Log Home vs Traditional Construction

[GunsAreFun]

I recently purchased an off grid property (60 acres). It has about 40 acres of mature white oaks. In the next 1-3 years, I would like to build a 300-400 sq ft cabin. Something relatively simple. It’s not a primary home. I’m looking into either a log cabin construction or harvesting some trees and having them milled for a traditional stick build. Either way, I think I’m significantly cost positive with higher quality white oak vs buying inflated crap framing lumber from a store.

For anyone that has done something similar, what are some things I should look consider before choosing a construction method? I’m especially interested in anyone that has used their own timber.

Some notes to consider:
1. Low maintenance is a high priority.
2. This will be off grid. Will have a well drilled, run solar for lights, wood or propane stove for heat, and solar for basic electrical needs (phone charging and other small stuff, and have generator hookup for summer to run AC.
3. Will probably hire out the construction work or most of it due to time/family constraints. I would probably do much of the finishes myself over time once a weatherproof structure is in place.
4. Would want to use onsite timber.

 

[tdhanses]

I’d look more into having your limber milled and building a timber framed cabin, I also would increase the size to 600-800sqft unless it’ll only ever be you out there.

If you have time buy your own saw mill.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

I'd seriously consider buying a woodmizer. By the time you cut, skid, haul, pay for to have custom cut, then haul back you'll have as much or more than you could into a bandsaw mill.

If you want maint free an actual log cabin/home is not what you're looking for. Even using oak you'll have maint & chinking

 

[GunsAreFun]

I’d look more into having your limber milled and building a timber framed cabin, I also would increase the size to 600-800sqft unless it’ll only ever be you out there.

If you have time buy your own saw mill.

Why timber frame vs stick or traditional log?

 

[GunsAreFun]

I'd seriously consider buying a woodmizer. By the time you cut, skid, haul, pay for to have custom cut, then haul back you'll have as much or more than you could into a bandsaw mill.

If you want maint free an actual log cabin/home is not what you're looking for. Even using oak you'll have maint & chinking

Is it more maintenance than having siding that needs to be painted and/or replaced every 15-30 years or after a hailstorm?

Nothing is maintenance free except for maybe a new shipping container cabin lol.

 

[Okhotnik]

I recently purchased an off grid property (60 acres). It has about 40 acres of mature white oaks. In the next 1-3 years, I would like to build a 300-400 sq ft cabin. Something relatively simple. It’s not a primary home. I’m looking into either a log cabin construction or harvesting some trees and having them milled for a traditional stick build. Either way, I think I’m significantly cost positive with higher quality white oak vs buying inflated crap framing lumber from a store.

For anyone that has done something similar, what are some things I should look consider before choosing a construction method? I’m especially interested in anyone that has used their own timber.

Some notes to consider:
1. Low maintenance is a high priority.
2. This will be off grid. Will have a well drilled, run solar for lights, wood or propane stove for heat, and solar for basic electrical needs (phone charging and other small stuff, and have generator hookup for summer to run AC.
3. Will probably hire out the construction work or most of it due to time/family constraints. I would probably do much of the finishes myself over time once a weatherproof structure is in place.
4. Would want to use onsite timber.

Definitely stick built over log construction. Lived in a big custom log home 16 years. All neighbors had log homes. We all came to the conclusion never do a log home again. Insurance rates, maintenance, heating, cooling, getting a mortgage etc. This out west . Ran well pump on a separate gas generator. Water was gravity fed from a 1000 gal cistern sat up the mountain from house.

I had a 1000 gal propane tank used for some heat, run generator, cooking, gas dryer, gas hot water heater. I don't think it is very practical to run an AC off of a generator. I ran a swamp cooler, but this was in high desert area.

Don't forget about a big battery bank to store energy. Kind of tough to live low maintenance off of the grid based on my experience and live comfortably. But depends how time you will live there.

 

[SuperDUECE22]

stick built, steel siding & roofing and spray foamed

 

[backcountry_hunter]

Is it more maintenance than having siding that needs to be painted and/or replaced every 15-30 years or after a hailstorm?

Nothing is maintenance free except for maybe a new shipping container cabin lol.

