answers to Frequently Asked Questions about solid wooden houses
Frequently asked questions
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Find additional information about massive wooden houses quickly
We are aware of the fact that clients want to get as much information as possible, as quickly as possible, and that is why questions are grouped together according to related topics.
You can find answers to frequently asked questions below.
If you have any additional questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
Details about the construction of log houses
How long do log homes last?
Many people have second thoughts about wood and its durability. How long will your wooden house last?
If it is ensured that the wood is not is direct contact with humidity and there is regular maintenance, then a house can last for generations to come.
There are quite a few historic wooden houses in Slovenia. The oldest one being the Kavčnik Homestead dating back to the 17th century.
There are many wooden buildings in Europe that are more than 800 years old and are still in use. The oldest wooden structure in the world is the Hōryū-ji Temple (Japan) which was built in the 7th century AD.
How do you get to your first draft of the house plan?
Some clients know exactly what they want, as well as what their house is going to look like, and others don’t.
In our experience, the quickest and easiest way to creating a house plan is when we all meet – the investor, the design engineer and the building contractor. That takes approximately one to three meetings.
At these meetings we determine:
- your wishes and expectations,
- actual construction possibilities,
- legal limitations (depending on the location of the construction)
- and possible financial restrictions.
After that we (along with the design engineer) can provide a complete house plan and the cost of your new wooden house.
How do we source quality timber?
It is our aim here at Natural Log House to preserve the tradition and knowledge of the past and combine it with the expertise of contemporary construction. We are a family business that has been involved with the woodcraft tradition for a few generations already. There is a log cabin that was built in 1790 on our homestead.
When we harvest timber, we take into consideration that the trees are cut down in the winter time when the moon is in the right phase.
We cut the wood for your new house when the sap in the trees is at its lowest. This means that the most appropriate time for felling is in the winter (from September to March) when the trees are dormant.
The wood is cut during the waning moon in Pisces. This is when the wood is resistant to pests.
What types of wood do we use for our solid wooden houses?
We use carefully selected wood from trees that grow at an altitude between 800 and 1200 m for our solid wooden houses. We make sure that the trees are cut down in the winter time and also pay attention to the moon phases.
Silver fir tree from Kočevsko is our favourite to work with. In the process, 98% of the timber is used up. Timber is used for the construction of the house and the bark as a medicinal food supplement.
Does silver fir really have medicinal properties?
Fir trees, which are used for the extraction of vitamins, grow above 1000 m and must to be at least 20 years old. The area of the Kočevsko forests, where we cut down the trees for our houses, is an ecologically clean environment and the microbiome in the soil distinctively affects the vitamin composition of the Kočevsko’s silver fir.
Knots in tree branches contain vitamins and nutrients that have a protective effect and represent the vital energy of trees. In other words, we can say that tree knots are the heart or the core of trees’ existence. The pulp from ground branches of silver fir trees is used as an extract or wood tea and can also be dried to a powder or protective concentrates also known as polyphenols.
Which types of wood are used for log cabins?
There are several suitable species of wood for log cabins available. Most commonly, we use:
- Silver fir (+ incredibly healthy, economical / – indistinguishable sapwood from heartwood)
- Spruce (+ economical / – has more resin pockets than the fir tree)
- Larch (+ incredibly beautiful, weatherproof / – cost, many resin pockets, hard to purchase)
- Douglas fir (+ incredibly beautiful, weatherproof / – harder to purchase)
What types of saddles or joints are used when building a log house?
There are quite a few types of joinery or saddles as they have developed through history. Their selection, among other things, also influences the final cost of a house.
Saddle notch
This is the type of log joinery we use at Natural Log House. It is the most widely used among cabin builders because it doesn’t leave cracks between joints during drying time. Logs are in contact during the whole drying time and settle into each other.
Dovetail joint
Craftsmen like to use it when they have to join square logs at the corners. This joint enables fixation in all directions.
Scandinavian saddle notch
It is also known as Norway’s notch and is one of the most intensive (complex) and efficient corner joints. Very few log cabin builders use it because of its complexity and considerably higher cost. We only use it occasionally, when necessary.
The round notch
In Russia and other European countries, this type of joinery is highly favoured mostly by companies that make houses from machine-milled logs (industrial manufacturing). The downside of this joint is that gaps can appear while the wood is drying, on the left and the right side of the saddle. That is why log house builders frequently use the saddle notch joint.
What are the different log tail options?
There are several log tail options available. It is very important that our clients think about the different choices at the very beginning of the house design idea. In general, there are four types of log tails:
How do you preserve wood logs?
Protection of the wood is an important factor to take into consideration. The best thing we can to protect the wood from pests is felling the trees at the right time – when the trees are dormant.
Exterior
In case the wood is not preserved at all, it will begin to turn grey, as it is a natural process. If we don’t want that to happen, we need to apply some pigment to the wood and it will serve as a protection against the UV rays.
Interior
If we don’t dye the wood in the interior of the house, the wood will constantly exude its odor.
Types of wood protection
You can choose from natural preservatives (oils and waxes), and synthetic preservatives (wood protection primers and glaze finishes).
Is the log house built directly at the client's location?
Steps to building a log house:
- Felling the trees in dormant season
- Transportation of wood to our company’s location where it is peeled
- Assembly of the house at the company’s location
- Marking and drilling the logs for installations
- Dismantling of the log house, loading and transportation to the site
- Assembly of the house on the concrete foundation (takes approximately 20 days)
How long does it take to build a log house?
Building time depends on the construction phase you decide to go with.
