A beginners' guide to log homes.Although log homes make up only about one percent of the home building industry's business, they are a hot "growth item" in the industry. They are also a hot topic in government circles (see box) and a hot potato hot potato n. Informal A problem that is so controversial or sensitive that those handling it risk unpleasant consequences: gun control with some environmentalists. R-value vs. thermal mass Thermal mass, in the most general sense, is any mass that absorbs and holds heat. In the architectural sense, it is any mass that absorbs and stores heat during sunny periods when the heat is not desirable in the living space of a building, and then releases the heat during The energy efficiency of log homes is a major subject of controversy, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Becky Howland, an information specialist with the Conservation and Renewable Energy Inquiry and Referral Service (CAREIRS CAREIRS Conversion and Renewable Energy Inquiry and Referral Service ) in Silver Springs, Maryland. The usual measure of a structure's energy efficiency is the R-value (R=resistance to the passage of heat) of its building material. The R-values for logs differ according to the type of wood used--hardwoods have a lower R-value than softwoods--but in general a 6-inch diameter log (an industry standard) has an R-value of between 8 and 9. A conventional wall, insulated with fiberglass and covered with sheathing, siding and wallboard, rates about R-14 or R-15. Logs, then, don,t stack up as deterrents to heat loss the way normal walls do, and therefore aren't energy efficient if an R-value rating is used, says Howland. On the other hand, she notes, logs are great heat storers. Acting as thermal mass, logs store heat when it is sunny and gradually release it when the sun isn't shining. According to a National Bureau of Standards National Bureau of Standards: see National Institute of Standards and Technology. National Bureau of Standards - National Institute of Standards and Technology study, thermal mass can (and in the building codes of many states does) compensate for low R-values when calculating the energy efficiency and heating costs of a log home. Thermal mass ratings can be increased, especially in cooler regions, if careful attention is paid to the placement of windows, patio doors, sidewalks, driveways and landscaping plants, according to the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's book, Site Selection for Solar Access. Air tightness A second major problem with log homes--due to settling, log joining techniques and the chinks between logs, around doors and windows Doors and Windows is a multimedia disk by the Irish band The Cranberries. Track listing
This problem was more-or-less solved in the 1 960s, Howland said, with the invention of structural barriers that keep cold and moisture from creeping in and expensive, heated air from rushing out. However, these barriers--rubberlike splines and gaskets to better align logs; foam padding and chemical caulking caulk·ing n. A usually impermeable substance used for caulking. Also called caulking compound. Noun 1. caulking - a waterproof filler and sealant that is used in building and repair to make watertight caulk to "chink" gaps--are almost all manmade, high-tech, chemical compounds. They tend to outgas out·gas v. out·gassed, out·gas·sing, out·gas·ses v.tr. To remove embedded gas from (a solid), as by heating or reducing the pressure. v.intr. To lose gas, as from a solid. (give off) fumes fumes odorous gases and other volatile materials; inhalation of irritating fumes causes coughing and, if sufficiently severe, irreversible pulmonary edema. that can create a chemical "soup" inside an airtight log home. "For those with allergies or upper respiratory problems, that spells trouble," says Alan Wasco, Director of Communications Director of Communications is a position in the private and public sectors. The Director of Communications is responsible for managing and directing an organization's internal and external communications. at the Cleveland-based Housing Resource Center, "especially in the first couple of years when the house is new." Since the barriers are now used industry-wide, Wasco suggests, "Talk with the builder about the exact nature of the products and your concerns." If there are still questions, or if you're not satisfied with the answers you get, "Contact their manufacturer for the (government mandated) Materials Safety Data Sheet on each product. It will explain the product's chemical make-up and possible health risks." Wood preservatives Cedar and cypress logs are naturally impervious to bugs, fungus and rot. Homes built from them don't need exterior preservatives preservatives, n.pl food additives that hinder spoilage by reducing the growth of microorganisms. Include nitrates and nitrites, benzoates and sulfites, and many others. to protect them from weathering, bug infestation infestation /in·fes·ta·tion/ (-fes-ta´shun) parasitic attack or subsistence on the skin and/or