Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1855-01-22
price Two cents.
GBe 51aiI1 Sp2.
MONDAY, JANUARY 20, 1855.
Cheap Building.

on the parties of the west where lumbes is
scarce, called ''balloon frames which is found
to be equally useful with the far more costly
style of building which prevails III this section
of the country, aud, in some respects to be even
preferable to it. At recent meeting of the
Farmers Club of the American Institute in
New York, Scion Robinson, Esq. gave a de-
tailed account of this mode, which, for the
benefit of those who are about to build, and
who find economy in material and labor an OBJ
ject, we copy from the report of the Ne0 York
Tribune, as follows:
/ ask the indulgence of the CLUB. while l
start balloon from the foundation, and fin.
ish it to the roof / would saw all my timber
for frame house or ordinary frame outbuild-
ing, OF the following dimensions Two inches
by eght two by four; two by one | have,
however, built them, when l lived on the
Grand Prairie of Indiana, many miles from
saw. mills, nearly all of split and hewed stuff,
making use of rails or round sticks, reduced
to straight lines aud even thickness on two
sides, Tor studs and rafters, But sawed stuff
is much the easiest, though ia a timber coun-
try the other is far the cheapest. First, level
your foundation, and lay down two OF the two
by-elght pieces, tatwise, tor sidewalks. Upon
these set the hoor-sleepers, on edge, 30 inches
apart. Fasten one at each end aud, perhaps,
one or two i'll the middle, if the building is
large, with wooden pin. These end-sleep.
ers are the end .sillg. Now lay the floor un-
less you design to have one that would be
likely to be injured by the weather before YOU
get the roof on. It's great saving, though,
OF labor, to begin at the bottom of house
and build up. IN laying the floor first, you
have no studs to cut and fit around, and can
let your boards run out over tie ends, just as
il happens, and afterwards saw them off smooth
blythe sill. Now set up corner post, which
is nothing but one of the two-by -four studs,
fastening the bottom by four nails make it
plum, and stay it each wa Set andther at
the other corner, aud then mark off your door
and window places, and set up the side-studs
and put in the frames. Fill up with studs
between, 16 inches apart, supporting the top
by a line or strip of board from corner to cor.
ner to corner, or stayed studs between. Now
cover that side with rough sheathing boards,
unless you intend to side up with the clap
boards on the studs, which Inever would do,
except for a small, common building. Make
no calculation about the toy OF your studs;
wait till you get up that high. You may use
them of any length, with broken or stub-shot
ends, no matter When you have got this
side boarded as high as you can reach, pro-
coed to set up another. In the meantime,
other workmen can be lathlng the first SIDE
When you have got the sides all up, fix upon
the height of your upper floor, and strike
line upon the studs fol the upper side OF the
joist Cut out joist fourinche wide half-inch
deep, and nall on firmly one of the inch strips
Upon these strips rest the chamber floor joist.
Cut out a joist, one inch deep i'll the lower
edge, and lock it on the strip, aud nail each
u. L n
on to build the upper story, as you did the
lower one, splicing on and lengthening out
studs wherever needed, until you get high
enough for the plate. Splice studs or joist BY
simply butting the ends together, and mailing
strips on each side. Strike line and of
the top of the studs even upon each sde--not
the ends-and nail on one Of the inch strips.
That is the plate Cut the ends of the upper
joist, to the bevel of the pitch Of the roof, and
nail them fast to the plate, placing the end
ones inside the studs, which you VIII let run
up promiscuously, to be cut off by the ralter.
Now lay the garnet floor by all means before
you put on the roof, and you will find that
you have saved fifty per cent, of hard labor.
The ratters, if supported as not to be over
ten feet long, will be strong enoug of the by
stuff Bowel the ends, aud nail fast to the
joist. Then there is no strain upon the sides
by the weight OF the roof which may be COW
cred with shingles or other materals--the
cheapest being composition or cement roofs
To make one OF this kind, take soft, spongy,
thick paper, and tack it upon the boards in
courses like shingles. Commence at the TOP
with hot tar and saturate the paper, upon
which sift evenly fine gravel pressing it in
while hot-that is, while tar and gaayel are
both hot, One coat will make a tight roof;
two coats will make it more durable Put up
you want to support the upper joist-then use
stuff by 4, with strips nailed on top, for the
ioist to rest upon, fastening altogether by
nails, wherever timbers touch. Thus you will
have frame without tenor or mortise, or
brace, and yet it is far cheaper, and iucalcula-
bly, stronger when finished, than though it
was composed of tinbers ten inches square,
with a thousand anger holes and hundred
days work with the chisel and adze, making
holes and pins to fill them.
10 lay out and frame building so that oil
its parts will come together, requires the skill
of master mechanic, and host Of men and
a deal of hard work to lift the great sticks of
timber into position. To erect balloon
building requires about as much mechanical
skill as it does to build board fence. Any
farmer who is handy with the saw, iron square
and hammer, with one of his boys or COM
mon laborer to assist him, can go tie work and
put up a frame for an out building and lin
ish it off with his own labor, just as well as
to hire a carpenter to score and hue great oak
sticks and fill them full of mortices, all by the
science of the square rule 1t is a waste
of labor that we should all lend our aid 20 put
a stop to. Besides, it will enable many far
mer to improve his place with new buildings,
who, though he has long needed them, has
shuddered at the thought OF cutting down
half the best trees in his wood-lot, and hen
giving half years work to hauling it home
and paying for what l do know is the wholly
useless labor Of framing. If it had not been
for the knowledge Of balloon frames, Chicago
and San Francisco could never have arisen, as
they did, from little villages to great cities in
a single year. 1t is not alone city buildings,
which arc supported by one another, that may
be thus erected, but those upon the open prai-
rie where the wind has a sweep from Maeki-
nav to the Mississippi, Tor there they are
built, and stand as firm as any of the old
frames oil New England, with posts and beams
sixteen inches square.
Con MEAL.-Mr. Thomas Notify, IT,, of
West Roxbury, says, in the Boston Cultigator.