Framed signed off (possibly), and a roof!

We did get the extra timber to finish off the frame and had it up in September. Some cross bracing was then added and all the bolts had to be tightened.

Once done we called the building inspector to come out and check the frame for sign-off. Because we used the coastal grey box which is rated pretty well instead of what the engineer specified in his documentation for the frame the inspector wanted the documentation changed to reflect what we used was in fact ok. For instance the engineers report specified for the main beams 2 290x35 nail laminated to make a 290x70 beam, We used a single 290x70 beam. The engineer also specified mostly F17 kiln dried hardwood, we used unseasoned coastal grey box which is rated to F22 unseasoned, but when it eventually dries it goes upto F34.

We have submitted the updated engineers report to the inspector but to date and after several attempts to check that the extra information was adequate we still don't know if we have the frame signed off, but taking a positive outlook on it and assuming that no news is good news we have moved onto the next step, the roof.

We got several quotes and finally settled on one from a local roofing company, a bonus is that the owner of the company lives just down the road and is a nice guy. One of the things that we did want is to either put the roof on our selves or at least be involved in putting the roof on. As owner builders we want to do as much as we can, the roof is one of those jobs that the authorities want a certificate for. The roofing company after some negotiation were happy to knock off some of the cost of the roof and let me take part as a general laborer.

In total it took 4 working days to complete the job, and there were three of us. Myself and two qualified roof plumbers. The guys did a great job of the roof even though they constantly made cracks about the wonky frame. We ended up putting on wire mesh, then foil with 50mm fiber insulation (fire proof, and an >R2 rating) and a "Surf mist" colourbond corrugated roof. We also got a round gutter (called smoothline) which looks great. The head roofer was in charge of cutting all the gutter joints and the roll top flashing. He did a fantastic job of lining up the flashing as you can see from the picture.

Now that the roof is on we have to save money up for the next big jobs, lining and insulating the underside of the roof and doing the slab (or maybe strip footings). While we save money we will start making mud bricks which will make up the inside walls, this is a relatively cheap job but pretty labour intensive.