Different Styles of Log Homes

Milled Round Log: Logs are machined to the same diameter.  Depending on the product, log diameter could be as little as 6″ or as large as 16″. Our standard thickness is 12″. 12″ diameter of pine is equivalent to R-25 insulative value. Corners are round-notched & the lengths are either tongue & groove, flat-on-flat, or swedish cope.  Milled homes are made of pieces (8-16’ lengths) or full-length logs. Spikes, timber screws, or thru-bolts are used in milled homes to secure the logs together. The main advantage of a milled log home is cost. Less labor is needed to machine a house compared to a handcrafted one, resulting in comparable costs to wood-frame construction.

Milled Timber: Logs are machined to the same thickness in timber (square or rectangular) form. Depending on the product,  timber thickness could be as small as 6″ x 6″ or as large as 10″ x 10″. Our standard profile is 8″ x 12″. 8″ thickness in a pine timber is equivalent to R-20 insulative value. Corners are either Dove-tail, Saddle Notch, or Butt n’ Pass. Lengths are tongue & grooved or flat-on-flat. Milled homes are made of pieces (8-16’ lengths) or full-length logs. Spikes or timber screws are used in milled homes to secure the pieces together. The main advantage of a milled log home is cost. Less labor is needed to machine a house compared to a handcrafted one.

Hand-Crafted Round Log: Logs are kept in their natural form (excluding the bark), retaining their natural taper and appearance. Logs are normally hand-peeled with the help of a drawknife. Full length logs are used & average diameter is 14-16”.

Scandinavian Full Scribe: Round logs are scribed (by hand), together, throughout the entire building (corners and longitudinal grooves). An expandable gasket and wool insulation is normally placed within each corner and groove.  With proper construction tecnique, the logs will rest tightly together with no need to ever chink.

Scribe Fit Chink Style: Round logs are scribed (by hand) together in the corners only. Longitudinal grooves are sealed (on both sides) with an insulative chinking material. The chinking rests on foam gaskets placed between the logs & if properly applied, will be permanently attached to the logs.  This type of home is the least expensive of handcrafted homes since only the corners are scribed & notched, not the grooves.

Piece-en-Piece: This style uses a combination of vertical posts & horizontal logs. Posts are placed in the corners & may be placed within the length of each wall. Between posts could be either sections of full log (as in the picture below) or a combination log & wood-framed walls. Piece-en-Piece is a versatile method to use when long lengths are not available.

Hand-Crafted Timber: Round logs are converted into squared timber retaining the natural taper of the tree (large at on end, smaller at the other). Sides of the log may be removed either by bandsaw, chainsaw, or axe… which ever finish or appearance is preferred. Full length logs are used & average thickness is 10”.

Timber Dove-Tail: Logs are squared by bandsaw, chainsaw or axe. Timbers are dove-tail notched in the corners with the longitudinal grooves capped with an insulative chinking material. Behind the chinking should be a foam gasket or backer rod with an additional backer rod in the center. With this procedure, the gap between the logs is well insulated and performs better than a thermal-pane window. The dovetail notch is the most authentic one of all…it has been around for centuries. The dovetail is also believed to be the strongest type of notch in log construction…as the building settles, it actually becomes tighter over time.

The main advantages for handcrafted homes are:

• Size of the logs: large diameter = large thermal mass = greater insulation & less heating costs.
• Aesthetics: more authentic look with naturally tapered logs

With proper building techniques & construction practices,  all types of log homes listed above have the potential to be as efficient as each other (of the same category) and 30% to 50% more efficient than typical conventional construction (wood-framed).