September 12 - Fussin' with Trusses

Positioning and 
Adjusting Trusses

Sixty foot trusses are big and heavy. When the weight is being borne by a crane, they can be easily pushed into place by hand. Before they are nailed down it is still possible to move one with a sledge hammer. In this picture, Nate is either catching a quick snooze or eyeballing down the trusses to check alignment.

It must be the latter since when he jumped up he pointed and the truss was shifted a little 'that way'. Being still cabled to the crane, it was an easy move.

Once the truss is nailed down and the crane has gone home, the job gets a little more complicated. Andy, Tim and Sam team up to adjust the location of the four ply truss.
Now three-quarters of an inch on a building this size does not seem like a big deal to me, but to other folks it is important enough to fuss over. So, first take the nails out from the base on both ends. Then use the tines of the forklift to nudge it a little. Oops. too much. Attach the tow strap and pull it back a smidge. Ah! Just right!


















Then on the inside. let's move the wall and its anchored post just a bit. Push on the top of the wall a little with the lift. Then get the big machine involved to position it correctly.




Now that we have the big forklift here, let's take the weight off the post so we can move the bottom where it needs to go.

Loosen all the hardware and shove the post temporarily on to a block. Get the hardware out of the way, locate a new hole placement for the anchoring bolt, and drill. Re-position the post, lower the forklift tines and put the load back on to the post. And just like that, an adjusted truss without the misalignment.









I still think it would have been easier to do when the crane had it up in the first place, but then again, that may be why I am the chronicler and not the builder. I lack the gift of foresight but abound with smart-aleck hindsight.















About the Posts - 




















The eight posts that carry the weight of the entire center section of the trusses and roof are made up of laminated toothpicks.



The technological changes in building materials over my short lifetime have been phenomenal. We see historical pictures of huge western redwoods, cedars and fir trees being cut to provide building materials for a rapidly growing nation as the population surged westward. Trees cut with the mind of them being a limitless resource. Now, through technical advances, heavy load-carrying posts are glued up from pieces that would have been burned in the woods without making it to the sawmill. Amazing.

  

The posts must be secured to the concrete slabs that were poured. These slabs provide a solid footing for the post but also add weight to keep the roof from being blown off. While gravity keeps the posts in one place, two size pretty-big through bolts are needed to keep the posts from unexpected leaping off the slab.

Ben drills holes from both sides, first with a smaller bit to provide pilot holes, then with a big auger so the bolts can be pushed through and secured with nuts on each side of the bracket. I admire Ben's persistence in sticking with this boring job.

















The Ironworker in Training - 
Brian mentioned when he was hauling rebar for the concrete footings that he wanted to add ironworker to his resume. He appears to be continuing this pursuit. Here we see him mastering the art of looking relaxed while sitting on a beam.

Admittedly, a wood beam at twelve feet off the ground with a solid foot rest does not yet show mastery, but one has to start somewhere.












I add the photo below as inspiration for Brian to continue the pursuit of his dream.

September 10 - Finishing the Last Large Trusses and Starting the Piggybacks

The Last Large Trusses - 

I arrived Saturday morning after the trusses were already installed over the entryway, but in time to see the first sanctuary truss laid into place. There is a wide gap between the trusses in the entryway and those in the sanctuary. The firewall must go from the floor continuously to the roof decking, so this gap must exist to accommodate the firewall.

This picture shows the gap as it remains after all the sanctuary trusses are in place. All of the sanctuary trusses are two ply laminates except for the first on to the right of the gap which is a four ply job.









Installing that first, four ply truss, provided a lot of interest. It happened that the from where truck was placed, the boom on the crane was a wee bit too short to carry the truss exactly over its final resting place. Of course this is not known until the truss is being lowered into place, and was not known when this photo was snapped.

The undaunted trussers quickly worked out a winning strategy. The right end of the truss as we see it here, was swung in close to Sam and Brent. They quickly manufactured some long 2x4s and secured that end of the truss. Lars was similarly able to secure the center. 













Pushing outward caused the left end of the truss to swing in.

















Once in close, the left end gang was able to get their bracing boards nailed in. With the truss now controlled along the full length they guided it home.

The scene then rather resembled a group of fishermen standing on the pier, holding their rods while waiting for the fish to strike.

I understand that the truss weighed about 2,500 lbs. I thought this might be the heaviest one, but it seems that the girder from the previous Saturday weighed in at 4,800 lbs. 