its appendages, as by insects, mites, or ticks; sometimes used to denote parasitic invasion of the organs and tissues, as by helminths. or rot, says Shanna Sheppard, a South Carolina-based expert who has worked in and with the log home industry for 16 years. "Other types of trees, such as pines and spruce, need some type of man-made preservatives and/or treatments to keep bugs, rot, weathering and fungus at bay." Use of such phrases as "manmade preservative preservative Any of numerous chemical additives used to prevent or slow food spoilage caused by chemical changes (e.g., oxidation, mold growth) and maintain a fresh appearance and consistency. Antimycotics (e.g. " and "treatment" push all kinds of hot buttons for environmentalists. Yet the chemical treatments used by the log home building industry to preserve and maintain log home exteriors meet both Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), independent agency of the U.S. government, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1970 to reduce and control air and water pollution, noise pollution, and radiation and to ensure the safe handling and (EPA EPA eicosapentaenoic acid. EPA abbr. eicosapentaenoic acid EPA, n.pr See acid, eicosapentaenoic. EPA, n. ) and National Association of Home Builders The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is one of the largest trade associations in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the association organizes one of the largest conventions in North America, The International Builders' Show, which draws more than , Log Home Council standards. "They are registered and extremely tightly monitored by the EPA... and are safe and nontoxic to the environment," Sheppard says. Wasco points out, however, that these preservatives may con tribute to the make-up of the chemical soup that could be generated in an airtight log home. Consequently, he suggests that potential log home owners check with the builder about these chemicals, too. Log use Many conservationists feel that the log home building industry's use of whole, unmilled logs for building is sheer gluttony Gluttony See also Greed. Belch, Sir Toby gluttonous and lascivious fop. [Br. Lit.: Twelfth Night] Biggers, Jack one of the best known “feeders” of eighteenth-century England. [Br. Hist. . It may surprise these "greens" to learn that many in the log home building industry feel the same way. "Logs are a precious resource and need to be carefully husbanded," says Walter F. Omiecinski, president of American Custom Cedar Homes in Penninsula, Ohio. Research is constantly being done, and innovative techniques are being implemented, "to stretch logs as far as they will go," he adds. In many cases, he says, that means aiming for a total log look, but achieving it with fewer logs. For instance, he says, the patented system his company uses mills (saws) a log so that four--five if it's a large log--rounded sides can come off the log. That means the log homes he builds use only 25% of the logs it looks like they are using. Another equally innovative technique uses smaller (but more available) logs for building, then backs them up with insulation that brings their R-values up to the mid-20s range. "The technology is hidden, but the homeowner still gets energy efficiency, long term savings and the log home look." Many log home purists and builders do not use such log stretching techniques, says John H. Harper, editor of Log Home Guide magazine."(They) think that traditional, American, log home building techniques should be used." Everything but the squeal Many ecologically-minded people assume there is a lot of waste attached to the building of a log home. However, for both ecological and economic reasons, recycling has become the name of the game in log home building. At the sawmill sawmill, installation or facility in which cut logs are sawed into standard-sized boards and timbers. The saws used in such an installation are generally of three types: the circular saw, which consists of a disk with teeth around its edge; the band saw, which , bark is recycled into mulch; sapwood sapwood, relatively thin, youngest, outer part of the woody stem of a tree, the part that conducts water and dissolved materials. In the cross section of a tree, the sapwood is recognizable by its texture and color; it is softer and lighter than the inner heartwood. scraps become shipping pallets; sawdust and chips are sold to make pressboard press·board n. 1. A heavy glazed paper or pasteboard used especially to cover the platen or cylinder of a printing press. 