Best Practices

Below are a few guidelines to keep in mind when designing and building your treehouse:

• Clearance must be provided between your beams and trees. Follow the instructions provided with your hardware to place beams where they are intended to be on the TABs.

• Keep joists 6" away from the bark of a tree.

• Keep walls at least 12" and roofs at least 7" away from the tree.

• Trim decking 2" back from the bark of the tree. Repeat this as the tree grows or if rubbing occurs.

• If you want a weather-tight building envelope, keep trunks and branches from penetrating the envelope. It's very difficult to seal the area where tree limbs enter the interior, resulting in perpetual moisture issues.

• Beware of using excessive beam or joist cantilevers. Not only do they have a ‘diving board’, bouncy effect, but the loads on the beams and hardware will multiply.

• Knee braces should always be opposing each other or balanced, or used in a static situation. A single knee brace in a dynamic scenario can create a ‘jacking’ effect, moving the platform sideways over time.

• When using a Wood Yoke design, tremendous forces can occur in the struts and lower TABs. These should only be lightly loaded, and preferably engineered.

• Protecting the critical root area around the trees is imperative. It is best to place 6"-12” of wood chips over the work area, and be mindful when digging or using machinery