With the truss secured, Lars builds a sidewalk out to the member and starts to establish residency. Now that he has a four ply truss and a 2x10 plank he can get downright casual up there.

Mark is delivering bracing boards with the lift.

Contortionists on Site - 

There are often interesting things to see on the construction site. Saturday Nate and Brent were both exploring new yoga positions, although I suspect neither of them found these in the yoga book. 

I am not sure what Nate was up to here. Maybe there was a dime wedged up in the trusses. More likely he was sighting down the truss for probably a very good reason. 

Maybe he saw Brent at the other end, who was either meditating a bit in this oddball position or maybe trying to find the least likely, and least promising position from which to drive a nail. By the look on his face, I don't think he was relaxing.

The Airborne Chronicler - 

Mark offered to take me up in the flying quidditch machine. While my normal preference is to be firmly planted on mother earth, thinking about taking photos from on high made me as excited as dog in a butcher shop. 

Here we are up close and personal with Lars as he secures a truss to a brace. I approve of the hammer technique.

Sam, Bob and Brent wait in turn to add their braces.

In addition to being a defender against the possibility of a truss tipping away from the truss walkers, Mark nails in bracing on the lower chord of the truss.

The ground forces as viewed from above. The next truss up must be secured to the cable. The truss on the top of the stack is slid a bit to allow the cable to be looped through the openings under the topmost chord of the truss. To assure that the cable does not slip off the hooks, the two cable threaders then keep some tension on the cable until all the weight of the truss is borne by the crane. Then the truss flies up, up and away.

Intense activity follows the trusses. While the ground crew is looping up the truss and it is floating up to the building, the airborne folks get a breather. Once the truss is landed the truss walkers get very busy positioning braces and pounding away.

Here we see the next truss winging its way in our direction. Up in the lift bucket there is not a lot of room to maneuver. A passenger is at the mercy of the operator to stay clear of high flying trusses.

"Mark! There really is not adequate space in this lift basket for the truss. We just don't have enough room for it. Now get it out of here."

Long 2x4s that span several trusses run (on the far left of side of the trusses) the full length of the building. The joints overlap a couple of trusses as can be seen in the center of the trusses. The short, temporary braces are removed. These long bracing strips are placed two feet apart all across the width of the top chord of the truss. These are called rat runs. While I might be tolerant of an innocent church mouse, deliberately building in rat runs is appalling. 

Trimming a Truss -

What do you do when the truss is too long for the place reserved for it? You cut it off, naturally.

Sam and Brent team up to shorten the truss by, oh about five eighths of an inch. It seems to me like having paid for the whole thing we should use it. But the boss thinks otherwise so shorter it goes. I suppose it does have to fit in its appointed spot. Not very easy to nudge the wall out a bit at this point.

Bring on the Piggybacks -

The first piggyback truss gets attached to the gable end. The truss is first nailed to the vertical bracing on the outside of the building.

The last act for the crane before it departed, was to position the piggyback trusses on top of the large trusses. 

The piggybacks are nailed to the rat runs and braces are nailed to adjoining trusses. Sam and an unidentified person are intruding on the rat runs. I trust that the rats have not yet moved in. I am once again disappointed that no duct tape is used. 

Once all the piggybacks are nailed in the roof boards can be nailed on. The sheeting adds a good deal of stability to the truss structure. I think the bosses will also order up some more lateral bracing since there are still 2x4s remaining. 

September 8 - New things Going In, Old Things Coming Out

Out With Temporary Bracing and Scaffolding - 

This building project never ceases to amaze me. A great deal of effort goes into setting things up for a certain stage and when that stage is finished, the temporary thing that was done is then undone. When I commented to Nate that some things in construction have a very brief lifespan he replied, "Yeah, just like computers. After you have it for a week you find out you need a new one."

The scaffolding, so painstakingly erected for completing the walls, is no longer needed once the trusses are in place. So, everywhere the trusses go, the scaffolding must leave.












The external bracing used to anchor the large gable end truss is now passe and in the way. So, down it comes. The lumber is saved to be used in another place, perhaps in shorter pieces, perhaps at full length. There were many, many shorter pieces made that will be used for bracing when the next set of trusses goes up on Saturday, if the weather cooperates.

Oh yeah, and those outside truss braces that were so acrobatically nailed up last Saturday are now, not only obsoleted, but they are in the way and must be removed. They were attached with only one nail in each end so they can be quickly detached to make room for the sheeting that is being applied. Jonathan knocks out the brace and nails down the sheeting for the roof.

