In this second article of our three-part series detailing log homes, the focus is on the details: the nuts and bolts, so to speak, of building a log home. From choosing the type of log to deciding which walls are drywalled, the basics behind the wood are explored.
First things first: your budget
The first step in basic research is to determine what you can afford and the average cost per square foot for custom homes in the region where you plan to build. Since building costs vary, it may be wise to consult several custom home builders — particularly if there are two or three experienced log builders in your area. That average cost gives you a guideline as to the size home you can afford.
There are a number of ways to cut costs, balancing your wish list with reality. Open floor plans with fewer hallways provide more usable living space; a simplified design with fewer corners also reduces cost. Careful consideration of utilities — having bathrooms stacked one above another or back-to-back — reduces plumbing costs.
If you already own the land, one creative way to economize is to clear the land yourself, saving rocks, timber and other natural materials for landscaping.
The origin of the log
When you start visiting log home builders, one of the first things you learn is that some call themselves “handcrafted” builders and others sell “manufactured” packages. What’s the difference?
A company that builds handcrafted homes uses logs in the rough. These can be Douglas fir, pine, spruce, cedar, hemlock, oak, cypress, juniper or other types of wood. They are usually green, which means they are fashioned into house logs within days or weeks after being hauled out of the forest. Handcrafted log homes then dry naturally (air dried) or are kiln dried.
“Our logs are air-dried for three years,” says Tony Altermatt, sales manager with Whispering Pines Log Homes in Verndale. “We have our own mill and use our own crews and lumber.”
Handcrafted log homes can be built using a number of styles. Piece-on-piece is a traditional log style, using log panels for the house walls. Dovetail
construction involves carving notches at the log ends, leaving gaps between the logs which are then filled with backer material and chinking. Scribe fit homes use round logs with each log scribed exactly to fit the one beneath it. This style uses a saddle notch, shrink fit corner.
Manufactured home packages are also available. These use milled logs which have been processed through a saw mill, lathe or a planer/shaper and are then cut into a specific shape or “profile.” These logs are normally of a uniform size and shape.
Milled logs can have a variety of top and bottom surfaces, as they can be sanded smooth, tongue and grooved or rounded. The log sides can also be smoothed or hand-hewn to give them a rustic look. One advantage of milled logs is that they are more easily and affordably put through a kiln to dry them to a lower moisture content.
“Building a log home is truly about a feeling, an ambience,” says Mary Best, owner of Best Properties, Inc., and a Golden Eagle Log Home dealer in Park Rapids. “Knowing what ‘look’ you are trying to achieve will determine what style of home you will build.”
Most log home companies will supply the logs and other structural components, and some may offer design assistance and construction services. But this is only part of the larger picture, which includes site work, utilities, a foundation or slab, heating and cooling systems, electrical and plumbing work, cabinetry and finishes, and labor costs. Although prices can vary widely, the cost of a log home shell usually represents about a third of the finished home’s total cost. Most reputable manufacturers can provide an estimate of the final cost to help you plan a budget, secure financing and decide how much of the work you want to do yourself.
Many companies offer packages which detail the type and amount of materials necessary for the home’s completion. It is wise to compare the elements of packages when deciding on which log home company to use. Some packages will cover the entire process, including flooring, electrical, cabinetry, and more. Others may view things as “add-ons” and are not included in the base package price.
“If it’s shown in the plans, it’s included in a Golden Eagle package,” says Best. “The company’s motto is ‘Relax. We’ve thought of everything. And it’s included.’”
Location, location, location
Location is more than just the view you will have from your log home. It’s the amount of privacy you desire, the convenience for your lifestyle. And while you may be able to visualize that beautiful lot with all the pinetrees as the perfect place for your log home, there are always questions that need to be asked: Is the land buildable? You may need a septic permit,soil evaluation tests, well or water source; you will need to learn of any
covenants or restrictions on size, building materials, style, etc., in the area.
“We help our clients look at the schematics of the landscape, what views they want from particular rooms,” Best says. “Building a log home is a commitment to a certain lifestyle; at Golden Eagle, we want our clients to get the absolute best from their property as well as from their homes.”
Custom or package?
Some log homes are sold as packaged homes in which the buyer purchases a package containing the plans and all logs precut and ready for assembly. Typically, kit homes are either assembled by the buyer or a builder they hire themselves. With kit homes, the cost per square foot can typically be cheaper. but you are severely limited in design and construction quality.
Plans are the floorplans or blueprints outlining the construction of a home. With some log home construction, plans provide the basic template structure for the house. However, most pre-existing plans offer some degree of flexibility and customization, allowing buyers to use the beginning layout plan as a starting point for a custom home.
Custom homes are designed for an individual buyer. Sometimes they are plans created “from scratch” by an architect for a client, or they begin with a pre-existing plan which has been modified to fit the needs and desires of the buyer.