Short answer is yes. Real log structures that the owner wants to keep in good shape usually require some amount of annual maint. But basically "it depends" how rustic you're keeping this place. You could slap together a trapper style cabin so to speak, do the bare minimum and probably be okay. The pros are, especially if you leave your logs live edge nature will be your preservative and the investment won't be so great that when it comes time to replace or re-cycle it's cost effective to do so. The problem is most want a rustic-looking log cabin that is actually really nice for their own creature comforts, so they expose wood grain then it sits in the sun and bakes, splits, and needs to be dealt with. If your in a winter climate you'll have some shrinking/expanding/shifting also. Growing up working on homes I thought cedar siding was the dumbest thing to ever put on a house.... then I dealt with a log home.

In your situation, because you said maint free as possible I would do the timber frame structure (it should almost be illegal to do a stick build with whiteoak just to hide it with sheetrock) and put maint free siding on the exterior.

 

[Mt Al]

Not an expert, but all I've heard about log home owners, the very few I know, is that the home owns them, they don't own the home. Log homes look cool, are nostalgic, some people have a hobby/love/appreciation for log homes and good on them. For low maintenance, utilities, etc., my understanding is stick built.

My friend restored a log home and was going to add more log-home square feet to it. He restored the log part and vowed to never do another square foot of log home structure. The rest of the addition was stick built with log siding.

 

[tdhanses]

Why timber frame vs stick or traditional log?

Timber framing has so much more character and you have plenty of wood that the cost would be minimal, traditional stick framing is the cheapest option if your buying the wood.

 

[tdhanses]

Is it more maintenance than having siding that needs to be painted and/or replaced every 15-30 years or after a hailstorm?

Nothing is maintenance free except for maybe a new shipping container cabin lol.

Yes, you have to keep up on staining every few years as well.

 

[GunsAreFun]

Definitely stick built over log construction. Lived in a big custom log home 16 years. All neighbors had log homes. We all came to the conclusion never do a log home again. Insurance rates, maintenance, heating, cooling, getting a mortgage etc. This out west . Ran well pump on a separate gas generator. Water was gravity fed from a 1000 gal cistern sat up the mountain from house.

I had a 1000 gal propane tank used for some heat, run generator, cooking, gas dryer, gas hot water heater. I don't think it is very practical to run an AC off of a generator. I ran a swamp cooler, but this was in high desert area.

Don't forget about a big battery bank to store energy. Kind of tough to live low maintenance off of the grid based on my experience and live comfortably. But depends how time you will live there.

Thanks. I know the utility situation won’t be as efficient as being on a grid, but this place will 90% be used in fall and winter for hunting and heated with probably a wood stove.

I’m ok running a generator for 10 days a year for AC.

stick built, steel siding & roofing and spray foamed

That spray foam seems like the bees knees for insulation and adding rigidity.

(it should almost be illegal to do a stick build with whiteoak just to hide it with sheetrock) and put maint free siding on the exterior.

Lol. I’m a function/cost over looks kind of person. But maybe I could do white oak shiplap in the interior instead of Sheetrock. I freaking hate mudding and sanding Sheetrock…HATE IT

 

[tdhanses]

Thanks. I know the utility situation won’t be as efficient as being on a grid, but this place will 90% be used in fall and winter for hunting and heated with probably a wood stove.

I’m ok running a generator for 10 days a year for AC.


That spray foam seems like the bees knees for insulation and adding rigidity.

Lol. I’m a function/cost over looks kind of person. But maybe I could do white oak shiplap in the interior instead of Sheetrock. I freaking hate mudding and sanding Sheetrock…HATE IT

You should just sell the white oak and use the funds for a stick frame really if all you want is function, don’t ruin that white oak.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

One thing to note also (I'm thinking about it as if I were bidding the job) if you told me as the contractor I would be framing up a cabin and building rafters out of rough cut oak that hasn't been kiln dried I would bid the job significantly higher than if i could order rafters and frame it out of pine. I've known several people that have framed building out of greenwood they cut themselves however, they did the work. If I was bidding that job it would cost you more to have me frame it out of whiteoak than it would to buy 2x4's from Lowes.....

And my help would hate me if I told them we were framing a home out of oak.....

