Treehouses are fun, bonding activities you can do with your friends or family, and they can provide a unique and ideal place to hang out surrounded by mother nature. In my opinion, one of the biggest differences between treehouses and other on-ground add-ons you can build on your property is the fact that a treehouse sways, to varying degrees, depending on height and size. of the tree and branches, and thus can add a unique and relaxing feeling.

There are several prerequisites that must be met before this particular project is considered feasible for you. The first are also the most obvious:

1. Do you have a suitable tree on your property that you can build your treehouse on? This question may be ambiguous to some, since exactly what kind of tree is considered suitable? Well, this largely depends on the size of the structure in question, as well as the expected load: number of people, furniture, etc. The bigger the tree house, the bigger the tree should be.
2. How are you with the heights? Now is not a good time to fool yourself or anyone else if you have an abnormal fear of heights! We are all scared of heights to varying degrees, but if you don’t have the courage or ability to comfortably work at the height required, this project may not be for you. Of course, it can also be built relatively low to the ground and still be called a “tree house”, in which case, this may not apply.

Now that we have them out of the way, we can get into the other aspects of the build. When compared to a structure on the ground, a treehouse may seem like a simpler project due to the fact that some of us have grown up “throwing” small treehouses here and there. However, it’s important to remember that any halfway decent structure, whether on the ground or high up in a tree, requires careful planning and implementation of standard safety code.

Here are some other questions You should ask yourself before beginning the planning stage:

1. What will I use the treehouse for? Depending on your answer, you may want a roof and walls, or you may find it unnecessary. In any case, a railing and/or walls at least one meter high are recommended for safety.
2. How long do I want it to last? You may think the answer to this question is obvious, but you should understand that the lifespan of your treehouse depends largely on the materials you use and the quality and number of coats of your protective stain. Tree houses, by virtue of their definition, are found within and below the canopy of the tree in which they are built. Because of this, they are more susceptible to premature rot due to the prolonged shade and damp nature of their environment. Fallen leaves and branches scattered on the deck also serve as decay accelerators unless removed regularly.

Foundation and floor-form

One of the unique beauties of a treehouse is the fact that you can simply build around the various branches. leaving them exposed inside your treehouse, enhancing the “natural” atmosphere. Just like with an above ground structure, you need to start with building your foundation and floor. You may face complications with the shape of your floor due to the limitations of suitable branches to stand on.

Because of this, there is a chance that you may have to settle for a non-square shape. This may be what you want, or this may be a problem for you. In either case, you should understand that there are some limitations imposed by the particular tree you are working with. All the branches used for a foundation should be able to carry several hundred pounds, and more if you expect heavier traffic.

Density of the wood of the tree and quality of the fasteners

Large tree houses that weigh more than the collective weight of their occupants must be carefully designed, since several factors, such as the hardness of the tree and the quality and design of the fastener, come into play. The wood will compress where the fasteners connect to the tree to varying degrees depending on the hardness of the tree in question, causing the treehouse to sag.

Professional-Grade Treehouse Fasteners: Are They Necessary?

There are several tree house fasteners available on the market today made especially for your unique needs. However, the question invariably arises as to how necessary these custom studs and brackets are compared to the regular ones found at home centers due to their price. They often cost anywhere from one to several hundred dollars each!

The first thing to keep in mind when contemplating the pros and cons One of these rather expensive pieces of hardware is that trees are living organisms, and they are still growing, moving, and changing shape. Therefore, your treehouse and the hardware it is mounted on must accommodate this movement. Simply screwing the beams into the branches of the tree results in a fixed fixture that will force the tree to either pull the screw through the beam or try to grow around the beam.

The first of the two will result in a sudden and dangerous failure., while the latter will result in unhealthy and unnatural growth around the beam, potentially causing disease and decay. Custom studs and brackets are manufactured with the growth of the tree in mind, with a section of the stud that embeds deep into the heartwood of the tree and a large shank that allows axial movement along with a socket that clamps into the beam.

So to answer the question of whether these expensive custom parts are necessary, the short answer is yes and no. Yes, if you don’t have the know-how to find pieces that accomplish the same purpose as professional pieces, and no, if you do and you don’t require your tree house to last fifty years. Home centers sell bolts and hardware with large diameters and lengths that can be used, but the entire stem cannot be threaded.

The half or so that is embedded in the tree should be threaded, but the rest that acts as a cushion to offset the growth of the tree should be soft. You also need a female piece that fits around the smooth stem that has a bracket that can be bolted to the beam. This female support is then free to slide along the axis of the smooth shank of the bolt as the tree grows in circumference. All parts must also be stainless steel; others may corrode and fail.

Obviously, the big tree house building companies would disagree with the above opinion, and you should ideally buy these pieces. I only offer an alternative for those who do not have a big budget but still want to build a safe and environmentally friendly tree house. There’s also the chance that you won’t be able to find hardware that meets the criteria, leaving you with no other option.

The professional judgment when attaching the treehouse to the tree seems to be “hanger not pin”. I fully agree with this principle and any alternative I gave above should not contradict this. But not everyone looking to build a treehouse is willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars, so your budget is a major factor in determining the quality further what type you would build

In any case, it should be a safe and fun place to accommodate any activity you can imagine. Taking into consideration the damage inflicted on the tree as well as any future complications that may arise like the ones mentioned above when planning, you are simply the one responsible and consider the course of action.