Log Home Living - Second Time's The Charm

True North Log Homes customers Keith and Ann Bares in Minnesota discuss the selection, planning, building and furnishing of their second log home, which acts as a waterfront vacation getaway for them and their extended family in the February 2013 Edition of Log Home Living. As the story goes, the Bares fell in love with a True North log home model as they were driving one day. They worked with Rakow Construction to choose a log home design, which would best suit their needs. They say as they dug deeper they were particularly impressed by True North's patented log wall joinery system and zero air infiltration guarantee as theirs would be a year-round vacation destination.  Rakow proceeded to build a spectacular 1,924 square foot home with a large, walk-out lower level, wrap-around cedar deck and even a three-car garage (a must for Minnesota winters).

Inside, the Bares created a fantastic, traditional log cabin retreat they and their family will no doubt enjoy for years to come.
 

The full Log Home Living article can be found here on the True North Log Homes website or will be available on newsstands shortly.

Making Log Home Dreams Come True with a Little Help from Friends

True North customers Roma and Mark recently sent along a fantastic photo journal of the building of their dream home in Baie St. Paul, Quebec. This particular home, True North's Louisburg I model log home, is two floors, 1870 square feet with two master bedrooms, 2 baths, kitchen, living room, dining room, a wrap around porch and finished basement where two other guestrooms are planned. The logs used are 6" eastern white pine.  As you can see, these two DIYers put in a ton of work and had a lot of help from friends and family, but proved it can be done on your own. All you need is the dream, the right log home design and plenty of time to make it happen.

 

In full construction mode with a fantastic view up above the trees.

 Moving indoors with plenty of help from friends along the way.

And some very nice finishing touches inside.

The mostly finished product with two additional guest rooms in the basement still to come.  But, who is ever really finished?

Great job Roma and Mark.  We hope you and Lucy enjoy many wonderful years and memories in your new log home, which is certainly something you can be proud of.

Impressive True North Log Lodge Built Across the Pond

One of our dealers/builders in the UK took the time to put together a great time-lapse video of the construction of a custom log home which will act as a children's training and education centre in Derby, England.




The massive lodge is approximately 11,000 square feet (including the basement), boasts 17 bedrooms and required the use of an awful lot of scaffolding. It is truly an impressive structure based on our Alaskan model, which was aptly named after a similar True North log home was used for a home in Alaska some time ago. Started in January, windows are currently being installed and the lodge expects to house its first guests in October or November.  This project was made possible by the hard work and fundraising of a committed group of volunteers led by Jem Hudson. Further log buildings are planned for the site which also includes Jem's own 3,000 square foot log home, which you can catch a glimpse of to the left of the lodge and was also raised with the help of Jem's friends.

The Thermo-Groove Six-Seal System: New Log Home Technology from True North Log Homes

True North Log Homes is the most technologically advanced custom log home manufacturer in the world, and is thus always looking for new advancements in log home technology. Our new Thermo-groove six-seal system further improves the True North Log joinery system by enhancing the thermal performance and sealing capabilities of the tongue and groove joints between the logs.

The original Three Seal System

The original three seal tongue and groove system, used with our 6" x 12" log construction, features butyl rubber tape sealant on the two outer tongues and asphalt impregnated foam gasket tape on the inner groove (pictured below).

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Six Seals are Better than One

The new Thermo-groove six-seal system, available on our 8" x 12", 10" x 12" and 12" x 12" logs, is designed with six channels to better accommodate the butyl rubber tape sealant and asphalt-impregnated foam gasket tape. The outside channels are angled to accommodate the butyl tape, which improves installation, as the butyl tape is less likely to fall off while setting the log above. Also, by using the diagonal, the square butyl tape changes the seal from 1/4" to a 3/8" seal, thereby increasing performance without the added cost of a 3/8” seal.

The channels also prevent the sealant from being completely flattened out by the upper log, so when movement occurs in the logs, a sufficient amount of sealant is still able to flex.

The New Thermo-Groove Six-Seal System

The remaining four channels (no. 2, 3, 4 and 5) are designed to accommodate the asphalt-impregnated foam tape. In addition to providing insulation value, the foam tape is also waterproof when compressed by 50 percent. 

Much Like A Thermal Pane Window

The thermal performance of the six-seal system can be compared to a thermal pane window: if the six seals represent six panes of glass, the trapped air space between the glass will act as an insulator. Each section of dead air space between the tongue and groove seals reacts in the same way, thereby improving thermal performance and insulation capabilities.

For more information on log home technology or log home maintenance, visit True North Log Homes.

True North Log Homes Featured in The Premier Issue of Dockside: The Best of Muskoka

Michael McLay recently purchased a True North Log Home.

True North Log Homes was recently profiled in the premiere edition of Dockside: The Best of Muskoka - Available now.

