Log stacking

An exciting part of the log home project is when you actually begin stacking the logs. Following are a few of the tricks we used for log stacking, some of which are standard practice, and some are not. First if you look at the log profile, they are built so that only the front and back lips are resting on the log below. The center part of the log is cut about 1/8” deeper than the edges, so that you will have a bit of air space between the logs. That's a good feature except in the case of the very bottom log which rests on the floor and not on another log. The front and back edges aren't much more than 1/2” in width, and if you think of all the thousands of pounds that will be stacked on top of the log before you're done, that isn't much surface area for it all to be riding on. In order to better distribute the weight pressure on the bottom row of logs, we made 1/8” shims the width of the gap between the grooves, and tacked these in place with finishing nails. That was a simple fix that worked well.

Once a log is in place, we attached it to the surface or log below with 10” TimberLok FastenMaster screws. To keep these straight, we drilled a pilot hole first, (see portaline photo), which seems like an extra step, but I think it saves time in the long run, because it makes it so easy to get the screw to go straight in exactly how you want it (even for me). These were spaced every couple feet or so along the logs. We learned to make a light pencil mark on the back of the log indicating where the screws were, so when the log above was installed, we wouldn't inadvertently place a screw directly over the one below and run into it; it's so irritating when that happens. In the photo of the Bessey clamps, you'll notice we used simple 2x4 jigs which were very effective for holding the log faces even while the logs were screwed together.

Before one log is stacked on another, self-adhesive foam strips are run along the length of the tongues on the lower log, which will create an insulation barrier to prevent air movement through the logs from outside to inside. Where two logs meet together end to end, first the back edges were routered to create a 45 degree bevel, which makes the joints look very nice (see photo). Because we were cutting off the waxed ends of the logs, we generously coated the log ends with Sikkens, the product we used to protect and waterproof the logs. This helps slow down drying and shrinkage. We've found that the more slowly wood dries, the less prone it will be to warping and twisting. Once logs are in place, it was often my job to use the hammer drill with a one inch corkscrew drill bit to drill a hole centered between the two logs where the ends met together. I used a jig so I could drill straight, and so I wouldn't drill too deep. We heard stories of people sending the bit out the side of the log when drilling “free hand”. Next I'd vacuum out the wood chips and fill the hole with “Log Builder” log putty. The last step is to shove a peg (cut to fit in a one inch hole and the same height as the log) into the putty. This forces the putty into any gaps between the logs and creates an air seal so wind can't find its way between the logs. It also kind of glues the logs together as you will find if you ever have to take it apart later. Let's hope you won't.

I'll address joints and corners in another entry, but I will mention here that another advantage of the minimally shrinking laminated logs is that absolutely no chinking was required on the house. Although, it probably wasn't necessary, we have used log putty to fill any gaps (usually less than 1/16”) that sometimes occur between the logs, but it is nothing that would be visible to anyone else. We've heard lots of comments from people who say they don't like log homes because of the air gaps, dust and spiders that they accommodate, but those aren't an issue at all with this system (at least no more so than any ordinary house).