Bann Nah 34 - Stringers & Tred
Building stairs from scratch is not easy, especially if you’re using wood you’ve harvested, along with other milled wood – and all of it hard.
I had been correct about expecting a long work stoppage after Ohpensa. It turned out to be the second longest in the year and a half that we’ve been building: two months.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/03/243.jpg
When Lott and Naht came back briefly around Christmas time, they resumed work on the stairs pad and began shaping the main support beams (stringers) and steps (treds). The stringers are made of teak (mae sot) and the steps are made of mae doo – both woods we cut from our farms.
https://youtu.be/616NTeAKJgA
(Steps [tred] Trimming)
https://youtu.be/k2dzuumPx-o
(Steps [tred] Ironing)
Mae sot is a protected wood in Thailand, so in order to cut it – even if you own the trees – you have to get permission from the government. Even when you get the go-ahead, you are limited to the amount you can cut in a given time. All the main support posts and the stairs stringers are teak from eleven of our trees. Other teak, for the walls, ceilings and railings, were purchased. We just couldn’t cut enough of our own wood to cover all our needs.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/03/244.jpg
(Mae Doo tred in-process)
[originally posted at http://http://the-isaan.blogspot.com/]
Bann Nah 36 - Trim, Railings and Balluster
While I was away visiting family and friends in the USA, our workers finished up the one remaining inside wall of “yellow wood” and did the trim work for the entire inside.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/439.jpg
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/440.jpg
When I returned to Thailand, Sam Lott and Sam Naht had completed all the inside work and had moved on to working on the porch handrails and balluster, which, like the stairs, were partly designed by our head monk, Lungpaw Boon Long.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/441.jpg
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/442.jpg
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/443.jpg
One problem that they had encountered was that the mae sot (teak) originally bought for the balluster had split badly when it dried. I suspect the wood pile should have been placed in more shade, but what was done was done.
Once the porch railings and balluster went in, the beauty of the porch was even more enhanced. Not only that, but the railings were super strong. Combined with the inside trim work, Bann Nah was really shaping up and I could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel for Phase One (the main house) construction.
https://teakdoor.com/images/imported/2016/06/444.jpg
[Originally posted at: THE ISAAN]