Handcrafted Log Homes

Handcrafted log homes generally settle 8″ to 16″ over time. (notice the 8″ slips over the windows in photo on left).The major factor when considering a handcrafted log home is the supplier of your log package. There are some suppliers providing logs for handcrafted homes that will not settle like the majority of providers out there. Here is a home in Maine ( 2 lower photos) where the log package did come in very dry and has had no settling in the last few years.

Handcrafted homes make up a very small percentage of log homes being built here in the U.S. around 20-25%. I guess the best way to describe it is that some people like vanilla and some like chocolate. One just costs more than the other.

Manufacturers of handcrafted homes take raw logs that have been air drying for at least 6 months to a year and use a special knife to remove the bark.  This gives the logs an irregular look called hand-hewn or drawknife; this is another reason why these homes are very expensive because all the work is done by a craftsman by hand. Manufacturers can use different size logs in the walls since they construct the home in the mill yard before shipping to make sure all the pieces fit. During shipping of the package there will be some shrinkage where the contractor will have to re-fit the logs and re-cut saddle notches on location. As they put up the logs the builder uses lag bolts or wooden dowels to fasten logs together. This method is time consuming adds in labor more labor costs.

Moisture content will vary from one end of a log to the other and will dry at different rates causing gaps between each log making it mandatory to chink the home. *note see section on Moisture Content and Chinking*.

Not to be misleading, there are a few handcrafted log home manufacturers that do it right. These few craftsmen can provide a beautiful log home with very little settling. These are the craftsmen that do one thing and do it right. You will notice several milled log home manufacturer’s trying to do it all, it just doesn’t work that way. Pick a handcrafter who only wants to do his specialty, handcrafting beautiful log homes. They know their trade and have the skills to construct homes with very little settling.

If you select the wrong manufacturer for your handcrafted log home, your home may be one of those that will have wall logs with high moisture content developing gaps between the log and you will have to chink.

Handcrafted homes are beautiful, but you need to budget for future expensive maintenance for years to come if you select the wrong handcrafter. Chinking will have to be chiseled out and replaced inside your home and outside every 5 – 6 years depending on where you build your home and the manufacturer quality provided.

In the long run as the handcrafted log walls shrink in diameter they will pull away from the chinking developing gaps between the log and chink. If you live in an area with lots of rain or snow the water will reservoir in those gaps promoting decay on the fibers of the log.

Please make note that the determining factor on if your handcrafted or milled log home package will shrink, is by the amount of moisture content left in the logs. You must research each manufacturer and talk to previous customers and builders to help you know more about the quality of product.