Services
Frames and sills
Everything in an old house hangs from the frame, and the frame sits on the sills. When water reaches the sills, the whole building leans the same way.
We cut out what has rotted and splice in sound timber with the joint the frame was built with: scarfs and pegged mortises, not steel brackets screwed across a failure. Where a post or a beam has to be replaced, we match species and section as closely as the timber supply allows.
What's included
Sills replaced in sections, with the building jacked and shored
Posts, beams and braces repaired with scarf joints
Floor joists and rafters sistered or replaced
Carpenter-ant and powder-post damage cut out
The frame straightened only where it will stay straight
Cost
What changes the cost
No figure here, because the building sets it. These are the things that move it.
How much is sound
A sill rotted at one corner is a small job. A sill rotted along a wall means the floor above it has moved too.
Height and access
A one-story porch frame and a three-story bank barn need different equipment and different crews.
The timber itself
Salvaged, milled to match or new: species and size set the price and the wait.
What it sits on
A sill on a failing foundation comes second. The stone comes first.
Permits
Structural repair often needs one. We look it up during the survey.
How it goes
The work, in order
- 01
Step 1: Shore
We support the floors and walls above before anything comes out.
- 02
Step 2: Open up
We remove siding, plaster or flooring only where the survey says to, and photograph what's there.
- 03
Step 3: Cut and splice
Rotted timber comes out; new timber goes in with a matching joint, pegged or fastened.
- 04
Step 4: Close and walk
We close up, clean up, and walk the work with you.
Questions about this work
Can a leaning barn be saved?
Often a barn can be pulled back or braced and its sills renewed. The survey says whether the frame is sound enough, and what it would cost to find out more.
Do you replace a whole sill at once?
Rarely. We work in sections so the building stays supported, and we cut the joints so each new section carries its share.
Start with the survey
Tell us about the building and we'll write back about a date.