Things built, torn down and other projects.(Pictures)

[buckfama]

I go Wednesday to look.
If I think they might be worth it I'll get pics

Look for insect damage too.. or take some close up pics. Little bb holes.. like they were shot with a shotgun. Those are powder post beetles and they will flat ruin a barn. Outside of the board looks ok except for these tiny little holes.. inside is mostly powder lol

 

[Tin Man]

Powder post beetles... Devil's minions... Blame Saban.

 

[buckfama]

Saban had lost control of powder post beetles.

 

[buckfama]

Headed back from Florida. Successful trip. Got price that was promised and got to know my customer and his needs a little better. Talked about buildings and what I have coming up. He had been using more than 1 person to supply his needs and hopes to find 1 vendor (me) and grow a good relationship. Looks promising.

 

[buckfama]

Here are a few pics from my next project. Same property. Looks to be 100% oak. Can't wait to start.

 

[Behr]

Not sure I completely understand this.

Like this job you just posted a pic of. Does the owner pay you to remove the building and then you sell the wood?

 

[buckfama]

Not sure I completely understand this.

Like this job you just posted a pic of. Does the owner pay you to remove the building and then you sell the wood?

Most are given to me and I remove it and clean up to their satisfaction.

It's like someone giving thousands of dollars.. you just have to get it. I have to make sure there is enough money in the building to make it worthwhile.

 

[vol_in_ar]

BF

great posts...very interesting

 

[buckfama]

To examine it a little deeper I'll use the Sweetwater barn for an example. It was close.enough to his house that his insurance company would not cover his other property if it damaged it. He had a construction company price removing it.. they quoted him a price of over $5000.

I came looked at it.. saw there was enough good there for me to take down, and I made close to that for about 9 days work.

He was thrilled because it didn't cost him a dime and the barn was gone.

A lot of the folks I work for can't afford $5000 to have a building removed. And a lot of the time the building is a danger to livestock or people.so it's needs to go. Or they are going to build a new building and can't afford to pay to have it removed and build the new one.

Some want to sell to make money. A lot have an inflated opinion on what it's worth. I will pay up to 10% of what I think I will make. I will even go through and measure it out and tell them what I think I will make. I won't work as hard as I do for less. I have done a percentage basis before. They get X percentage after I sell everything.

But again.. I rarely buy any. 99% are given to me. It has to be pretty nice before I will buy one.

 

[buckfama]

And deconstructing is different than building.

It's pretty dangerous. You're already dealing with a structure that is deteriorating. Every board you remove could cause collapse. You have look it over thoroughly and be aware of where it is weak and what is holding it up right. Knowing building construction is vital. Remove one wrong board or support at the wrong time and you could find yourself trapped or worse.

I have had building that the termites had ate the wall studs and braces and the only thing holding up the roof and supporting the building were the 1x boards on the sides. If I hadn't checked and started removing them first like I normally do it could have been bad.

It boils down to a little knowledge, a little science, intuition, and listening to the building as you take it down. Pay attention to gaps in joints. Are they growing? What happen when I did this? Situational awareness.

Most are pretty straight forward and I have steps I take in order as I take them down. Others will challenge you, like this general store. This was a very dangerous building for 2 reasons.

1. It was a balloon frame construction.
2. Termites had damaged a lot of key support areas.

This building WANTED to fall. I had to remove enough wood before hand so it all wasn't damaged. You work to a point to where you walk away and say enough, time to put it on the ground. Whatever gets damaged is just loss. Can't let greed overrule safety. Listen to your instincts. "Listen" to the building. I know that sounds crazy but it's true.

Edit - I would actually sit far an hour or two and study this building. What what weak, what I thought was holding it in place. I would remove something and go check other areas of the building and see if I had movement in the joints, or more lean. I would have points marked and checked for movement of vertical walls. And when by myself I don't have a spotter to watch for movement or shifts. When my gf is with me I use her for that a lot but now she is home with the baby so that's out. I have asked landowners to come and witness certain operations in case things go bad so I would have someone there that could call for help.

Made it back from Florida this evening so back at it in the morning.

 

[Tin Man]

Buckfama, do you salvage hardware, et al? Is there a market for it?

 

[buckfama]

Buckfama, do you salvage hardware, et al? Is there a market for it?

I don't get much hardware other than hinges and latches on barn door. There is interest in hand forged stuff. Knobs and ornate hinges like I posted the pic of are pretty rare for me. If I think I can sell it.. I will salvage it. I waste very little.

 

[vol_in_ar]

Could you deconstruct an Ex-wife's house😂😂😂

 

[Orangeslice13]

Could you deconstruct an Ex-wife's house😂😂😂

That's more in my area.
He takes things apart with care and minimal damage. I use a bulldozer

 

[buckfama]

Could you deconstruct an Ex-wife's house😂😂😂

Get in line.. thought about surprising mine a time or 2 lol.

 

[Orangeslice13]

Roof going on at the new construction.
(It's a hidden fasteners roof so we are doing it instead of subbing it out.)

 

[Orangeslice13]

2

 

[buckfama]

So it's a tin roof but screws are hidden? How does that work? Never heard of that before. Everything I deal with is old school lol

 

[Orangeslice13]

So it's a tin roof but screws are hidden? How does that work? Never heard of that before. Everything I deal with is old school lol

Screws run up the track side and the next panel snaps over with a dead blow hammer.

 

[Orangeslice13]

It's a residential version of standing seam.

 

[buckfama]

Gotcha..

 

[buckfama]

Today was more burning and saving the good 2x and 1x stuff that is left. Productive but boring day for me. Glad to be back at it after my Florida trip.

 

[joevol33]

You guys are inspiring. I suck at carpenter work.

 

[vol_in_ar]

You guys are inspiring. I suck at carpenter work.

ditto that

 

[buckfama]

Building furniture out of barnwood is how I got started in this business.