Cutting the Rafters.—If floor space is available, chalk out accurately
the external outline of a pair of rafters (80 inches long each before
shaping) and a line joining their lower ends. Then draw a line
bisecting the ridge angle. With this template as guide the rafters can
be quickly cut to shape. Another method is to cut one rafter out very
carefully, making a notch for half the width of the ridge, and to use
it as a pattern for the rest. In any case the chalked lines will prove
useful in the next operation of pairing the rafters and uniting them by
a tie just under the ridge notch. Cut a 4 by 1 inch notch at the bottom
of each rafter, on the outside, for the base piece. The two end pairs
have the B pieces (Fig. 14) nailed on to them, and r3 the tie t, which
should be in line with the rafters. The other three pairs require
temporary ties halfway up to prevent straddling during erection.
Door Frames and Doors.—The method of fixing the frame of the door at
the run end is shown in Fig. 14. The material for the frame being 1/2
inch thicker than that of the rafters, there is room for shoulders at
the top angles, as indicated by dotted lines. The door frame at the
house end is of the same thickness as r1 so that no overlapping is
possible. This being the case, screws should be used in preference to
nails, which are liable to draw a sloping face out of position as they
get home.
[Illustration: Fig. 14.—On left, elevation of end of run; on right,
door for run.]
The doors are made of 2 by 2 inch stuff, halved at the corners. Cut out
the top and bottom of the two sides; lay them on the floor so as to
form a perfect rectangle, and nail them together. The strut is then
prepared, care being taken to get a good fit, as any shortness of strut
will sooner or later mean sagging of the door. Cut the angles as
squarely as possible, to ensure the strut being of the same length both
inside and out.
Note.—As the door is rectangular, it does not matter which corners are
occupied by the ends of the strut; but when the door is hung, the strut
must run relatively to the side on which the hinges are, as shown in
Fig. 14. Amateurs—even some professionals—have been known to get the
strut the wrong way up, and so render it practically useless.
Covering the Ends of the House.—The ends of the house should be covered
before erection, while it is still possible to do the nailing on the
flat. The run end is boarded right over, beginning at the bottom, and
allowing each board to overlap that below it by 1 inch. The board ends
are flush with the outer sides of the rafters. When boarding is
finished, cut (with a pad saw) a semicircular-topped run hole, 14
inches high and 8 inches wide, in the middle of the bottom. Any
structural weakness caused by severing the two lowest boards is
counteracted by the two grooved pieces in which the drop-door moves.
Odds and ends of weather boards should be kept for the door end of the
house, which requires short pieces only, and is not boarded below the
top of b2. The door may be weather-boarded to match the rest of the
end, or covered by a few strakes of match-boarding put on vertically.
The two base pieces, b1 and b2, and the ridge should be marked off for
the rafters at the same time. All three are 10-foot lengths of 4 by 1
wood, unless you prefer the ridge to project a bit, in which case you
must allow accordingly.
Stand all three pieces together on edge, and make the marks with a
square across the tops. Allow a distance of 4 feet between the outside
faces of r1 and r3; halve this distance to get the centre of r2; and
subdivide the distance between r3 and r6 so that each rafter is
separated from its neighbours by an equal space, which will be 1 foot
11 inches. Number the marks and continue them down the sides of the
boards with the square. There should be a mark on each side of the
place to be occupied by the intermediate rafters, to prevent mistakes;
for it is obvious that if a rafter is fixed on the left side of a
single ridge mark and on the right of the corresponding mark on the
base, the result will not be pleasing.
Erection.—The services of a second pair of hands are needed here, to
hold while nailing is done. Nail holes having been drilled in the tops
of the rafters and in the base pieces, the ends are stood upright and
tacked to the ridge at the places marked for them, and after them the
intermediate rafters, working from one end to the other. Then tack on
the base pieces, b1, b3. Get the ends quite perpendicular, and nail a
temporary cross strut or two on the outside of the rafters to prevent
shifting while the final nailing up is done.
Covering the Shed.—Sixteen boards, 4 feet 2 inches long, are needed for
each side, as, owing to the overlap of one inch, each tier covers only
five of the 80 inches. The ridge is made watertight by a strip of sheet
zinc, a foot wide, bent over the top and nailed along each edge.
Waterproofing.—All the woodwork should now be given a coating of
well-boiled tar, paint, creosote, or some other preservative, worked
well down into the cracks. Creosote and stoprot are most convenient to
use, as they dry quickly.
Netting.—When the preservative has dried, fix on the netting with
3/4-inch wire staples. Begin at the base on one side, strain the
netting over the ridge, and down to the base on the other side. Be
careful not to draw the rafters out of line sideways. The last edge
stapled should be that on the roof of the house.
Note.—When driving nails or staples into a rafter or other part, get a
helper to hold up some object considerably heavier than the hammer on
the farther side to deaden the blow. Lack of such support may cause
damage, besides making the work much more tedious and difficult.
