Our adventure-loving little boys needed a place to put their outdoor creativity into action. So, we scoped out a sturdy tree in our backyard and set out building a treehouse. To build your own treehouse, you’ll need to start by finding a tree that’s straight and large enough to support the structure. Our backyard has some prime contenders and eventually, we landed on a tree that was the right size and shape with the bonus of being just far enough from the house to feel like it was secluded.
Prior to starting this project, we purchased the San Pedro treehouse plan at Tree House Guides. The San Pedro was perfect because it is a single tree plan and large enough for our boys to use for play as well as for potential sleepovers. At 64 total square feet, the plan has windows on all four sides and is tall enough for adults to stand upright in.
Floor Supports and Platform
To build your own treehouse, you’ll first need to construct the floor supports. We assembled all the supports in our garage/driveway and then balanced and hauled them to the tree on an ATV. To hoist the supports into position we used the ATV and a pulley system. The trickiest part was lugging the floor platform onto the supports. The completion of these two steps took an entire weekend and a ton of patience and determination.
Walls
Upon finishing the floor, we started constructing the walls. The treehouse plans called for 2×2 and 2×3 walls that were covered with plywood and sealed with a clear stain. It was fun to involve the boys in this part of the project. They ran the sander over several sections of pre-assembled wall and also brushed on a coat of sealer.
The treehouse plans also called for the installation of vinyl windows. We opted instead to staple screens in the window openings to save on expense. However, the screens were installed in the final step of the project. Building and lifting the walls onto the platform took another weekend of work, but the project was finally starting to take shape.
Roof
The most difficult part of building the treehouse was plopping the roof into place. The roof was much heavier than the walls and of course, needed to be hoisted higher. To make the treehouse leak-proof, it was covered in tar paper and all the cracks were sealed with caulk.
Interior
The treehouse interior is quite spacious. To fill the space, we made a little table and stool from scrap wood. The adorable window seat provides additional seating. I really like the feel inside with the bark covered tree trunk spanning from floor to ceiling.
Completed Treehouse
We LOVE the finished treehouse and so do the boys. The entire project took several weekends and was a bit of a budget buster but the memories we’ll make in this treehouse make it worth it.
Happy Adventures, Rochelle