With this in mind Grant and Dai visited Castle Ring Oak Frame where they were impressed with the vaulted ceilings on show in our home. Various design options were discussed, with Grant eventually coming down in favour of 3 feature trusses with a hipped roof and dragon ties. Common rafters with painted softwood sarking and external insulation would maximise the feeling of space and expose the dramatic roof structure from below.

A careful site survey was necessary to tie the new frame to the existing house, and the oak frame had to be designed to partially sit on a steel girder over the bifolding doors whilst allowing sufficient headroom. These problems were soon overcome and work could begin on the frame allowing Dai to do his bit and prepare the blockwork.

The frame was mocked up in the workshop to ensure no nasty surprises on site and within 3 weeks was ready for transportation into the Welsh hills. The frame went up like a dream with the help of Grant’s brother operating the telehandler, and I think we even managed to impress Dai! He just couldn’t believe how quickly and accurately it all went together.

Dai continued with the build and took it to completion. Take a look at the results.

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Local architect Dean Benbow came up with a contemporary design featuring lots of natural light and creative use of space. Introduced to Rob at Castle Ring Oak Frame by a mutual friend while researching various build options, Jamie and Kate were soon persuaded that the drama and character of an oak frame would best suit their aspirations.

During the design phase, Jamie and Kate toyed with the idea of exposing oak joists and rafters, but in the end decided that space was limited and that too much oak might feel oppressive. A 3D model showing both options helped them come to this decision.

Despite being a small extension, there were tricky problems to overcome as the frame needed to tie into the existing cottage and sit on 3 different levels and slot in between existing walls on 3 sides!

Usually a frame is quite flexible when being assembled and can be pulled apart to insert tenons into mortices. In this case however we would have been well and truly stymied if we hadn’t designed the floor beams to “drop in” from above with giant dovetail joints, lubricated with candle wax.

Everyone’s relief was palpable as the frame quickly took shape and sat comfortably and accurately on the various levels, and in the late afternoon sun we were able to sit back and enjoy a cold beer with Jamie and Kate whilst contemplating a good days work.

See what they thought: Jamie and Kate’s testimonial

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Timber framing is heavy work and most timber framers end up a lot shorter than when they started so one of the main requirements was to design it with the capacity to support a lifting gantry. To keep costs down and to support out local forestry economy we also decided to use douglas fir grown over the hill in the Teme valley.

With a maximum safe working load of 500kg and a clear span of 9m, the frame needed to be carefully engineered to support itself and the additional loading of the gantry. King post trusses with metal straps and huge curved braces were deemed the best way forward.

An articulated lorry load of logs were duly felled and delivered to Castle Ring where Paul Bufton and his mobile Serra Sawmill made short work of them providing both the structural timbers and all of the cladding. 4 weeks later the groundworks had been completed and the frame was ready to assemble. Craftily I decided to combine the raising with my birthday so that I could turn the whole thing into an event – I think everyone realised it was free labour dressed up as a party, but friends and family dutifully turned up anyway.

A crowd of willing volunteers began with the sole plates at 11 am and by 5 pm the roof purlins were on ( in the dark!) and we were back in the warm and dry where we enjoyed a birthday feast and the shared satisfaction of a brilliant day. Most people even said they would do it again.

After the speed and elation of a successful raising it is sometimes hard to maintain the momentum required to bring a building to completion. The workshop was no exception and in fact it took nearly a year to get to grips with the studding, insulation, cladding, roofing, electrics and all the other important building bits that turn a frame into a functioning finished space. We recently installed solar PV panels which means we should be able to produce about 3300kw of electricity per year.

The gantry works a treat,  there is abundant natural light and dare I say it, working in such a space is a real pleasure.

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An experienced structural engineer with a burgeoning interest in oak frames, Donald set about designing a modern timber framed extension that would complement the character of the old stone cottage and give them all enough room to live in.  Through a combination of tenacity and skilful negotiation, Donald was able to persuade the planners to double the original footprint of the cottage rather than the standard 50% imposed on most extensions. This turned out to be a victory for common sense when starting from such a small base.

Donald’s design featured clever use of space and a glazed oak link from one building to the other. The one and a half storey extension features interrupted tie beam trusses to allow passage between bays on the upper storey. The resultant wedged dovetail joints provide an attractive finished carpentry detail although their main job is to stop the roof from spreading! As the frame dries out over time, these wedges will need to be tapped in to keep the joint tight.

Donald’s attention to detail is legendary and the completion of groundworks synchronised perfectly with the projected raising date and to top it off little Stanley was born in time to take it all in.

Friends and family were recruited to help with the raising and so on a beautiful summer’s day, the frame went up without a hitch and Donald and Sarah were finally able to stand back and admire what they had been planning for so long.

In true self-build spirit Donald has been juggling the rest of the build with his day job and anticipates moving in at Easter (at least that’s what Sarah thinks……….)