While on business in Colorado, Michael McLay attended a log home trade show and was impressed with one exhibitor in particular. “I asked them if they ever built in Ontario, and I couldn’t believe my luck when it turned out that they were from Muskoka,” recalls Michael.  

After researching log home builders, Michael and his wife Brenda eventually purchased a True North Log Home, the same exhibitor that impressed Michael months before. Michael and Brenda selected True North Log Homes based on the firm’s quality, reputation, service and style.

The circular staircase in the McLay home

The McLays customized their home with the help of the True North staff, including a specifically engineered circular staircase.  The personal service and technical support continued throughout the building process. The couple is thrilled with the unique king post system, exclusive to True North Log Homes, which provides a focal point that is both structurally and aesthetically pleasing.  “Our home is a natural extension of the elements that drew us to this area: its water, rocks and tress,” explains Brenda.

No longer just a simple cabin or cottage, a log home can be as contemporary – or as rustic – as its owner desires. As Michael insists, “Log homes are not a thing of the past: they belong to the future!”

To read the rest of the McLays’ experience building their first log home, pick up the current edition of Dockside: The Best of Muskoka or download it from the True North Log Homes Web site.

What types of corner systems are available in log homes?

There are 4 different corner systems used by log home builders:

Dovetail
This system has unique water shed capabilities, as all angles lead out of the corner, also the interlocking logs make the corner stronger.




Saddlenotch
This system allows for the traditional log cabin corner look, by incorporating the interlocking logs to strengthen the corner.




True North's Penta-Post Corner
Post Corner- This exclusive True North system allows for post-to-log interlocking assembly of irregular angles with no compromises to wall integrity.

Butt and Pass-*NOT USED BY TRUE NORTH LOG HOMES*
This system is prone to separation over time because of its lack of interlocking capabilities. This corner is widely used in the industry as it is easier to produce than the other three corner systems. Many log home builders utilize the Butt & Pass system because the Dovetail and Saddlenotch corner systems require a major capital commitment to buy or build sophisticated high tech equipment to make the complex composite angle saw cuts.

Log Home Technology To Keep You Warm and Dry

Log home builders and owners have traditionally struggled with the effects time and weather can have on timber.  The natural shrinking of logs and the levelling of a log structure over time can cause significant gaps between the logs letting costly warm air out and uncomfortable cold air in.  Typically inferior joinery systems are difficult to install and simply don't tend to stand up to this test of time. Homeowners are invariably forced to spend more time and money caulking and chinking their log walls to keep mother nature outside where she belongs.

To combat these troublesome issues, True North Log Homes, recently developed a unique log lock compression system engineered to actually seal homes tighter with time by allowing the log lock to only go in one direction, DOWN, on specially designed threaded rods.  Another advantage of this patent-pending technology is its ease of installation - only a couple of hours vs. a couple of days with most competitive log joinery solutions.

True North Log Homes Patent-Pending Log Log Compression System

True North Log homes is proud of its commitment to continual improvement in log home technology as it maintains U.S. and Canadian patents for several other innovative solutions.  Our new log lock system has garnered some attention including a recent mention on a reputable sustainable architecture blog.

True North Log Homes featured in Log Home Living

Rob and Marilyn Wrightman's innovative log and timber-frame home has been featured in this month's edition of Log Home Living, which hit newsstands on May 15th.

Rob happens to be the owner of True North Log Homes, which he founded with his father in 1986.    True North Log Homes' innovation in log home construction was a hallmark in the building of this particular home as five patented log home technologies developed by True North were incorporated.  Designing the home didn't require starting from scratch since Rob had already helped create his company's catalog of standard log home plans.

The cornerstone of the home is the blend of big timbers and white pine, D-shape logs. These logs are milled to show a rounded surface on the outside and a flat surface inside, resembling the letter D. The wall logs are stacked according to a patented log joinery system that uses neither nails, screws nor lag bolts. The aesthetic highlight of the logs is their dovetail corners.

The interior of the home, as you can see, is open and spectacular from one room to the next.

A primary goal at True North Log Homes, under Rob's direction, is to fulfill the dream of log home living for each and every True North customer.

Thermal Mass in Log Walls

Thermal Mass is a term used by many people to explain the way a heavy log wall provides insulation vs traditional insulation and R-Value scales.  Dense, thick wood in a large log holds it's temperature longer than a regular stick-frame wall. Think of a stone placed next to a fireplace. The stone warms up, and stays warm even after the fire burns down.  That is an example of thermal mass at work.

This effect is most noticeable during times of temperature fluctuation where the days are warm and nights are cold.  The log wall will stay virtually the same temperature.  This can greatly reduce your energy costs to heat and cool during the spring and fall, and your log walls can effectively cool your home in the summer, and help heat it in the winter.  Log homes differ from some other construction materials because solid wood has both moderate R-value (insulation) and also significant thermal mass. In contrast, water, earth, rocks, and concrete all have low R-values.  Wikipedia has a great article on Thermal Mass here