Building my own log cabin

[Highsmith]

My son and I are traveling to Washington state next month to attend a log home building seminar. We hope to build our own log cabin. The place is called Log Home Builders Association. They are located near Seattle. Has anyone heard of them? We are very excited.

Best Regards,
Highsmith

[egon]

Hope you have good seminar. [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

Log building is not for the faint of heart but done well they look nice. The building process is very labour intensive. Sealing the joints between logs may not be as easy as one thinks. Installing windows/doors/interior walls and allowing for log shrinkage can be fun.

Many years ago we assembled a log house from a precut log package. Never again would I do it.

Egon [img]/forums/images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[GaryM]

I remember watching Hometime a while back. They built a BIG two story job with a full basement.

Some issues I remember:

Slip joints in all the DWV pipes and flexible water supply lines.

Window framing with slotted attachments to the logs so the logs could move as things settled and dried out.

Jack screws under the ridgepole supports so they could be lowered as things settled.

Perhaps your place will be alittle smaller, and they may have better ways to handle thses kinds of things now.

It certainly was an impressive place when it was done though.

[Highsmith]

Attended seminar. Great time. No consequences from shrinking as they teach the butt and pass method. So no worries regarding slip joints, jack screws or cracking windows.

Yes, the chinking will be very time intensive. But that's what "Chinking Parties" are for.

And this won't be a kit. Too many issues (including price). This seminar teaches building techniques using real logs.

[pappy19]

Just make sure you don't use green logs as they will twist and turn while they dry and you'll be sorry. At least 19% moisture or less, otherwise, everything will shift and twist, even on a butt and pass, and even if it is screwed down. Spruce is the best logs for insulation and are light weight. Yellow pine is most common and does an OK job, if good and dry. Douglas fir is also a good choice but is more dense and thus not as good insulation wise. Two of the best are cypress and cedar, but spendy. I have Idaho white pine which is similar to spruce. They were standing dead and I had a log home company run them thru their plainer for top and bottom T&G, then used regular insulation strips between logs and screws. I chinked on both sides and have a green metal roof. If I had to do it again, I would use cedar logs, no bugs and no rot to worry about.

[Pat]

Any thoughts on the efficacy of using eastern red cedar (juniperus virginii I think) for building a log house?

Pat

[pappy19]

One of the nicest and older log homes that I have ever seen was made with eastern red cedar and was on the banks of Cado Lake in NW Louisiana. No bugs and no rot. They had an old river rock foundation about 2 feet tall before they started the logs. It had Swedish cope corners and a metal roof. With any wood fire places, I wouod never have anything but a metal roof. In Idaho, we use alot of metal roof's as the snow slides off much easier.

[Pat]

Dear fellow Powerjoke owner... Hey Pappy, thanks for the note on the cedar cabin. One of my buds has been living in spaces finished off in his metal shop for 6 years and is getting anxious to build his house. As there is a fair quantity of eastern red cedar INVADING Oklahoma he thought he might make a log home out of it.

My recommendation to him was to have the logs squared up on three sides and put the "natural" side to the exterior. As the logs have significant taper I thought you'd want to alternate big and little ends to get them to stack more evenly. IF it were me I'd rabbit out channels to take the wiring for outlets and switches and have it all out of sight. He is inclined to put up a stud wall against the log wall. I suppose a compromise would be to put spacers on the interior of the logs and panel over them with lumber milled from cedar logs. This would create a space to run wires.

Pat

[pappy19]

Yes, square them up on 3 sides and get a T&G on 2 sides if possible. Also, he'll want to de-bark before of at least peel off the 4th side. Roof overhang should be more than normal and use glue-lams for perlons, cheap, sturdy, and more fire resistant. Use double insulation between "ends", and figure your electrical way before you start. That way you can drill each log as you go, just measure where the hole is and drill away. In any case, I would use good log screws, countersunk, for each log 3-4 depending on the length of the log. Public TV did a real good series on log building a few years ago and it was a large log home, but the basics are still good. A lot of "show and tell" stuff including electrical, plumbing, etc.

[pappy19]

Pat-

I just got the "powerjoke" owner, HaHa, do you have a six-leaker? I've got 180,000 miles on my 7.3 and it's been the best truck I've ever had. I did replace the stock tranny to a Suncoast at 52k, and I have never been embarassed by another rig since.