Phase 3: Tin roof and tiny cabin exterior framing

Last time I posted we had just finished the roof rafters and floor joists for our tiny cabin. This week we started the tiny cabin exterior framing, and finished off the tin roof a few days ago.

The next steps after the rafters and floor joists were to finish off the tin roof, frame the exterior walls, and start closing in the cabin. We did these steps all at the same time, so we’re swiftly moving into phase 3 of the cabin build.

Tin Roof

We decided to go with a tin roof mostly because of the longevity of the material, as well as the ease of installation. Also, we like the look of tin. We chose a light grey galvalume tin that we bought from Morrisburg Building Centre. Tony first had to predrill holes in the tin to line up with the strapping, and then we worked together to hoist the sheets up on the roof. The sheets installed pretty quickly, with me passing the sheets up and Tony screwing them into the roof strapping. The most difficult part was the last sheet of tin on each row, as well as the ridge cap. The roof is fairly steep and it was a little icy, so we’re both glad the job is done and nobody fell off the roof.

Exterior Walls

The exterior walls were actually pretty fun to build (once I finally figured out what I was supposed to do). Framing always seems like it goes so fast, and progress happens so quickly. We framed the walls using 2″ by 4″ studs. I found six wood windows on kijiji, so we framed in the spaces for all six windows. We got fairly large windows, so I think the cabin will be nice and bright.

We also debated on what to do for the front door. I had wanted to find an old wood door and have Tony frame it and hang it, but we ended up just getting a plain white steel door that was already pre-hung. A little more costly, but much less work, and I think it will still look great.

Once all the walls were up, we started nailing aspenite to the exterior, nailing it every 16 inches to the studs. We’re not quite done the framing and the aspenite, but that will be a job for next week.