Log cabin construction

[N80]

Eddie, that house does indeed have problems. But for whatever reason I just haven't seen that around here.

My logs are completely square. The only place water can get in is the ends, and like I said, mine are dovetailed and the top of each dovetail slopes downward. Where each dovetail fits you apply this thick black pitch-like glue and then you caulk at all the join lines.

Only time will tell of course. But so far so good. And the house that is 20 years old is a Southland like mine. The older house was imported from Canada and I have no idea who made it.

And while brick, vinyl and Hardi-plank (that's what my home is covered in) would surely be more rot resistant, I just don't see it being an issue with cabin. Only time will tell.

Although, I know that there are tobacco barns in eastern NC that are built of logs and are over a 100 years old and they are solid as a rock.

I think a lot has to do with the design, construction and proper treatment. Just like anything else.

 

[MotorSeven]

Eddie is right, that flat logs exposed to water=rot. Satterwhite uses souther yellow pine, which is what my house was built of. Second to water rot, i think termites are the #1 cause of problems. I have seen them build mud tunnels up the side of a 4.5' cresote pole to get to the tender "underbelly" of a house. Pine, fur, oak are a constant maintenance issue. Cedar, cypress, hemlock are much more termite resistant.
For me, proper wood selection & a good water shedding design, & a proper foundation will make a log home last for generations. Settling issues are part of the log process & must be expected.
RD

 

[EddieWalker]

I honestly don't know anything about log homes outside of my area. I love them and might even own one if we retire and move to the moutains some place. We have some original Civil War log structures still standing at Camp Ford, which is between my place and Tyler. Some of those logs are still in perfect condition!!!!!!

I'm not putting down log homes. They are awesome. I just like to caution those who are building them that there are some very serious issues with maintenance that must be done. Here in my area, rot is a huge issue. The log home companies and builders tend to gloss over these things and then years down the road, the homeowner discovers some very fatal flaws to the home.

Selling a log home in my area is also very dificult. Most home buyers get a home inspector and they find all sorts of issues. I'm called to give a bid on what it will cost to repair and then never hear from them again. They don't want the headache.

Eddie

 

[MPrewitt]

Eddie,

We are in the final stages of completing our Satterwhite log home here in Henderson. The home has an 8 foot porch on the front and back os the house with 6 foot porces on both sides, all these porches are covered. So the log walls should only get wet in a blowing rain. Not in a normal rain shower (maybe a little wet). I noticed in the pictures that you shared in an earlier post that the "D" log were exposed with either no porches or a little overhang.

My question is what has been your experience with repairs on Satterwhite homes with a complete wrap around porch to aid in protecting the home from the sun and rain?

 

[EddieWalker]

Satterwhite is the only log home that I've evern worked on. They really have the market cornered here without any real compition. I've been to their place North of Longview a few times, and they are very helpful if they think you are buying, but terrible if you are looking for informtion on repairing their homes.

The biggest problem and the first place that I look is those logs that stick out the ends. On several homes, they have a roof that changes pitch for the porch. These are not wrap around porchs, as I don't remember seeing one of those on a log home. The water comes off the roof at that transistion and soaks the logs. Due to the humidity and moisture that we have here, the logs really have to be sealed up better then they are. I've done it with bondo, and I've done it with silicone along the wood ridges at top so water will shed off of the logs.

Another area is at the base of the building. The bottom row of logs. If you don not have gutters, then water coming off of the roof will splash back up onto the logs. Again, this takes time to hapen, but I've had to patch and replace a few logs because of this.

I haven't seen termite damage, but won't say it's not there. Just not something that I've dealt with. I really don't do much work on log homes, it's just something that's come up from time to time, and it's always the same thing.

If you pay attention to it and do a realy good inspection after it rains, you should have an idea of where your problem spots are. There is no such thing as the perfect house, every house built either has problems, or will have them. Log homes just have some specific ones that more traditional, stick built homes, don't have.

Eddie

 

[N80]

For me, proper wood selection & a good water shedding design, & a proper foundation will make a log home last for generations. Settling issues are part of the log process & must be expected.
RD

The problem with cedar and cypress is the expense. Have not compared prices lately but cedar was roughyl twice what yellow pine was (my logs are yellow pine) and cypress is like gold. Great stuff, no doubt. But still, there is no reason that yellow pine done right won't last for centuries. The vast majority of homes in the country are stick built of various white and yellow wood conifers and they do just fine. There is pine lap siding on buildings in historic areas of this state that are over 200 years old. (Of course they are 1" thick and coated with good old lead based paint.)

Yellow pine is also very easy to work with, which is a benefit for the DIY crowd.

So personally (having been through this decision process in the past and being well pleased with the results) I don't see any downside to yellow pine as long as it is done right. I mean after all, as far as i know you can't get a lifetime warranty on many building materials, even brick.

Edit: I would also add that the staining process is extremely important, I'm not exaggerating at all when I say that water beads up on the stain I used (I don't remember what it was but it was included with the kit, I do still have the cans it came in.) It is starting to fade on the east side of the cabin but that is due to sun, not rain. We'll stain again early next spring. But my logs look as pristine as the day we put them up.

 

[MotorSeven]

I'll be cutting,skidding & milling my own cedar.

Man do i have alot of work to do..............

RD

 

[N80]

I'll be cutting,skidding & milling my own cedar.

Man do i have alot of work to do..............

RD

Yep!! When is the move in date?

 

[TNhobbyfarmer]

Edit: I would also add that the staining process is extremely important, I'm not exaggerating at all when I say that water beads up on the stain I used (I don't remember what it was but it was included with the kit, I do still have the cans it came in.) It is starting to fade on the east side of the cabin but that is due to sun, not rain. We'll stain again early next spring. But my logs look as pristine as the day we put them up.

George; My experience has been that the east and west side of my cabin (especially the west side) starts to fade first. The south would probably fall into that category as well, but since I have a porch across the entire front (south) side of my cabin, it doesn't get much sun.

I stained orginally with a product called Woodguard. It is an oil based stain that has worked well so far. Their directions said to to stain one year after the original coat and then every 3-5 years after that. I have done the original and 1 year coat. It appears that the east and west sides need to fall within the 3 year plan. The north and south ends could probably last 5 years but I'll probably just do it all at one time. Its not as big a job as it sounds. I just spray on the stain with a garden sprayer and back brush it. My wife and I did it in about 5-6 hrs.

Post pics of your cabin. I would like to see it.

 

[MPrewitt]

A crew of 4 from Satterwhite had mine dried in in just 14 total days.
All logs, roof decking (minus shingles) porches, windows, exterior doors, and stud walls were completed in this time frame. Shingles were added 3 days later.