routing in situ

**ChrisH** · 7th April 2004, 12:57 AM

I am building a mudbrick house with post/beam frame. The windows use load bearing mullions at the sides which are in place already, now I need to fit sills. I want to cut a housing ( or is it a trench?) in the mullion and slot the sill into it so that the cut edges of the sill aren't seen.

I would appreciate some guidance in how best to cut the housings. I could use a circular saw and do multiple cuts, or I could use a router. As the mullions are already in place, I will have to hold the saw or router against the vertical face of the mullion and cut the housing horizontally across the mullion. As the mud walls are almost to sill height, whatever machine I use, I need to cut to within about 60mm of the top of the existing mud wall, so the cutting edge of the router or saw needs to be close to the guide. On my Hitachi 7" saw the blade is quite close to the edge of the base plate so that is OK, but I would have to hold the saw with the motor upwards which I think would be rather awkward. I am leaning towards getting a new router, as my current one is an ancient fixed base one permanently mounted into a router table. I was leaning towards one of the tiny ones, like the 850w Ozito or the equivalent Arlec, as they look like they would be easier to handle in such an awkward position than one of the larger, heavier, more powerful units. As the timber is cypress macrocarpa which is very prone to tearing and chipping when machined, I would have to take several light passes anyway, so the small motor shouldn't be such a problem. That's my logic anyway.
I'd appreciate any feedback or suggestions.

Chris

**silentC** · 7th April 2004, 09:40 AM

Chris,

Have you thought about using a handsaw and a chisel? If you have or can get hold of a rabbet plane that would help too.

I'm sure you could set up some kind of jig to use with a router if you can find one that is < 60mm from base to bit. You'd probably need a right and a left (you are putting a fall on the sill, I presume?).

**journeyman Mick** · 7th April 2004, 02:32 PM

Chris,
it may be too late but.... usual practice is for the jambs (jambs (French for legs) hold up window or door frames either side, mullions divide openings) to sit on top of the sill. The jambs (and mullions if you are fitting them as well) are coped to the sill profile so that any water will run off the sill. If you rebate the jambs to sit the sill in it you will create a bit of a water trap with possible future rot problems. If you haven't already put the lintel and bricks in place above the opening and it is still possible to remove the jambs I would strongly reccomend removing them and fitting the sill first. This will have the added advantage of spreading the load of the jambs.

Mick

**silentC** · 7th April 2004, 03:27 PM

I think the problem in this particular case is that the jambs are actually structural members. It's a post and beam muddy so the frame has been constructed, the roof put on and then the walls filled in with mud bricks. Chris now wants to create windows by installing sills between two posts and presumably fitting some glazing joinery to them - or maybe he has rebated the posts - not sure. The usual approach there is to build a window that fits into the opening and fix it to the posts.

Either way, he can't pull them out now, so he either has to do what he proposes, or construct a window that will fit the opening and install it in the usual way. That's probably the best approach for all the reasons you mention but it may not be the look he is after. One thing that may be in his favour is that muddies tend to have deep eaves all the way around to keep the weather off the bricks.

Over to you Chris....

**ChrisH** · 7th April 2004, 11:06 PM

Thanks folks.

I had been thinking of making separate windows and putting them in between the posts (which the architect called "load bearing mullions") so I guess that's what I will do.

Chris.

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