In June, 2020, the parks were closed due to COVID-19. At Chip's Wood Shop, we built our own tree house. Not just one, but two- each in its own avocado tree, linked by a swinging bridge.
The foundation of each tree began with a frame around and through a fork in the trunk. The frames were contoured on the inside to minimize stress on the bark. For added support, I put steel fence posts between each frame and the ground.
Next, I made a bridge with steel rope, strung through palettes and around the frames, creating a "belt" around the two trees without strangling them. I sprayed all palettes with termite treatment before using them.
To hoist up material for the rest, I made a winch, the subject of a separate post.
Each tree has a platform above its frame, on vertical supports. The platforms are made of palettes and pressure treated lumber. I built railing around all walking surfaces and fastened wire fencing to prevent falls and dropping large items. The design of the tree houses makes them tricky to photograph. They are meant to be hidden as much as possible within the trees so they don't annoy the neighbors. There is another steel rope "belt" around the platforms so they support each other. They are designed to move with the trees, rather than fight them. In a heavy wind, they sound like a wooden ship at sea.
The kids wanted a ladder they could hoist up to keep the bad guys from getting in.
After a year and a half, the tree houses have held up under many friends coming to visit and the highest winds we get in our area.
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