smoko we were split in 2 groups and one half of the class were to proceed with the Purlins while my half were put on the roof making task,we went back over SOH CAH TOA,We were given an angle for our roof,ours was 40 degrees.The width of our building was 2000mm,and the length was 2400mm,we halved the width,so 1000mm,We needed to find the length of our rafters.So,The method we used was,CAH as we needed to find the longest side.So Cos40 x 1000,That gives us the lengt of the Longest side,(The rafter).We used a sliding Bevel to transfer the angles to other rafters.A hand saw was used to cut them down to the correct lengths.We then had to cut out a piece known as the birds mouth.Matt showed us how to do this,For our roof,I measured out 1288 and marked a line,Then from the line I transfered it with a sliding bevel with 40 degrees.Then moved the bevel to the end with the builders square and adjusted it then moved it back forming the piece(Birds mouth) which is to be cut out,Once it was cut out,the rafter can frimly sit flush onto the top plate of the building.

Outriggers being nailed off.

Working out how to cut out or birds mouths.

Once all the rafters are cut,They are evenly spaced then attached to the ridge board at the top.We then skewed the rafters down.Tomorrow we will finish the building exercise,The Purlins should be attached and the raking top plate will be finished.Then we will be ready for marking.

29/5/12

 So to start of the day,We went upstairs to learn about trusses,there are so many trusses/roofs to choose from,I learn't what a hip roof was,It is a roof that is pitched on all sides,On a slight angle.Here are a few definitions in regards to trusses;

Valley = Where two roof planes meet at an internal corner.
Apex/Ridge=Top point of the roof.
Hips=The angles that glide down on the roof.

After our little session in class,Me and a few others were to complete the finishing touches for the opening in the lounge for the sliding doors.I got the router out and clamped the guide that I had made for the straps to the stud and boundary joist.The router was set to the right depth,I nail punched in existing nails to stop the router from hitting the nails.Once the the timber was routered into I put the strap in place and nailed in 6 galv nails in each end of the strap,(More can be put in if the builder chooses to)

Next up I had to grab a nail plate and mark a pencil line around the outside at the top plates down to the stud next to the opening.Then chizled out the chunks and nailed the plate into place so it was all nice and flush with the exterior wall.

After lunch we returned to find out that we were to be blogging till 3pm,After this we finally got to install the roof trusses,now it's starting to look like a house.We followed the roofing plans provided by ITM,These are constructed by them and advanced machinery.Not any odd person can build them,You have to be qualified to be able to.The first truss is lifted up and tacked into place,then another one at the far end is tacked to it to prevent it from falling.The same process is done at the following end.Once both ends are even,a string line is then attached to the tops making it easier for the others to be set up.Next up,Perlins!