Troy, Nate and Jonathan position the sheeting and then nail it is place. I think the lines on the sheet goods are not to delineate the proper places for using color crayons, but rather for the nailing pattern. It is hoped that the lines are over the trusses so just nailing through the lines sticks the nail into the truss. I suspect if I were to try nailing the sheeting I could miss the truss with some regularity, but these carpenter fellows seem to hit the truss every time.



Painting Already?

When I first arrived on site this evening two things surprised me. Dave was sitting on a lumber pile reading directions that came with the paint. The first surprise was that he was reading the directions before even opening the paint. I always figured the directions were to help you get out of what was already messed up, but no, Dave was reading them first.

The other surprise is that he was painting at all. There are no exterior or interior final surfaces on the entire job. So what is there to paint? But, I guess if you are a painter, that is what you do. Paint. So paint the trusses if that is all there is to paint. But how does he know what color to paint them? This was all a big mystery to me.
Just like when I dealt with the man of science, Dave patiently explained to me what he was painting and why. He was applying an Intumescent Coating just like it shows in the picture below. So now you know also.

 Intumescent paint is a fire retardant. It has this characteristic that it expands when heated. Since the end of the girders adjoin the firewall, this kind of coating is required. In the event of a fire, the paint will expand to create an even tighter seal with the adjoining material, thus helping to keep the fire from spreading. Having added intumescent to my vocabulary, I can hardly wait to drop it into casual conversation at the next seniors gathering.

Water Again and Creativity -

There is sheeting covering some trusses but not nearly enough is covered to keep rain out of the building shell. So, inside there is a large puddle and one quicksand-like spot that claimed at least three victims. I think the damage was limited to muddy shoes. I don't think any shoes were lost in the mire.
The puddle offered the opportunity for reflection, this time it is Eric and his work.



It also offered an opportunity for creative kids activity.

Alex Loukusa jumps on a board that his sister Ashlyn had cocked into firing position. Using advanced knowledge of fulcrum and pivot point, Alex is able to generate a good size wave from the splash as the board hits the water. Maybe the next step is use as a diving board, but I did not see that.

I take my responsibility as a chronicler seriously. I report things I see and do my best to explain them in such a way that the average computer hack has a chance of understanding them. When I encounter something I don't understand, like intumenscent coating, I attempt to get an explanation and pass it along to the blog followers. When I come across something that totally defies understanding, I simply scratch my head. Pictured here are Brian and his son Bryce. Bryce is pounding nails in 2x4 chunks and Brian is pulling the nails out. Perhaps they think they were being paid by the hour.

Two Views as the Day Came to a Close - 

The trusses that are in place have a flat top. The triangle trusses in the foreground will somehow be stuck on top of them since the final roof in the plan does not have a flat top. Maybe duct tape will come into play yet.

As the sun sinks below the western horizon and the sandhill cranes wing their way to the refuge for the night, the roof people valiantly forge on with their task. It is too dark for the photographer to continue but roof people apparently do not need as much light as photographers. Perhaps they keep pounding nails until they can no longer see the black lines on the sheet goods.

September 3 - Again: Trussing Supplement

There were so many interesting things to see and fascinating sights to photograph that I can't resist posting more photos of the truss work. If you have already seen enough of wooden trusses, guys clambering around like monkeys and nails being driven, you might want to skip this one and wait for another post.
Machines - 
In addition to the abundance of volunteer labor on the project, a few machines are indispensable. The lift vehicles are operated from the bucket. With a clear path outside the building and the ability to jump to the top of the wall with the touch of the joystick, attaching the plate to the top of the wall becomes much easier than running up and down a ladder.

The mobile forklift makes easy work of moving size large and very heavy posts. By the way, did I mention that lifts can also be used for playing quidditch?

It is difficult to imagine doing this kind of truss construction without a crane to loft them into high places. I suppose it can be done. The great cathedrals of the middle ages were built without mobile cranes but they took a little longer to build - like tens or even hundreds of years longer. Personally, I don't want to wait that long for our church to be built, so I am in favor of using the cranes.



Lots of Jobs for Lots of Folks - 

Naturally, the workers gotta eat. Lunches and refreshments are as necessary as lumber and 

nails to get the project completed.

There is lumber to be moved ,,.

and nails to be removed.

Braces to be cut ...

and nails to be partially set.

Up in the Sky - 

Beam walker

Really good reception

Catching a truss

Fine tuning placement

Getting it straight

He went thataway!

Trimming the bracket

Guiding it home