Credit crunch has forced Nick Weston to go to his primeval roots. Not an actual descent to the stone ages though, he has created his £300 treehouse near Haywards Heath, West Sussex, to survive a six-month tenure. Just to make sure he sails through it, Nick kept browsing the internet, consulted public library and also, visited local DIY stores to gather enough information about what it requires to be a perfect tree-hugger.
Eco-warrior denies he is ‘one’:
I’m not an eco-warrior, a hippy or a tree-hugger, but I knew I wanted to live a low-impact lifestyle that was sustainable and self-sufficient. And, like any boy who grew up in thrall to films like The Swiss Family Robinson, I had always wanted to live in a treehouse. So, with next-to-no money, this was what I chose to do.
Nick spent about two hundred pounds to build his treehouse from recycled and natural materials. His tree-top living is no secret now as his blog actually averages 2,000 hits a day, and even the mainstream media has covered his eco-adventure on quite a few occasions.
Treehouse employs sustainable construction:
Supported by £170 lengths of new timber, the treehouse rises 2.3 m above the ground. The support posts are made with timber from surrounding sycamore, hazel and ash trees, which stand on a pit 30cm (12in) deep and covered with feet-stomped soil. Some dead y-shaped oak branches ‘add character to the balcony banisters.’ The roof lintel is fixed to the tree with coach screws and brackets, which can be accessed through a ladder made from birch.
Via: DailyMail