“We use master workmanship to lovingly create three or four custom homes per year, specifically designed for the most discriminating buyer,” says Tom Wagner of Thomas Log Crafters in
From the ground up
Although no step is more important than another, building a log home cannot happen without a site. Most people think of log cabins or homes as vacation places located in the rough-wooded scenic outback. But the truth is that almost 90 percent of log homes are the primary residence of the owners, with 84 percent of these homes in or near metropolitan areas. Most owners who build log homes as getaway places eventually move into them full time because living there is like being on a perpetual vacation.
There are at least three types of foundation that may be used with many of the popular plans available today. These are a concrete slab on grade; a full foundation wall (or basement) around the outside perimeter of the building; and a pier type of foundation. Products such as insulated concrete forms are also popular choices for log home foundations. Foundations for log homes can differ significantly but usually consist of concrete or masonry.
The whole procedure can take from three to five days, and most foundations are then treated on the outside with waterproofing agents. Gravel is frequently placed around the outside of the foundation to allow water to drain away from the foundation wall. Once the foundation is completed, carpenters then begin to build the sub floor. The subfloor must be completed before the package arrives.
Piece by piece
On one hand, log homes are built just like any other home. You start with site excavation, foundation, sub-floor, framing and finish work. But on the other hand, log homes are nothing like other types of homes. The different log packages all include different portions of the total project, and each individual log package can vary substantially in the amount of labor that will be involved to complete the structure.
Handcrafted log homes are very labor intensive, but one of the advantages is that they may be pre-built at the log yard and then disassembled and shipped to the site. Once a home arrives at the site, the log framing portion can be re-erected in a matter of a few days. Other than the aesthetic issue, this is the primary difference between milled and handcrafted log homes. Initially, it appears that milled log homes can be much less expensive, but you have to remember that you are purchasing a material package only. Once the package is delivered, it has to be constructed. In many cases, once the log shell is reconstructed on site, there isn’t the price difference that the homeowner had anticipated.
In the case of handcrafted log homes, the building process is very much the same as it is with any custom, site-built conventional home of high quality. The normal prep work is done, and then the log package is delivered and re-erected. Once the log shell is completed, the work of finishing the home begins.
At this point, the similarity between a log home and a stick-built home increases. This stage is where the interior walls, gables and dormers are framed. Windows are installed; HVAC, electrical, and plumbing work takes place. The home is insulated, roofing is installed. Interior doors, trim work, staining, painting and flooring are completed. All in all, it’s not much different than other home construction.
Energy efficiency
A log home is not necessarily more energy efficient than any other type of houses, but under the right circumstances it can be highly competitive. Many factors affect a home’s energy efficiency, but eliminating air infiltration is one of the most important issues — a drafty wall is a problem, regardless of the type of house. Consequently, one of the most important characteristics of a well-built log wall is that it be airtight. Modern log walls incorporate a variety of different sealing strategies between logs to ensure an airtight fit, including a wide range of tongue-and-groove or spline designs normally used in conjunction with closed-cell foam gasket tape, acrylic chinking, butyl tape or other sealant products.
Another key component of a home’s energy efficiency is the R-value for the walls and roof, a measurement of resistance to heat flow.
Unfortunately, the R-value of an 8-inch log wall is lower than a typical 2-by-4 insulated frame wall. That same log wall, however, performs between 5 percent and 15 percent better than the frame wall for controlling heating and cooling loads over the whole year, according to Bion Howard, president of Building Environmental Science and Technology (www.energybuilder.com), a building consulting firm based in
This benefit, which has been documented in numerous tests, is due to wood’s thermal mass value — its ability to absorb and later re-radiate heat. “Avoid walls of less than 6-inch thickness in most climates, and 8 inches in colder climates, for sufficient thermal protection levels,” Howard says. “Thinner walls do not take advantage of the thermal mass of solid wood.”
Other factors that influence the energy efficiency of a log home include roof insulation, the heating system (preferably a renewable one), appliances (preferably energy efficient) and the home’s orientation to the sun, as well as the placement and type of windows to take maximum advantage of solar heat gain. But the combination of the thermal mass advantage and the cozy ambience of solid wood walls make log homes an attractive choice for many people.
A sense of confidence
Ask any log home owner or future builder what attracted him or her to a log home and you’re sure to find one answer common to them all: the wood. Its natural beauty, its “back to nature” feel, and its wonderful, unmistakable scent are naturally built into every log home and are characteristics not typically found in today’s “traditional” stick-built homes.
The essence of log home living — whether you call it an adventure or a return to nature — is an intensely personal experience. In a log home, you feel at one with the tranquility of the world around you. You experience a unique living environment with all the comfort and convenience of modern amenities.
So arm yourself with the basics and you will soon be on your way to achieving the home of your dreams. Selecting the right manufacturer and contract means you know you’ve placed your log home dream in the hands of a caring, sincere, professional team which will leave you with a feeling of both confidence and comfort.
Mary Weaver is a freelance writer who lives on
Article originally appeared in the Dec/Jan. Issue of Lake and Home Magazine. Part 2 of 3
