Carl H. Clark.

Before starting work on the deckhouse, the doors and window-sashes should be obtained, as the studs in the framing have to be spaced to them. The windows on the sides shown in Fig. 1 are about 3' square, and those in the ends about 21/2' wide and 3' high. The doors are about 27" wide and 11/4" thick, except the front doors, which are double and together are about 31/2|' wide. The front and back doors opening on deck are to have casings and preferably may be rather thicker than the others. These sizes are by no means absolute, and the stock available may govern them somewhat. The general framing of the house is shown in Figs. 9, 10, 11 and 13, 9 being a side view, 10 a front-end view, 11 a rear-end view and 13 a section. The several members (Fig. 13) are as follows: a is the lower sill, fastened directly to the deck of the hull; c is the studding, which is nailed to the lower sill, and is the framework for the sides of the house; b is the

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Figure 9.

upper sill, running along on the tops of the studs; d the roof beams, their ends resting on, and fastened to, the upper sill; / is the outside sheathing; g the inside sheathing; and h the roof planking. The frame is all of 2"x4" spruce. The sills are to be gotten out first. For the lower one, which runs around the house, there are two pieces 19' 10" long, and two 15' 9"; for the upper one, which is on the sides only, there are two pieces 19' 10" long. The four pieces of the lower sill are laid in place on the deck, and the ends joined together, as in Fig. 12, by cutting away half of each. This sill is then to be fastened down to the deck, being sure that it is square and rightly placed. With the lengths given, there should be about 114/2|" on each side between the sill and the side of the hull. A coat of thick paint is put on under the sill, and it must be strongly fastened down, as the safety of the house depends in a great measure upon it. About a dozen lag-screws, or bolts, should be used, being driven down into the beams below, with spikes elsewhere.

The cabin arrangement, as in Fig. 2, can be laid out with chalk on the deck, and the positions of the windows and doors located, as the studs are placed directly against the side of the door and window casings. The studs for the sides are cut 6' 3" long, 11 for each side.

These are set up on the lower sill and nailed in place. Those at the corners are double. The ones at the windows are placed about 2" farther apart than the width of the sash, to leave room for the frame, and must be straight and parallel. The top side sill is laid along on the tops of the studs, and they are lined up parallel and nailed to it.

The frame of each side must be squared up and braced temporarily from the deck, and the roof beam at each end put in place, as in Fig. 13, at the ends of the upper sills, and fastened to them. A piece of 2"x4", 19' 10" long, and planed all over, is placed under the middle of these roof beams to serve as a support to them, as shown at m, Figs. 10 and 11. This support, or strongback, as it is called, should be braced up from the deck until the middle of the beam is 8' higher than the ends; this gives the roof a "crown" and makes it shed water.

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Figure 10.

How To Build A Houseboat 143

Figure 11.

The rest of the end studs are cut to fit between the sill and the roof beam, those beside the doors being fitted to the door-frames, and the one in the middle of the after end is placed under the strongback, permanently. The diagonal braces are now to be put in place, as shown in Figs. 9, 10 and 11. They should be a tight fit and be strongly nailed, as they stiffen the house and prevent its working. The horizontal pieces just above the windows and doors are cut to fit singly between the studs; those over the windows are so placed that when 7/8 inch is allowed for the frame, the window will be in the desired position. In the sketch they are about 6' above the floor. In any case they must be high enough so that the sash will drop down flush with the window-sill before striking the floor. The pieces over the doors are put just under the fore and aft strongback. That over the front door is double, two 2" x4" on edge, and strongly nailed, as it supports the front end of the strongback, as shown in Fig. 10.

The roof beams are spaced about 18", and there are 12 beams evenly spaced. They rest on the strong-back and are bent down and fastened to the upper sill. It will be necessary to brace the strongback from the deck in two or three places to prevent it from sagging in bending the roof beams. The two lower edges of both beams and strongback are to be beveled off, or, if a beading plane is at hand, a bead can be worked on the two lower edges for a finish. This had best be done before putting into place.

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Figure 18.

The roof is covered with 7/8|" matched sheathing, which is laid beaded side down. It must be remembered that this is not covered on the underside, so that all the joints must be good. At the ends and sides this sheathing should extend over about 2". An opening should be left for the stairs.

If it is desired to have the house especially strong, a 1/2" iron rod can be run near each corner from the upper sill down through the lower sill, and a deck beam below with a nut and a washer at top and bottom. This ties the house down securely. A strip l1/4|'xl' is gotten out and laid flat on the deck all around the lower sill, as shown at e, Fig. 13, form-ing a bed for the outside sheathing, being mitered at the corners. The front and back door-frames are now put into place and carefully nailed to the studs, being fitted over the sill at the bottom, and just under the joist at the top. They should be of such a width that their edges will come just even with the outer surface of the sheathing when it is in place. This width is about 51/2".