Mother's 1986 Low Cost Home Building Contest
(Page 2 of 3)
May/June 1986
By the Mother Earth News editors
The foundation, as we mentioned, consists of posts; they are spaced 5' on center along the 20' walls and 8' on center along the 40' sides. Each treated 6 X 6 was planted in concrete-made from one 80-pound bag of cement-that was poured into a hole extending below the frost line. Above the cement the posts were packed with dirt. Logs flattened on parallel sides form the sills that run around the building's perimeter. These timbers over- hang the posts by 1-1/2", so that the treated tongue-and-groove 2 X 8s used to close in the crawl space fit flush. Rather than insulate the floor, the Marquardts placed 6" fiberglass against the inside of the crawl space walls.
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Main beams of logs with two parallel sides flattened run the 40' dimension, while floor joists span the 20' dimension on 4' centers and are notched into the sills. Exterior walls rise from the sills in conventional log-building fashion. (See our 19-page mini-manual, "Building the Traditional Hewn-Log Home," in issue 94 for a detailed explanation of log construction.) The corners are dovetail-notched together, and the tapers of logs on alternating courses are run in oppo site directions to keep the walls level. Everyone pitched in to lift logs onto the wall-with the aid of a huge log tripod equipped with block and tackle that straddled each wall. From the posts to the peak, all logs are tied together where appropriate with ring-shank nails and lag screws.
The loft floor was built in much the same way as the main one, but there's only a single main beam running the 40' direction. Joists are, again, notched into the sills and run 4' on center. Only the tops of the loft joists are flattened, however, and the oak flooring for the loft serves as the ceiling for the first floor.
Sills made from logs flattened on three sides—with the rounded side in—sit on top of the loft flooring. In turn, log rafters on 2' centers have 3" bird's-mouths that allow them to rest on the square outside corners of the sills. To seal between the rafters, 2 X 6s were mitered on top (to match the 45-degree roof angle) and notched into the rafters. On top of this sturdy arrangement rests an insulated, vented roofing system that's rated better than R-40 (see ceiling cutaway).
Windows and doors often make up one of the single largest expenses in home construction, but the Marquardts headed off this budget bleeder by building their own. To simplify fabrication, all 12 windows—with 24 sashes, counting the identical storm windowsare the same size. The inside sashes are hinged on one side and open in, while the storms are placed from the outside and are latched for the winter. Come spring, the storms are removed and replaced with screens. The two exterior doors are built up with oak frames and roughcut fir diagonals on a 1/2" plywood foundation.