2. A small ironing board. or paper. When cedar logs are milled, sapwood is cut into thin veneers to line cedar closets; chips and curls go into pet bedding or drawer sachets; sawdust is sold as industrial spill clean-up material. At the building site, when logs are cut and notched or squared off, chips are collected for paper mills or particle board particle board: see composition board. factories and leftover log sections are recycled into upcoming projects. Like their timber, cinder cin·der n. 1. a. A burned or partly burned substance, such as coal, that is not reduced to ashes but is incapable of further combustion. b. A partly charred substance that can burn further but without flame. block or I-beam framed brothers, log homes come with ecological pluses and minuses. Properly built, they are a long lasting, ecologically sound investment in the future; improperly built, they can be a source of never-ending aggravation... just like any other home. For more information: Log Home Guide magazine/Log Home Guide Directory, Rt.2 Box 581, Cosby TN 37722; ph 1-800-345-5647 Log Home Living magazine, Home Buyer Publications, 4451 Brookfield Corporate Dr., Suite 101, Chantilly VA 22021; ph 1-800-826-3893 Log Home Construction Guide, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Room 6266, 415 Seventh St. SW, Washington DC 20410 Conservation and Renewable Energy Inquiry and Referral Service, Box 8900, Silver Springs MD 20907; ph 1800-523-2929 National Association of Home Builders, Log Homes Council, 1201 15th St NW, Washington DC 20005; ph. 1800-368-5242, Ext. 162 Books: Build Your Own Log Home From Scratch, 2nd Edition, S. Duncan 30 Steps to a Complete Log Home, G. A. Felch The Energy, Economics and Thermal Performance of Log Houses, D. Muir and P. Osborne Your Log House, Vic Janzen Chrono-log-y of the log home: Log homes got their start in Northern Europe, where the seemingly endless forests and long, cold w demanded that people build homes with what they found at hand. Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Norw Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany, and the new nations of the ex-Soviet Union are dotted with old lo halls, lodges and churches. The Scandinavians took log home building to its heights in Europe. The Finns even developed a maso system (contra flow) for their log homes that allowed them to use floor-level soffit-like heat ducts Swedes and Finns began migrating to North America in 1638. Settling in Delaware, they built the na Euro-style log houses. (Note: Cherokee Indians, in the Carolinas and Georgia, developed a Native Ame of log home.) Next Northern Germans migrated to Pennsylvania and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , where they built square-cut timber lo homes. Their blockhaus style, with its dovetailed corners, became a typical style for log homes: tod from Pennsylvania to Texas to Canada. The kind of log home we think of when we think "log house"--the Abe Lincoln cabin of saddle-notche logs--was not common in Europe: there such a building was used as a barn. However, in the United Sta Abe's cabin became a popular style as 19th century immigrants and native-born Americans moved west. (unpeeled Un`peeled a. 1. Thoroughly stripped; pillaged. 2. Not peeled. ) log homes were easy to build, and trees were plentiful. In the north, winters killed off decay, and in the Southwest the dry climate also delayed decay. Only in the deep South, where climat insects attacked logs almost as soon as they were in place, were log homes not the norm as settlers Log homes stayed the rude hut, the poor man's dwelling, with walls chinked chink 1 n. A narrow opening, such as a crack or fissure. tr.v. chinked, chink·ing, chinks 1. To make narrow openings in. 2. To fill narrow openings in. with everything from cl and pig's blood, until the back-to-nature movement started in the '60s. "It is as if. . . solid wall with nature," says Stephen Biggs, President of the Log Home Council and president of Town & Country Homes, one of the largest log home builders in the United States. Today, the fuel that is driving the log home-building industry is no less emotional. Log homes rem independence, fortitude, and self-reliance that helped create our nation, and they are reminiscent o lifestyle that is disappearing over the horizon even as Americans, in search of the mythical Marlbor out for it with both hands. HUD Hud (h  d), a pre-Qur'anic prophet of Islam. Hud unsuccessfully exhorted his South Arabian people, the Ad, to worship the One God. , log home industry, developing guides
Log homes have become so popular that many people are applying for FHA loans to build or buy them. In response to this situation, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is working with the log home building industry to develop a set of generic construction guides on log homes for its field and service representatives and offices. The guides will examine many topics: log moisture content; log shrinkage; settling in log walls; the use of caulks and sealants; fastening systems; water drainage; design; initial preservation techniques for logs; and long-term maintenance of log homes. The purpose of the guides is not to regulate the log home building industry, says a HUD representative. "It is to outline the legitimate concerns that FHA-financed log home buyers might encounter." For more information on the Log Home Construction Guide, contact HUD, Room 6266, 451 7th St. SW, Washington DC 20410 |
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