 

[Mcnasty]

For what its worth my experience having owned a "log Cabin" for about 10 years in Colorado is this. Check your insurance first first this my drive your whole project. It was very difficult to ensure my cabin and we ended up with Loyds of London (funny I know) and its expensive relatively speaking. Either way you will have to treat the logs every so often. This could be every other year or every 5 years or so depending sun and weather exposure. Log or not, design is really important when it comes to your snow and water management as well as sun exposure. Think about what it will be like with a winters worth of snow on the ground. I wanted a south facing front door to ease in the snow removal which is all good except the roof ridge run east west with doors on the north and south. This roughly translates to all the roof snow dumping on the front and back decks. If you are not there to clear it, it will become hard pack, sit on your logs or what ever and greatly speed the process of breaking them down. If I was to build that house today I would probably still go logs but I would use stone or concrete at least 4 feet from the ground and change the orientation of how the roof loads and dumps the snow. A tin roof will shed snow but will condensate and drip almost everyday. There are pros and cons of gutters depending on the climate but I would not want them if I was not there to keep them cleared and did not have power to keep them from freezing clogging and causing more problems. Also consider the size of the overhang in the roof you want to ensure the eve is large enough and the foundation high enough to keep the dripping from just splashing back on the logs when it hits the ground keeping moisture off the logs is the #1 issue to how often you have to mess with them. One last thing I though of... the wood stove... spend some time here to find one that is well matched for your size cabin, big enough to run all night so you don't have to feed it constantly but has enough adjustment to really lock it down for less heat, a stifling hot cabin is no fun either. Cheers and good luck.

 

[Doc Holliday]

We have a log cabin that was built in 1937.....so 84 years going. The original logs all came off the property.....pine though, not oak. The logs were all thoroughly soaked in giant vats of linseed oil prior to construction. We have not had any major issues at all with the wood, and we really don't do any annual maintenance at all.

I would recommend the following:

- Allow for a tall crawlspace underneath the cabin tall enough for you to stand up. This will allow for you to install plumbing pipes, as well as room for HVAC and ductwork down the line.

- Dig a moat (and then concrete it) that the roofline drains to, around the entire structure, and have it all connect and drain downhill to keep moisture away from the structure.

What state are you in?

I cut some timber last year, so I'm not a tree hugger by any stretch of the imagination, but it would break my heart to see any white oak cut.....I hope maybe you can find some other timber to use

 

[loganwayne]

i grew up in a log cabin, my dad built cabins for a living and we did restoration work on cabins before i went to college. i still do log work on the side.
1. log cabins require alot to keep up. if you have a tree with in 10-15 ft of house it will cause mold on logs.
2. R value sucks- may not be a big deal for a hunt cabin. R value for hardwoods like oak is .71 per inch. 6" wall will get you 19.2 with standard batts.
3. Milling logs are going use way more timber than having it milled.
4. your gonna want big over hangs for logs on a cabin in the woods 3-4'

there are several different kinds of log cabins and all have advantages and disadvantages.
-Scribe fit logs will still need to chinked (extra $$$) and have alot of wood on wood contact and still have the softer outer layers of wood but are my favorite probably the highest in up keep.
- Dove tail cabins will need to be chinked as well as milled on at least 2 sides. (4 is better) this is the traditional cabin style brought to US by Europeans and common in the South East. i have a barn that was built in 1840s that is still standing, and will need some work this year but still in good shape.


also working on a cabin that no one took care of and now the new owner has a huge bill from replacing logs.

 

[Grumman]

My best friend built a cabin twenty years ago. After spending all of his summers building scaffold to maintain it he finally had enough. Last year he bricked all but the front that faces the road.

 

[GunsAreFun]

You should just sell the white oak and use the funds for a stick frame really if all you want is function, don’t ruin that white oak.

Last I checked though, lumber prices were unreal and timber prices stagnant. I’d be selling an asset low and buying another high.

 

[tdhanses]

Last I checked though, lumber prices were unreal and timber prices stagnant. I’d be selling an asset low and buying another high.

Yeah but you want function/cost, white oak isn’t pine which are the futures most look at or timber prices.

That white oak would buy you your lumber and not be ruined for stick framing. Truthfully you probably would cut half of it to fund the project then you would to build it, your destroying an asset to use it for stick framing, go see how many 2x4 or 2x6 white oak boards are at any of your local hardware stores.

If you use it for timbers or even if you do a hybrid where you have a timber or post and beam frame with the white oak and then stick frame with pine you’ll have character, not destroy an asset and reduce costs.