Maybe this is the right time to explain why our log store looks the way it does. Timber frame purists will have seen - and perhaps objected to - the mixed construction of the building.
Problem was that the log store will eventually be equipped with a bridge crane, to lift packs of logs weighing up to 1½ tonnes. That means the construction will have to be extremely stiff: we don't want heavy weights swaying about transferring any of that sway to the building.
Also, local building control rules require that walls within a certain distance from the property boundary be fire retardant. Therefore the back wall of the store had to be built in concrete block, with extremely heavy reinforced concrete pillars and truly awesome footings. The four pillars plus footings took over 14 tonnes of RC-35 concrete!
To us this still feels like structural engineering overkill, but the good thing is that the building is absolutely stiff, so we could dispense with braces over its width. That also makes it easier to put the bridge crane in.
This photo shows an earlier stage of building. Note the very big square footings for the pillars. These go more than 4 ft down! Big heavy gauge L-shaped rebar pieces anchor the ladder-like reinforcement for the pillars deep into the footings. The hollow columns were later filled with concrete.
The middle of November: roof sheets are on. Ridge and barge flashings still need to be fitted.
By the middle of December we had the whole roof on, including the ridge flashings. The front fascia board is on, as is most of the cladding on the inside wall separating the log store and boiler room. The ridge is lifted approximately 2½ inches up from the sheets to create a ventilation slot, by mounting the ridge flashing on tubes, resting on the crests of the corrugated sheets.