Finishing off.—The doors are now hung, and fitted with buttons and
padlocks. The stops should be on the doors, not on the frames, where
they would prove an obstruction in a somewhat narrow opening. Perches
should be of 2 by 1 inch wood, rounded off at the top, and supported in
sockets at each end so as to be removable for cleaning; and be all on
the same level, to avoid fighting for the “upper seats” among the
fowls. A loose floor, made in two pieces for convenience of moving,
will help to keep the fowls warm and make cleaning easier, but will add
a few shillings to the cost. The inside of the house should be well
whitewashed before fowls are admitted. To prevent draughts the
triangular spaces between the roof boards and rafters should be
plugged, but ample ventilation must be provided for by holes bored in
the ends of the house at several elevations, the lowest 2 feet above
the base. Handles for lifting may be screwed to the faces of b and b2
halfway between the door frame and the corners.
VII.
A SHED FOR YOUR BICYCLE.
The problem, how to house one or more cycles, often gives trouble to
the occupiers of small premises. The hall-way, which in many cases has
to serve as stable, is sadly obstructed by the handles of a machine;
and if one is kept there, the reason generally is that no other storage
is available.
If accommodation is needed permanently for two or three cycles
belonging to the house, and occasionally for the machine of a visitor,
and if room is obtainable in a backyard or garden in direct
communication with the road, the question of constructing a really
durable and practical cycle shed is well worth consideration. I say
constructing, because, in the first place, a bought shed costing the
same money would probably not be of such good quality as a home-made
one; and secondly, because the actual construction, while not offering
any serious difficulty, will afford a useful lesson in carpentry.
[Illustration: FIG. 16.—Cycle shed completed.]
Cycle sheds are of many kinds, but owing to the limitations of space it
is necessary to confine attention to one particular design, which
specifies a shed composed of sections quickly put together or taken
apart—portability being an important feature of “tenants’ fixtures”—and
enables fullest advantage to be taken of the storage room. As will be
seen from the scale drawings illustrating this chapter, the doors
extend right across the front, and when they are open the whole of the
interior is easily accessible. The fact that the cycles can be put in
sideways is a great convenience, as the standing of the machines head
to tail alternately economizes room considerably.
[Illustration: FIG. 16.—Plan of corner joints of cycle shed.]
I ought to mention before going further that the shed to be described
is very similar, as regards design and dimensions, to one in a back
issue of Cycling. By the courtesy of the proprietors of the journal I
have been permitted to adapt the description there given.[1]
[Footnote 1: By Mr. Hubert Burgess. ]
Dimensions and General Arrangements.—The shed is 8 feet long over all,
5 feet 6 inches high in front, 5 feet high at the back, 3 feet deep
over all, under the roof, which projects 3 inches fore and aft, and 2
inches at each end. It consists of seven parts: two sides, roof, back,
front frame and doors, and a bottom in two sections.
The reader should examine the diagrams (Figs. 16 to 24) to get a clear
understanding of the disposal of the parts at the corners. Fig. 16
makes it plain that the frames of the back and front overlap the frames
of the sides, to which they are bolted; and that the covering of the
back overlaps the covering of the sides, which in turn overlaps the
front frame.
All corner joints are halved. In order to allow the doors to lie flush
with the front of the doorframe uprights, the last must project the
thickness of the door boards beyond the frame longitudinals; and to
bring the front uprights of the sides up against the uprights of the
door frame, the longitudinals are notched, as shown (Fig. 16), to the
depth of the set-back for the doors.
Materials.—The question of cost and the question of materials cannot be
separated. A shed even of the dimensions given consumes a lot of wood,
and the last, that it may withstand our variable and treacherous
climate for a good number of years, should, as regards those parts
directly exposed to the weather, be of good quality. Yellow deal may be
selected for the boards; pitch pine is better, but it costs
considerably more. For the frames and non-exposed parts generally
ordinary white deal will suffice.
[Illustration: FIG. 17.-Types of match boarding: (a) square joint;
(b) double.-V; (c) single-V.]
The scale drawings are based on the assumption that matching of one of
the forms shown in Fig. 17, and measuring 4 inches (actual) across,
exclusive of the tongue, and 5/8 inch (actual) thick, is used.
As advised in the case of the carpenter’s bench, (p. 15) the
prospective constructor should let the wood merchant have the
specifications, so that he may provide the material in the most
economical lengths. The following is a rough estimate of the wood
required, allowing a sufficient margin for waste:
4-1/2 (over tongue) by 5/8 inch (actual) yellow match boarding for
sides, roof, back, and doors:
1-1/2 squares = 150 sq. feet. = 450 feet run. White 4-1/2 by 3/4 inch
square-shouldered flooring: 1/4 square = 25 sq. feet. = 75 feet run. 3
by 1-1/2 inch battens = 88 feet run. 4 by 1-1/2 inch battens = 26 feet
run. 3 by 2 inch battens = 27 feet run. 5 by 1-1/2 inch battens = 8
feet run. 2 by 1-1/2 inch battens = 21 feet run.
There will also be required:
Twelve 6-inch bolts and nuts.
Two pairs 18-inch cross-garnet hinges.
Two door bolts.
One lock (a good one).
Four yards of roofing felt.
Two gallons of stoprot.
Three lbs. wire-nails
A few dozen 3-inch and I-1/2-inch screws.
The total cost of the materials will come to about 2 pounds, 2s.