Thread: Will weatherboards brace enough?

Probably not. I think you will need to brace it diagonally.

Are the weatherboards old and brittle? If so I would go for new treated pine.

I think just the weatherboards will brace it fine, it did on mine. Just make sure you put 2 nails through each weatherboard on each stud (vertical).

The weatherboards were cut by my 14 year old and I 3 weeks ago from green logs, so they are not old or brittle. I will try uploading the photo again. How would metal tape go diagonally under the weatherboards?

I would most definitely use diagonal braces, timber or metal strapping would do.
Jim

Put some diagonal metal straps under the whether boards first and you'll be right

Definitely add more bracing. You didn't say how high above the sandpit that the cubbyhouse floor is but I would think maybe at least a metre. You could fix bracing of say 50mm X 50mm from the 100mm posts up to the beam running around the top. This would go at 45 degrees and you could come in say 300 mm along the top and likewise down the posts.That means you would have 2 braces on each post. Of course the longer you make the braces ,the more stable the structure woud be but at 300mm in each way that shouldn't create too much obstruction for the kiddies heads.. Cheers.

I don't reckon you can use treated pine on cubby houses any more unless it's got cladding on it. That's because the treating chemicals are poisonous

Originally Posted by murray44

I think just the weatherboards will brace it fine, it did on mine. Just make sure you put 2 nails through each weatherboard on each stud (vertical).

I reckon Murray's correct, but as it is so easy and cheap to add some diagonal bracing, why take the risk?

Originally Posted by Lenco

I don't reckon you can use treated pine on cubby houses any more unless it's got cladding on it. That's because the treating chemicals are poisonous

Spot on, Lenco, but as Glenn is using cypress that he cut himself the chemicals are not an issue.

Cheers

Graeme

Just as a point of interest,I priced the timber etc to build a cubby house about 5 years ago and it was quite an expensive little exercise. I reckon on Deals Direct or a similar site they had them in kit form and even tho I didn't take much notice I think they were pretty reasonable. But still, it's more fun making the stuff yourself, especially if you've got a handy 14 year old lad that can cut the weatherboards. I've started building a 15mtre X 6.3 metre shed and so far have only dug the 12 holes for the steel columns. 500 X 500 X 600 deep and I won't be doing any more to it until the heat wave ends. (it's gonna be 39 for the next 3 days). Still, I'm sort of retired so rushing is not my priority these days..Cheers.

Woops maybe I should have braced it a bit better!

Just joking it was actually reasonably stable when I was putting the roof on. I think the braces were a good idea as it is 2.8m high and only 1/2 can be braced with out the braces getting in the way the weatherboards may have loosend over time.
Thanks for the input everyone, as Graeme said the extra cost of bracing is not much. Well it was more than 50% of the cost of the structure if you don't count time. Just now my wife is telling me to buy some new colourbond to match the house and the shed. I did rip most of the rusty bits off the second hand sheets (a technique I learnt off this site thankyou who ever posted).
As lenco said the cost of the timber would be high just the 4 corner posts 100x100 @3m would have cost a bit; I would have sold them for ~$25 each but in Bunnings?
I was thinking of dressing the weatherboards but I'm glad I didn't the roughsawn look is good. It's all Cupressus macrocarpa (Monterey cypress) 2 small logs except for the metal bits. The floor is grooved and grooved flooring with cyperss tongues (easier to make and you get better cover). Still needs a door and a ladder. Mainly built it to get my older boys away from their computers, worked for a little while. Anyone know a better method?

Ha ha ha, I'm not suggesting you stick those 4X4's in 2 foot of concrete.- I just re-read the replies you had and I think several of us had different ideas as to what the cubbyhouse looked like.I imagined the floor being a metre or so off the ground with kiddies playing underneath it in the sand. Hey, 3 metres high,-you're not playing around then,- when the kids fly the coop you could rent it out as a granny flat. As for the kids and computors, leave that to nature. Your 14 year old lad will discover girls and then chain saws, timber and working with dad wont be his priority,ha ha ha.- Yeah, 39 degrees today,-I used to work outside as a chippy in this sort of weather, but no more. Cheers Lenco.

It will be a lot more stable if you put diagonal braces on the joists inside the cubby, run them from corner to corner. Be sure to check the frame is square before fastening them, preferably with a large framing square.

Hi,Keith, maybe it's the heat (39) or maybe I'm just being cantankerous but I don't reckon bracing the floor would make much difference,- mainly because Glen is using t & g flooring and when that's fixed down it ain't gonna go out of square.I reckon he's more concerned with it "swaying" because the floor is up in the air sitting on 4 posts. I know this has nothing to do with timber but I'm just about to try and make up a fitting that will go in my drill to wind up the back jacks on my caravan,- it's a real pain when they seize up and you gotta break your back trying to turn them. I know CRC works ,- but only for a while.. Cheers.