{"id":58173,"date":"2016-07-25T10:41:36","date_gmt":"2016-07-25T15:41:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=58173"},"modified":"2026-03-13T08:52:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T13:52:30","slug":"the-dos-and-donts-of-building-a-treehouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/skills\/the-dos-and-donts-of-building-a-treehouse\/","title":{"rendered":"The Do’s and Don’ts of Building a Treehouse"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Men<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\"GMC_logo\"<\/td>\nThis post is brought to you by the 2016 GMC Sierra<\/a>. Through precision, great trucks and great men are made. THIS IS THE PRECISION OF PROFESSIONAL GRADE. What\u2019s this?<\/a><\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Somewhere along the way, society got it into our heads that treehouses were mainly intended for kids.<\/p>\n

Then, thanks to people like Pete Nelson of Animal Planet\u2019s Treehouse Masters<\/em><\/a>, everyone started to realize…well, that\u2019s just absurd.<\/p>\n

And since Pete owns a premium treehouse building company, has his own television show, and has been constructing houses in trees since he was eight years old, we figured he\u2019d be a great person to talk to about the do’s and don\u2019ts of making a high-quality, branch-supported abode to call your own.<\/p>\n

Without further ado: Pete\u2019s pointers on how to build a treehouse for the ages.<\/p>\n

Do: <\/strong>Go a little crazy with your deck.
\nPete Says: <\/strong>Ample deck space with comfortable seating is the one luxury everyone should have.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> You should always trust a man whose lifelong career inspiration grew from flipping through an illustrated copy of Swiss Family Robinson <\/em><\/a>as a youngster.<\/em><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t: <\/strong>Ignore your climate.
\nPete Says: <\/strong>Every region can be a treehouse region. But it\u2019s important to pick the right wood for the job and do a thorough survey of the land\/conditions before starting. For example: account for floor insulation if you\u2019re somewhere cold.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> If you can visualize it, you can build it.<\/p>\n

Do:<\/strong> Carefully consider how you transport your materials.
\nPete Says:<\/strong> Get yourself a versatile truck. Our 2500 GMC Sierra, \u201cScratch,\u201d is a fully loaded, long-bed crew cab with a heavy-duty custom wood rack. It can handle anything.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> Power is important, but so is technology. Take the 2017 GMC Sierra. It has advanced features like a built-in 4G wi-fi hotspot (helpful when you want to stay connected while on the job site) and a wireless center console charging station (to keep your phone powered up while you work).<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t<\/strong>: <\/strong>Build your house lower than 8 feet or higher than 18 feet.
\nPete Says: <\/strong>This allows for simpler, safer construction. I also strongly advise anchoring the base of your rope ladder.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> Good call on incorporating a rope ladder.<\/p>\n

Do:<\/strong> Treat your treehouse like a treehome.
\nPete Says:<\/strong> Enjoy the finished product. Kick your feet up and relax in your treehouse. Maybe a read a book, like, say, The Baron in the Trees<\/em><\/a> by Italo Calvino.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> Make your treehouse feel lived-in. Adding well-appointed features like a desk, a music player and bookshelves makes a big difference.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t:<\/strong> Forget to allow for flexibility.
\nPete Says: <\/strong>That is the most common mistake for treehouse builders, especially when building in multiple trees (speaking of trees, he\u2019s partial to Douglas firs).
\nWe Say: <\/strong>Maybe use a pencil to draw up your blueprint, and don\u2019t get too attached to that \u201cgold-plated elevator\u201d idea.<\/p>\n

Do: <\/strong>Work with a purpose.
\nPete Says:<\/strong> A lot of the treehouses we build have themes that relate to the clients\u2019 passions, be it sailing, or exploring, or a specific architecture that they love.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> Treehouses make a great anniversary gift. Just find your inspiration and follow it.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t: <\/strong>Ignore the big picture.
\nPete Says:<\/strong> I built my first treehouse with my dad when I was eight in a maple tree in the front yard of the New Jersey home I grew up in. It\u2019s an experience I\u2019ll always remember.
\nWe Say:<\/strong> This isn\u2019t just a regular project. It\u2019s a bonding experience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This post is brought to you by the 2016 GMC Sierra. Through precision, great trucks and great men are made. THIS IS THE PRECISION OF PROFESSIONAL GRADE. What\u2019s this? Somewhere along the way, society got it into our heads that treehouses were mainly intended for kids. Then, thanks to people like Pete Nelson of Animal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":58175,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42261,42259],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-58173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-craftsmanship","category-skills"],"featured_image_urls":{"large":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-538x280.jpg","reactor-320":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-320x205.jpg","rpwe-thumbnail":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-45x45.jpg","aesop-tiny-cover":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-400x257.jpg","aesop-character":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-200x200.jpg","aesop-collection":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-300x300.jpg","aesop-grid-image":"https:\/\/content.artofmanliness.com\/uploads\/2016\/07\/Treehouse-1-400x257.jpg"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58175"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58173"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beta.artofmanliness.com\/app-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=58173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}