EXAMPLE: A house with 150 m2 can have a finished exterior in approximately 6 months after contact signing.
Is there any sealant between the logs?
Between each log, we place EPDM foam rubber that serves as a protection against wind and humidity. We also use sheep’s wool for insulation.
Click on the image to enlarge.
Do log cabins need additional insulation?
Our houses are built from logs with 50 cm diameter. That way we ensure that the house is sufficiently insulated and there is no need to install additional insulation, and consequently the planning permission is granted without any problems.
Can a log home be built anywhere?
In case you have already chosen the location where you want to build a log house, the easiest way to check for possible limitations when it comes to the construction, is at your local city hall and administrative office. That varies from municipality to municipality.
What roof type can a log house have?
Our basic range of houses have a brick roof. We can also offer a shingle roof or a green roof.
What are interior walls in log houses made of?
Because walls from logs are too massive and therefore take too much space, there is a common practice that only the load-bearing walls of a house are made from logs.
For other walls, the following material can be used:
- Plaster
- Wooden panelling
- Antique bricks
- Drywall
- Siporex
How is electrical wiring/plumbing done in a log house?
All wiring/plumbing is always routed through interior walls of our houses.
Only sockets and switches (wires) are attached to the log walls.
Varnost
Are wooden houses fire-resistant?
Even though you may not realize it, log cabins or solid wooden houses are one of the most fire-resistant buildings.
Our houses are made of solid wood in its entirety so there’s no need for framework construction. That is the reason why solid wooden house can endure fire even better than traditional houses.
- Because wood is a poor conductor of heat, it can withstand fires even better than some other materials.
- If the surface of a timber is burned, the log is instantly insulated from more heat because charring creates insulation. Warming of the wood is therefore slower on the inside of the house because of the wooden walls.
- Other materials like iron and steel bend at only 500°C and concrete cracks in heat.
Are wooden houses earthquake-resistant?
A log house is one of the most earthquake-resistant buildings. Wood is an incredibly flexible material and has a high load-carrying capacity. If you think about how trees are only rooted to the ground and how they move in strong wind, then you can imagine how strong this material really is.
Does a log house settle?
It is typical of wood that it shrinks while drying. As a consequence, the house starts to settle because the freshly cut logs are dying. House settling depends on the cardinal direction, the location of the house and the size of glass surfaces.
Every log house settles for approximately 10–15%. The settling period is approximately 6 years long. After this period, we can say that the house stands still.
The fact that the house is settling does not affect the construction process and moving in, but we have to consider this at certain phases of the construction and carry them out professionally.
Do you have wait to move in because of the house settling process?
The fact that the house is settling does not affect the construction process and moving in, but we have to consider this at certain phases of the construction and carry them out professionally. These are the following phases:
- Windows must be installed with screws into sliding There should be ample space above the windows as the house is settling for approximately 6 years.
- In case the bathroom and the restroom are on the first floor as well, the plumbing installations should be done properly to prevent any breakage or water leakage.
- All columns must be installed with screw jacks
- Partition walls must be correctly installed in order to allow for the ceiling to settle
Življenje v leseni hiši
Does a log house creak or make popping noises?
Log houses are solid wooden constructions and that is why its weight and massiveness prevents it from creaking. We can assure you that you will not be able to hear wood cracking when it is drying.
Why choose wood as a building material for a house?
We must keep in mind that log house building is one of the least controversial types of construction from the ecological standpoint. Houses are built with renewable logs. Log houses are built with 98% biodegradable materials. In order to build a house like this, a minimal amount of machine work and a maximum amount of manual labour is used.
Living in a house like this is incredibly healthy, especially for people with allergies and breathing difficulties.
What heating system should I use? Are there any restrictions?
There are no limits when it comes to choosing a heating system. At the moment, clients most commonly choose a heat pump and underfloor heating in combination with a fireplace in the living room (because of the ambience). We need to be aware of the fact that our houses warm up really quickly and therefore do not need a lot to maintain the same temperature.
Does a log house settle?
It is typical of wood that it shrinks while drying. As a consequence, the house starts to settle because the freshly cut logs are dying. House settling depends on the cardinal direction, the location of the house and the size of glass surfaces.
Every log house settles for approximately 10–15%. The settling period is approximately 6 years long. After this period, we can say that the house stands still.
The fact that the house is settling does not affect the construction process and moving in, but we have to consider this at certain phases of the construction and carry them out professionally.
Do you have wait to move in because of the house settling process?
The fact that the house is settling does not affect the construction process and moving in, but we have to consider this at certain phases of the construction and carry them out professionally. These are the following phases:
- Windows must be installed with screws into sliding There should be ample space above the windows as the house is settling for approximately 6 years.
- In case the bathroom and the restroom are on the first floor as well, the plumbing installations should be done properly to prevent any breakage or water leakage.
- All columns must be installed with screw jacks
- Partition walls must be correctly installed in order to allow for the ceiling to settle
Do log homes get dusty?
Dust is inevitable in every house. However, dust moves around differently in log houses because of natural laws. Because wood is an anti-static material, dust moves around substantially less. As a result, people with respiratory problems usually don’t have these issues any more (or their problems alleviate).
Cena
How much does it cost to build a log house?
People that like this type of construction are most likely to ask about the price as well. Because every house we build is one of a kind, it is difficult to determine the exact cost.
However, we can ensure that price compares to the conventional frame house from natural materials.
What factors affect the cost of building a log house the most?
Our log houses are built by hand, therefore the price depends on the difficulty of the construction. Details that affect the cost the most:
