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Samstag, 12. Dezember 2009

Buying a Home Log Cabin - What you need to know

By Spencer Wilkins

The actual price that you pay for having log cabins built will not only depend on its size, but also the logs used to build it. Some cabins will be constructed using handcrafted logs and can prove to be extremely expensive. Whilst if you are looking for a cheaper alternative then select one that is made using hand milled logs instead.

In this article, we explain some more about the differences between milled and handcrafted logs. This will help you to make a more informed decision as to which is the best option for you. Milled logs are those which have either been passed through a sawmill, planer or lathe to get them to the right lengths and widths. These as you will soon find generally are of a much more uniformed size and profile.

Also, logs, which have been milled for a cabin, will have been air or kiln, dried to remove any excess moisture before construction begins. This will ensure that sufficient amounts of moisture have been removed and prevent the possibility of the building shrinking too much once the wood dries out further.

The actual surface of these kinds of logs will be flat on the top and bottom of each one and they may also have been coped. In some cases, a tongue and groove joint will also have been inserted so that actually assembling the cabin together is a lot easier. Plus it helps to make a much more rigid and strong. These logs can be left with a rougher side to offer a more rustic look but can also be sanded smooth.

The most favoured types of woods, which are commonly used to produce milled logs for cabins, are pine, cedar, spruce or fir. The least expensive type of log cabin using the milled process are ones that are made from pine or spruce whilst those from cedar tend to be the most expensive.

As for handcrafted logs, these will have been prepared by being hand peeled using either a drawknife or through the use of water. The actual logs themselves when being prepared are green and will only have been cut and hauled a few days or weeks before. Unlike milled logs these are allowed to air dry only as kiln drying is a very expensive process, as these need to be dried whilst they are still their full lengths after cutting.

Just like with milled log cabins those who make handcrafted ones like to use pine and spruce trees. However, there are some log cabin manufacturers who prefer to use either Douglas fir, Oak, Juniper, Cyprus or Alpine Fir (True Firs) instead.

As mentioned the cost you pay for buying and having log cabins constructed will not only depend on the way in which the logs have been prepared. You also need to take into consideration the size of the cabin you are having built. The bigger the cabin then the more labour intensive and the more logs will be needed in order to build it. If you want to save money but would like a large cabin then you are better off going for milled rather than handcrafted logs.

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