Hi I'm new to this site and am looking for some help in jacking up a sinking barn..... Timber frame and pegged.... I have to lift up one corner where water has caused sinking And I'm afraid of joints pulling apart....? Could I run threaded rod the width of the barn when lifting? run cable around beam and use turnbuckle? any help would be great thanks in advance Rod Mac Donald

More information would be helpfull. What style of barn, what are the site conditions, how much access do you need, are repairs immenent or are you going for stabilization now and repair later, etc., etc.

Hi here is some info..... it's a two story barn in western maine approx 17 x 35 hay loft up top and four or six collums on each side running along the walls. about a 10 pitch roof...one wall is kicking out just a bit where it's sinking.. the tenon is out about 1 to 1 1/2 inches..... I'm worried about when lifting if the tennon will pull out further..SO i'm thinking of running threaded rod or cable wherever there is a cross beam so as I lift I can tighten up on the cable or rod and hold everything tight and mabey pull the tenon back in???? Oris there an easier way??

Hi roderink:
Just a few notes of caution

when lifting or jacking a timberframe structure what ever you do work all the way around and jack only at the pressure points like right under a vertical post.

I would by all means obtain some comealongs, and cable the frame on the lower level right close to the cross timbers of each bent.

Do not over tighten but just snug up and as you jack take it just an inch at a time at each jacking point.

Where the framework has sunk down the most it probably has loosened the braces, and maybe some have dropped out of their mortises try and put them back in their original places and hold them there someway until they tighten up.

I suggest having someone shoot a grade nail on each post, and then figure from this how much each post is down and go from there

It is no doubt that the framework at one time was fairly level and should come back to that point again---take it slowleeeee!!!

If you are not lifting it very much wedging it up with oak wedges will work . Start them under each post and then go around and tap them with a sledge hammer keep inserting them as required.

If you hear any cracking during the jacking process, you may have put too much strain on a timber at that point.

The timbers in the frame may not like being forced to return to their original positions, after being bent for may years, and you may need to jack only alittle each day for a week or more to allow the timbers to internally straighten out without cracking at critical points

NH

Northern Hewer is on the money with his insights.

Certainly cabling is good; you can also tie the beams and posts to each other with temporary hardware at critical points.

I always do a careful elevation survey of the levels for *every* post before I begin. Then I set thumbtacks in each post for the "as is now" and the "target" elevations; I periodically reset the "as is" points to monitor progress until the two coincide. Gives me a quick visual reference of where the priority points are at any given time.

Drawing a map of what is settled and exactly how much will reveal what is really going on with the barn in ways the eye alone cannot. It will give you a better sense of how to reverse and correct the larger process that caused the settling and where to logically begin relieving the stresses.

People ask "how do you know how much jacking is too much?" My answer is "I listen... Creaking is okay, Cracking is bad..."

An inch at a time, always back up your jacks with blocks and shims as you gain, and work the barn as a whole, don't try to do too much at any one point. It's educational to be merrily jacking away and hear a crash as a temporary post 40 feet away falls loose.

The barn will "want" to come back, and you'll feel it get happier as you get close to level again.

Good Luck,

Pete

All of the above is sound advice. I would add that if you don't have experience in this type of heavy rigging, find someone who does. There are many subtle points which can become critical issues if executed incorrectly. There are usually several things happening at several places at the same time, all of which must be monitored closely. The safety risks are too great to be tackled by a novice. It's hard to say without seeing the project, but it may be a relatively safe job, or a disaster waiting to happen. I favor the conservative approach and at least getting the input of a professional who has seen the barn. Good luck and PLEASE BE CAREFUL!!!!!

Hi Dan and Pete:

Both you guys are adding very valuable info, and I agree wholeheartedly with all the added remarks, I also agee with Dan that this is probably not a task that you can handle without someone giving you a very professional opinion on whether you can do this or not.

Even with our combined experience we would approach this job with caution, by that I mean that the whole framework would need to be assessed to see if it would stand the process of being leveled up without major happenings taking place.

These timberframes are notorious for being stubborn in lots of ways, just try and take one down--it will resist demolition right to the end, and even when Mr Rot comes along and extremely weakens some of the plates the frame will continue to stand straight and true year after year. This doesn't mean that a weakened timber might give away.

One time I was just examining an historic barn with the intent of copying it for a restoration project, and luckily My helper and I were wearing our hard hats because one of the 4 by 4 corner braces which had becames dislodged because of its age and settling of the frame dropped straight down about 10 feet, along one of the corner posts. It could have ended my days right there if I hadn't had that safety hat on. Be sure and be very safety minded even if you are just poking around, the braces are very much a hazard in old timberframes.

Take care

NH

Every reason I have been reluctant to weigh in on this thread , and others like it in the past, has been touched on in the above well said replies.

As strait forward and as common sense driven as such an effort is, when stripped down to what it is you are doing…

Lifting a compromised building, which might well be a deck of cards, can sometimes be, extremely dangerous. The key to understanding the danger and how to deal with it, is understanding how the building works, that, and how it is working in the condition it is currently in.

Common sense is a powerful tool, but might not be enough. Experience not only counts for much, but constantly hones that sense, not always so common.

Pete’s point about shimming off, is right on, more than that, following your jacks with shims is key.

You can’t just bed a jack, put a timber post on it and start jacking…

Hydraulic jacks are subject to catastrophic failure, even top dollar ones, cheap ones are a recipe for disaster, if a jack fails with 8” of ram out, and you are not shimmed off , the building is not likely to stop falling at that eight inches. And where are you, under the building, right next to that jack.

Cribbing, and knowing how to use it is how this works, you follow the frame up with the crib, and you shim off till there’s room for another pair of crib block…

There are ways to grab a post low and minimize the cribbing, but that’s another whole discussion.

Often as not, the frame wants to fall together, listening is a huge part of it, it’ll tell you what it wants, withdrawn tenons might well want to go home, a little lateral nudging can be part of it, but unless a building has a serious list, it’s often simpler than first glance might suggest.

Which is not to say, Dan doesn’t have this in a nutshell, do be super careful -

Pete, I don’t know how our paths haven’t crossed before now, I’m working out in your neck at the moment, on the Contoocook RR Bridge, swing by