Hello, I am a new member here. I have property with lots of big trees, white pine and white oak, and plenty of free time. I would like to put up a timber frame house on it, and I have been reading a lot of Christopher Alexander, a rebel archetect and professor from the seventies. He strongly endorses lightweight concrete vaults, I like the idea because I could avoid putting in rafters and purlins one at a time while standing on a ladder... I'm not too comfortable with heights.

It would also allow me to have lower walls on the timber frame portion of the house, since the ceiling would rise quickly and give lots of head room.

So, without typing too much, do y'all think a concrete vault could tie together the bents as well as rafters and girts, once it has cured? Or would the leverage of the walls split the roof as they flex? Could I use a more short-lived alternative to girts (see wood-and-wire beams at bottom) to tie the bents together while the vault cures?

The way I would put up the vault would be to put anchor bolts into the top plate 3" apart and arch lengths of PVC pipe over them. Then I would stretch burlap over that and wire mesh over that. Then I trowel the thing over with 2" of cement with a lightweight aggregate. I guess vermiculite, maybe cellulose or something else. Please, if this is a stupid idea or wouldn't save me any trouble, let me know. I can take brutal criticism

Wood and wire beams: I read about this in barefoot archetect. It is a board beam with a post attached to the center of it, that points down toward the ground. Instead of reaching the ground it applies tension to a wire that runs the length of the beam. The length of the post depends on the load that the beam will be carrying.