04-01-2008, 05:47 PM
Aloha Adias,
There is more than one way to build a single wall structure. Plantation houses used about three basic framing methods usually with several decades for each style depending on what materials were available. I have heard there is a fellow up in Waimea who is writing a book on the different construction methods, but I don't know if he ever finished it or published it.
One of the earliest methods of single wall construction on the island of Hawaii uses vertical board and batten construction. On the older examples, the vertical boards were twelve inches wide and one inch thick by about ten feet long. These houses were referred to as "twelve by ones" because of the size of the siding. The 4" x 4" posts were set on big sturdy rocks, no termite pans, braced with 2" x 4"s and the floor framing could be any size depending on how far the posts were spaced apart and how big the floor beams were. Sometimes they used 2" x 4" floor joists. The flooring was usually 1" thick planks from 6" to 12" wide. The nicer houses had T & G planks the rougher houses just had planks. The vertical wall siding was 1" x 12" planks at least ten feet long face nailed to the double end and rim floor joists. There was a belly band which was usually a 2" x 3". On the older examples, the belly band was just on the inside, then it was on the outside, sometimes inside and outside and in later examples there were two exterior belly bands. The belly bands are to keep the siding boards in line with each other. There are also small battens between each vertical siding board on the inside and the outside to cover the gaps. There is a sill plate up at the top of the siding which the roof trusses rest on and the ceiling is hung from the bottom of the roof trusses. Those trusses were frequently made of 2" x 4"s and spaced at 4' o.c. with 2" x 3" battens spaced at 24" apart. Tim metal roofing on top and you've got a house. The plumbing is either under the house or runs along the outside. This method of construction would have been used from approximately 1880 to 1920. After the wide boards became harder to find they started using narrower vertical boards and then went to horizontal T & G siding with the post and beam support structure to hang it on.
If the walls are made of 2" thick material instead of the 1" thick which was common on the early examples a modern single wall house can be constructed which will be quieter than many folks may have previously experienced. Placement on lot, design of living spaces and landscaping can also be used to provide a quiet house.
There's a housewarming for a single wall house which I drew the plans for last year coming up on the twentieth of this month. I'll keep in mind the concerns expressed here and see how they match a newly constructed single wall house.
There is more than one way to build a single wall structure. Plantation houses used about three basic framing methods usually with several decades for each style depending on what materials were available. I have heard there is a fellow up in Waimea who is writing a book on the different construction methods, but I don't know if he ever finished it or published it.
One of the earliest methods of single wall construction on the island of Hawaii uses vertical board and batten construction. On the older examples, the vertical boards were twelve inches wide and one inch thick by about ten feet long. These houses were referred to as "twelve by ones" because of the size of the siding. The 4" x 4" posts were set on big sturdy rocks, no termite pans, braced with 2" x 4"s and the floor framing could be any size depending on how far the posts were spaced apart and how big the floor beams were. Sometimes they used 2" x 4" floor joists. The flooring was usually 1" thick planks from 6" to 12" wide. The nicer houses had T & G planks the rougher houses just had planks. The vertical wall siding was 1" x 12" planks at least ten feet long face nailed to the double end and rim floor joists. There was a belly band which was usually a 2" x 3". On the older examples, the belly band was just on the inside, then it was on the outside, sometimes inside and outside and in later examples there were two exterior belly bands. The belly bands are to keep the siding boards in line with each other. There are also small battens between each vertical siding board on the inside and the outside to cover the gaps. There is a sill plate up at the top of the siding which the roof trusses rest on and the ceiling is hung from the bottom of the roof trusses. Those trusses were frequently made of 2" x 4"s and spaced at 4' o.c. with 2" x 3" battens spaced at 24" apart. Tim metal roofing on top and you've got a house. The plumbing is either under the house or runs along the outside. This method of construction would have been used from approximately 1880 to 1920. After the wide boards became harder to find they started using narrower vertical boards and then went to horizontal T & G siding with the post and beam support structure to hang it on.
If the walls are made of 2" thick material instead of the 1" thick which was common on the early examples a modern single wall house can be constructed which will be quieter than many folks may have previously experienced. Placement on lot, design of living spaces and landscaping can also be used to provide a quiet house.
There's a housewarming for a single wall house which I drew the plans for last year coming up on the twentieth of this month. I'll keep in mind the concerns expressed here and see how they match a newly constructed single wall house.
Kurt Wilson