Choosing a Log Home

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A wide range of milled packages are on the market, according to Rob Pickett, who operates a log home consulting firm in Hartland, Vt. “Some milled logs are produced and shipped to the construction site, where the builder is on his or her own — not necessarily a problem for an experienced contractor,” he says. “At the other end of the spectrum are highly evolved packages of pre-cut materials that arrive on the job site, all ready to be assembled with the help of detailed instructions.”

Some manufacturers offer training sessions, and sometimes the representative who sold the package is involved in the construction or is available for technical assistance. Some packages include virtually everything needed to erect the house, some do not. As long as you do your homework in advance and work with a reputable manufacturer, a milled log home can be a solid, long-term investment that will appreciate in value with the passage of time.

Handcrafted log homes, on the other hand, are produced from whole logs by artisans. The logs are individually selected for placement in the structure and usually hand peeled. They may be green (freshly cut) or dried.

“Green wood is easier to work with and carve, but taking more time with harder, drier wood gives you the same results in the long run,” says Robèrt Savignac, executive director of the International Log Builders’ Association (ILBA) in Lumby, British Columbia.

The difference is when green wood is used, a greater allowance needs to be made for settling. Whether handcrafters use green or dried wood, they then carefully fit the logs to each other to ensure a structurally sound, weather-tight wall system.

After the entire shell is completed, it is disassembled and shipped to the homeowner’s site. Often, a member of the crew who originally built the shell oversees its reconstruction. Some handcrafters bring the entire crew along. A four-year, 7,000-hour apprenticeship program sponsored by trade organizations and provincial authorities for log home construction now exists in British Columbia — this is intended to assure both the homeowner and the industry that handcrafters follow proper construction procedures in the province. The ILBA also publishes a comprehensive set of Log Building Standards for its members.

The most obvious difference between a handcrafted log home and its milled counterpart is appearance. The handcrafted log home normally uses larger, whole logs that often retain their natural taper. The handcrafted home also is a more individualized project that often contains custom designs, such as unusual stairways, fireplace mantles or ornamental structural features (although these items also can be found in, or added to, a manufactured log home). Because of the significant amount of custom labor involved, handcrafted log homes tend to be more expensive than their mechanically milled alternatives.

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