Treehouses are special places, and whether you're thinking about a platform for the kids to play on or a full-blown retreat for yourself, there are a lot of way to tackle the project.

Services and pricing section below. Design/build process section below.

Our bread-and-butter is the complete design/build service. We start with your vision and your trees, and we work with you through design drawings, setting Garnier Limbs and raising lumber -- all the way until the day you cut the ribbon.
But not everybody needs butter on their bread. Some folks just need a good start, or a little help along the way.
That's why we offer a range of services, from swapping e-mails and hands-on instruction to meeting you in the woods for a good day's work.
We also know one thing you don't need when exploring a new frontier is a lot of unnecessary mystery. For that reason, we've outlined it all below -- how we can help, what we charge and how the process works. There are no hidden fees or hidden agendas.
It's simple -- we believe the best business relationships, like the best treehouses, are designed and built to last.




Consulting
For the DIY builder who finds one or more parts of treehouse construction beyond her of his skill set, Peacemaker Treehouses offers everything from quick answers by phone or e-mail to on-site consultation and hands-on construction assistance.

• Telephone: General conversations of less than about 15 minutes, no charge. Technical and specific consulting, $60 per hour by 15-minute intervals, with all charges and estimated time agreed to during our general conversation prior to the formal consulting call.
• E-mail: Similar to telephone consultation: General inquiries and quick advice are free. More detailed requests are billed at $60 per hour, with all charges estimated and agreed to ahead of time.
• Site visit: Minimum 4 hours, at $60 per hour plus actual cost of transportation and accommodations (if more than 1 day), as per prior agreement.

Workshops
Several times each season, as demand warrants, Peacemaker Treehouses will offer weekend seminars on treehouse design and construction. Most are based at our Ithaca N.Y. home. Workshops will include classroom instruction, hands-on field work and a tour of local treehouses.

• One day: $100 per person, maximum capacity 6.
• Two day: $175 per person, maximum capacity 6.
• Three day: $250 per person, maximum capacity 6.

Whether you're just beginning to dream of treehouses or you're in the middle of your own project and looking for inspiration, the energy and fresh ideas shared at treehouse workshops can be just what you need. Workshops cover tree selection, tools and techniques, design and construction, as well as care and maintenance. During the three-day session, a broader tour of treehouses in the Finger Lakes region is included.
Check the Latest News section of our Web site blog for updates on upcoming workshops.



Design
For the DIY builder who prefers to work from a plan, Peacemaker Treehouses can provide design services ranging from quick drawings and suggestions to fully engineered custom plans with complete materials and tools lists. If you're a capable carpenter with lots of free time, but need help getting a good start, this can be a great way to go.

• Initial conversations, by telephone or e-mail, free
• First site visit:
• If within 100 miles, free.
• If beyond 100 miles, actual cost of travel plus $60 per hour on site.
• If beyond 250 miles, actual cost of travel and accommodations plus $480 per day.
• Design work bills at $60 per hour, with time and costs not to exceed the number of hours agreed to in a written estimate provided before starting, without mutual agreement.
• Additional site visits, as we agree may be needed, bill at $60 per hour on site plus actual cost of transportation and accommodation (if more than 1 day).
• If you choose these added services, we'll arrange for a review by a certified arborist and an experienced professional treehouse engineer. Here, you pay only the actual costs of their services. There are no hidden markups.

Design/Build
This is the core of our business -- complete design and construction from concept to ribbon cutting. We work very closely with you to put the feelings and visions you have for your treehouse into final form, then we carefully construct the treehouse of your dreams. All design and construction work is done by Peacemaker Treehouses founder John Carberry. We only accept a handful of projects each year, so your treehouse is always at center stage.
The design/build process is outlined in the section below, and all fees connected with the design and construction of your treehouse will be set out in a services agreement and approved by all parties before work begins. Still, in-keeping with our straight-forward and transparent business model, here's an outline of how complete design/build services are estimated:

Early work

• Initial conversations, by telephone or e-mail, free
• First site visit:
• If within 100 miles, free.
• If beyond 100 miles, actual cost of travel plus $60 per hour on site.
• If beyond 250 miles, actual cost of travel and accommodations plus $480 per day.