See what they thought: Donald and Sarah’s testimonial

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Up for a challenge and with some careful workshop juggling we had the first cross frame laid up and fully assembled on trestles within a week. Richard’s face was a picture when he came to inspect progress, in fact it was a while before he could get his mouth to work. Framing continued apace and we hit our target date for the raising.

Richard’s extension is a half-timbered panel construction, a requirement of the planners in this case, to blend in with neighbouring properties. Special detailing must take place at design and manufacturing stages to enable the panels to be fitted within the oak in such a way to both insulate and maintain weather proofing as the oak shrinks. Consequently the raising generally proceeds at a slower pace to allow for the fitting of lead sills and expanding weatherproof foam tapes between joints.

That said, we still managed to top out the frame within a day, much to Richard’s relief and the delight of his wife Cezz and toddler Max.

Richard was then able to proceed at his own pace with the build, constructing and fitting the infill panels, and closing in the roof with softwood rafters. It is a testament to his skill and dedication as a self builder that he has produced a beautifully finished and detailed extension on an extremely tight budget.

See what they thought: Cezz and Richard Williams’ testimonial

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Planning permission had already been secured and so we designed a hybrid structural timber frame combining oak and locally grown douglas fir. The posts, wall plates, sole plates and tie beams are all in oak, with douglas fir making up the studs, queen post roof trusses and purlins. At Castle Ring we like to joint and peg all of the studs into the main structure – it looks and feels good!

Combining oak and douglas fir in this way can offer considerable cost savings.

Richie and Tricia run a busy and successful roof sheeting business locally, and asked us to supply and fit the douglas fir weatherboarding but to leave the roof to them. They employed a local groundworks team to prepare the footings and stone walling ready for the timber frame which sits on 3 different levels.

Richie and Tricia were busy in the office on raising day and missed the whole thing! It must have been a shock to come home in the evening and find the frame up and finished.

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Having initially explored the possibility of a modern conservatory, Mark and Rita happened upon Castle Ring Oak Frame putting up a frame just down the road and couldn’t help stopping for a look. They must have liked what they saw as within a few weeks they had commissioned an oak framed sunroom with a slated monopitch roof.

A local builder was employed to remove the old lean to and to prepare the existing stone dwarf wall in readiness for the oak frame. Naturally nothing was level or plumb being an old building and so a careful site survey was essential prior to drawing up the frame. Two gable trusses would have been sufficient, but a third central truss with wind bracing was decided upon for added interest and to reduce the need for a heavy purlin. Rita and Mark were closely involved in the design process and had the final say in some of the design decisions.

The oak was ordered and within a few weeks work could begin in the workshop. 3 weeks later the frame was delivered ready for raising. An awkward site meant the timbers had to be man-handled from the trailer and up some steps, but a dry day ensured a trouble free raising with the last rafters fitted in fading light!

Mark unfortunately missed the raising due to work commitments but Rita was on hand to keep the team going with cups of tea.

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Frustrated at some of the larger timber frame companies’ inability to take into consideration their own design ideas, and frightened off by their quotes, they contacted Rob at Castle Ring Oak Frame for help.

Andrew had already obtained planning permission and had a very clear picture of layout and feel – all he wanted was someone to work it up into a practical frame that  would compliment the design. Working abroad at the time was no real impediment and within a few weeks a suitable frame was agreed upon.

The completion of the workshop carpentry and the raising of the frame had to be carefully coordinated to coincide with Andrew’s next break back in the UK. 2 weeks was the only available window in which groundworks had to be started and finished, and the frame raised before Andrew’s flight back to Saudi. It was a family effort as Andrew press ganged his wife Janet and 2 boys into action with picks and shovels – needless to say the deadline was met and the frame went up without a hitch (on freshly laid brickwork……)

Andrew then continued to manage the rest of the build “remotely” leaving Janet to stoically attach the weather boarding single handed!

See what they thought: Janet and Andrew’s testimonial

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Quotes from restoration firms were beyond the budget constraints and so Nigel was not optimistic when word of mouth led him to approach us at Castle Ring Oak Frame. An initial assessment of the granary didn’t put us off and we came up with a proposal to replace the whole of the gable and wall frame in one go! Nigel liked our practical hands on attitude along with our quotation, and contracted us to carry out a survey and for the replacement timber frame.

While the carpentry was being carried out at Castle Ring, Nigel came into his own removing 2 sides of the building with a sledge hammer and propping up the unsupported roof with temporary acroprops. How he did it we don’t know, but somehow he lived to tell the tale.

On raising day, once again we were blessed with good weather and the difficult work began to assemble the frames whole, and then jack them up to connect to the existing structure. Careful preparation and surveying meant that everything fitted perfectly and that costly additional site work was avoided – in fact the raising crew had packed up and left by 4 o’clock.

Special mention must be made of the home cured bacon and fried potato lunch prepared for us by Nigel! Please could we have this every time we put up a frame?

See what he thought: Nigel’s testimonial

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