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An Older Handcrafted Log Home
Posted by GuestPoster in -Home and Furnishings
When looking at building a new log home it is always best to do your research. Planning on which style, wood species, and size home are all details which go into the formula. Taking some time to also view older handcrafted log homes is wise. With this as one of the oldest forms of construction there are many examples around.
For handcrafted log homes the two types are chinking style and Scandinavian full scribe methods. No matter if the logs are left round on the interior and exterior of the home or if they are hand hewn square, the main tell tale is how they stack and the detail of the corner.
A chinking style log home most frequently has the logs milled or cut flat on the top and bottom. Then the logs are stacked up and chinking is used to seal between the logs. There is both the wide chinking, as seen in the Appalachian style eastern homes, or a thinner round of chinking. Appalachian style has every other log stacked and a row of chinking the same width as a log. Many times the corners are dovetailed. For narrower chinking the corner style is commonly butt and pass. There is no over lap of log on log.
With Scandinavian Full Scribe the logs stack with a slight Swedish Cope curve to the under side of the logs. Each log is cut with a V groove shaped column cut into the underside of the logs. The corners are a full saddle notch, meaning that the end of each log is visible on both sides of the corner. No chinking is needed for a full scribed home. The logs cleave more tightly together over time.
All logs will shrink some. When the logs are not predisposed to cleaving more closely together, they instead pull further apart. So chinker homes have two strikes against them. They not only depend on chinking to seal out bug, critters, and the west wind, but then over time the logs settle and pull against each other. No matter if the it is a big log home or a small cabin, the same techniques are used on all of them.
When you view older homes be sure to take a look at the corners. Are they still tight or can you see day light out of them. For the log walls, are there gaps where the chinking is pulling away? Does the home still look new? Is the homeowner happy with their older log home? Can you feel any air movement on a windy day inside the home or along the walls? These are always very important questions to contemplate before building new handcrafted log homes.
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