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Back to the Trees
circletimessquare writes "This story should excite the nerd in anyone. Build a luxury treehouse! The New York Times reports on an entire subculture devoted to an idea which sounds funny at first... but really, why not? Much serious discussion in the article about the technical considerations involved in treehouse construction. Also mention of 'treesorts' at the bottom of the article (one being called 'Lothlorien Woods Hide-a-way' lol). I hunted down some links to two of the big players mentioned in the article, TreeHouse Workshop Inc. and the World Treehouse Conference. No mention as to whether or not they support Banyan VINES (sorry, I couldn't resist)."
I mean, you're basically building on something that rots. And is high up. This doesn't seem like something I would do, be it just for a cottage or something fun, or be it a house or hotel. Plus, trees get knocked over quite often; hurricanes, theunderstorms, gales, snow, etc.
Also, it seems one of these would be a massive lightning rod, if you were to wire it.
As cool as it sounds, it just doesn't seem like such a great idea. Kind of like using lighter fluid to shoot tennis balls out of coke cans. Not that I've ever done that...
You have to rember that trees are living so thereforth they grow and react to stimuli. A Tree House (depending on the type of tree) is probably good for 10 mabey 15 years then branches start making the house crooked or a branch putting a lot of pressure on a window. As well as nails in the brances cause discoleration in the wood (that spreads threw most of the tree) as well as stibility during hazordess weather. Concreet celer 10 feet under the ground is a good solid foundation compared to a bunch of roots the width of 4 inches and graduadually decrese.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Australia's Coober Pedy (in South Australia)
has a large number of underground homes.
Even closer to the exclusive Adelaide Hills
we found some underground houses.
The obvious advantages are:
- low heating costs &
- low cooling costs
In short, a very energy-efficient home form
Coupled with a solar hot water system,
a fuel cell or wind-power system & a
quiet air circulation system (out with CO2
& radon gas; in with oxygen-rich air,
possibly full of nice local fragrances),
this type of house really rocks, especially
if it's built into a hillside, so you have
a terrific view out your front viewport...
I had such good memories of the treehouse in the Disney film version of Swiss Family Robinson that I recently watched it on DVD for the first time as an adult and it still makes me want to live in one. And
this could be a cool way to spend your birthday.
My name is Carlos Montoya. You share files of my music. Prepare to die.
I can't imagine why you'd want to build a treehouse without a clear roof, but I've never heard of anyone doing it. Perhaps it's cost prohibitive...
Would be awesome during thunderstorms....especially if you happen to have a significant other in there with you.
Kind thoughts do not change the world
Obviously, your target market is not Muggles/Sleepers/Luddites then. If you want to sell it, put it up for what you think it should be worth and advertise it where people of a like mind will see the advertisement. That's not the sort of house that will attract the average Joe, but the real target audience will know the benefits of the home and how much it would cost to build.
In fact, treat the appraisal as a tax-treat. Obviously, the taxes will be less. The only problem I can see is insuring for the actual cost of reconstruction in case of disaster.