Design

• Work bills at $60 per hour, not to exceed the number of hours agreed to in a written estimate provided before starting, without mutual agreement.
• Additional site visits, as we agree may be needed, bill at $60 per hour plus actual cost of transportation and accommodation (if more than 1 day).
• All Peacemaker Treehouses design/build projects rely on the recommendations of a certified arborist and an experienced professional treehouse engineer. Here, you pay only the actual costs of their services. There are no hidden markups.

Construction

Our estimate is based on four factors:

• Construction time required, billed at the base $60-per-hour rate.
• Actual cost of travel and, if more than 100 miles away, accommodations.
• Actual cost of materials, permits, fees, special tools, equipment and other project-specific expenses.
• Actual arborist and engineer costs.

In all cases, the final bill will always reflect what we agreed upon in our initial services agreement. There are only two ways that can change -- by mutual agreement, typically when a mid-project inspiration moves you; or if circumstances beyond our control alter site conditions or force unavoidable delays or additional expenses during the design and construction process.





Of course, individual relationships between Peacemaker Treehouses and each client are as individual as the treehouses we create together. Still, here's a general sense of how the design/build process unfolds.


Inquiry
You've scanned the Web sites, maybe read a few books and blogs on treehouses, and now you're wondering how this all might fit into your dreams. Great. Drop us a note or give us a call, and we'll be happy to help you explore your ideas and answer any questions you might still have. These are casual conversations between treehouse lovers, so no charges apply.


Site visit
We've talked, and now you have a much better sense of what you want and what might be possible. The next step is for Peacemaker Treehouses founder John Carberry to head to your site. Together, we'll take a good look around, examine the possible trees and your vision for a treehouse among them. After more conversations, sketches, pictures and measurements, our sense of the possible -- and each other -- will be much more refined. Site visit work is billed as noted above, and all charges are agreed to before the visit takes place.


Design
When you're ready, we work together to turn those notions and sketches into detailed designs and a complete construction plan.
The first step will be to agree on a tree or trees for your concept, then have a certified arborist check our future hosts. That usually involves a second site visit by us to work with the arborist and with you to refine your treehouse vision. The arborist may recommend against using a certain tree, or suggest minimal pruning or cabling, but typically we get a good bill of health.
Next up, it's detailed design time. Based upon the site details and your vision, a complete design is developed including a full set of architectural drawings for your review. We then refine the design until your satisfied the treehouse you see in your imagination is the treehouse you see in our plans.
At this point we bring in the engineer. Peacemaker Treehouses works with renowned professional treehouse engineer Charley Greenwood. He helped launch the modern treehouse movement, and there is no one better on this planet at making sure our plans are sound, both for host and guests. Following Charley's recommendations, some alterations may be made to the design. Rarely does it alter the treehouse itself, but Charley has often been known to improve platform design -- and sometimes open up new possibilities to consider.
In the end, we have the security of a full review by arborist and engineer, as well as a complete and detailed set of design drawings and building plans.
Billing for design is based on an estimate for service hours agreed to before we begin, in addition to site visit, arborist and engineering costs.


Build
Armed with the plans we developed, it's time to build.
We'll work with you to develop a construction schedule and site plan. Once that's in place, we get to work. Materials are purchased and delivered on site, and construction starts.
All our construction work is done or directly supervised on site by Peacemaker Treehouses founder John Carberry, the same guy you've been working with all through the process. While work is under way the construction site is off limits to people and pets, but when it's done we clean up and hand over the keys. The dream, your dream, is now your treehouse.
As with design and everything else we do, the cost of construction is fully outlined and agreed to before work begins. Unlike the other stages, however, payment is made in two parts. Half of the estimated construction costs are paid before work begins, with the remaining costs paid when we agree the job is done.


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There it all is. No secrets. No surprises. Life is too short for nonsense and there's too much to enjoy before we go.
Drop us a note or give us a call if you have any questions, and let us know when you're ready to takes the step from treehouse admirer to treehouse owner.
We'd love to help you get there.

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