NEW UPDATE 11-21-08

The log walls are finely up, with cap logs in place.
This summer, I had promised my wife that I would spend more time with my family and less time working on the log house then in the past few years.
My job requires me to travel a lot so more time with my 8 and 9 year old, is a good thing.
We restarted the walls about august 20th from the tenth row and put the cap logs on the 20th row.
Our third logger never came through with the rest of the roof rafters for use. We have since hired another logger to supply us with hemlock rafters at a good price for delivery this winter.
We did what we could and will restart the RPSL, Ridge pole, rafters, roof windows, doors, floors, and chinking in the spring and summer of “09”.



Here Is A new Log Raising Video:




We are on our way to building a real log home

In 2003, my wife and I decided we were ready to build our dream log home. We started researching internet sites and visited some local models and prefab log home build sites in the New England area. We were not impressed with the quality or pricing for the home we wanted. We did more searching, and found the LHBA (Log Home Builders Association of North America) site. I talked my wife into going to Washington State for the classes, booked a flight and took the class in the fall of 04.

After the class, we bought a 99 acre piece on the mountain above and adjacent to the 10 acres we already owned. We knew it would be mortgage free in a few years, after we built the second log house and sold it. We think another plus of buying this property is the back acreage boarders the Vermont National Forest.

After buying the land, we did some more research and hired a Forest Manager to have it logged. It is 95% hard wood, beach, birch and mostly sugar maple. (Not to good for log house building). We started to gather materials for the build, insulation, windows, plywood, tools, cabinets, a free used trailer, ext... In mid Jan. 05 our Forest Manager found us 50 red pine logs, right down the road from us and we had them delivered by mid of Feb. 05. I am on the road most of the time with my job so my wife started the long and hard job of peeling the logs and peeled about 90% of them by herself. The next batch should be easer with all the info we have acquired on the techniques of spud peeling. (Thanks, Patrick, LHBA Member) :) SEE POWER WASHER UPDATE BELOW.

In May 05 we started the land improvements. We had about 700 feet of drainage ditches put in, roughed in 700 feet of driveway and leveled an area 75' X 75' about 400 feet back in the woods to start the build. We built the pier forms, had the pier holes dug, and had the piers poured. We placed and buried the 4 corner lifting log to lift the house logs for the walls and had it done by the end of June 05.

Mid May, 05 we were still looking for the additional 50+ pine logs we need to get the log house walls started. No luck anywhere, not for a reasonable price anyway. At the end of May we got a call from a part time logger, we'd contacted several months earlier, (we know summer cut is not the preferred time of year for cutting house logs but) he found us some, 90+ red pine logs. They were just what we were looking for. He told use he didn't want to cut them unless we could take them all. He also had 60, 26' X 10" floor beams and roof rafters logs that we needed. After we negotiated a good price we agreed. He told us that he would get started cutting them very soon, in the next week or two. Yes, it looked like we were going to get the house built the summer of 05, cool.

About mid June we get a call from the logger, he told us he didn't want to start cutting the trees until we got a trucker in place for the transport. He never said anything about this before but, we said OK. The logger finely found us a trucker about 3 weeks later. Well, he stalled with one thing after another all summer long. He couldn’t get his equipment to the site because the trucking company he used had some truck problems. Then he couldn’t cut and drag because of to much rain, The last week in august the logger called, he told us that his equipment is now ready to be delivered, but he had ONE more special project he needed to do for the boy scouts, then he would be able to start cutting in about another week. (I am all for helping out the Boy Scouts, I was a scout and my boy is a scout, but this was getting ridicules.) Now this is the first week in September. (What happened to the last three months)? He said he'd have all the logs ready to be trucked in about five weeks. We told him that this was not acceptable; we couldn't be building this log house in the middle of a Vermont winter. Then he said that part of it was because we didn’t communicate with him very well. We had called him every two or three weeks all summer, so that didn’t fly with us very well.

We didn't like the way he'd been stringing us along all summer. We told him we didn't think we wanted to do business with him, if this was going to happen next spring when we needed these logs. He assured us this was a very strange situation and he had a very good reputation as a logger, and he was very sorry for all the problems that had happened over the summer and would do everything in his power to get us the logs as soon as we needed them late winter of 06. Ok, NO more logs for the build in 05.

We are tired of paying rent to a land lord. We need to do something. Brain storm, now we could build a small log house using the existing logs that we have. (Yes, this would take us about, five + weeks we guessed) but the logs that we had wouldn't give us the dimensions that would work for a usable living area. So, we called around to see if we can find one of those portable mills. We find one that has two weeks of down time and he could fit us in. Excellent! So we cut up about 40 logs. We start making preparation (first week in September) for a new smaller build site closer to the road to keep the cost of the electrical run down. We call the well and septic guy's. We decided to build a small guest house out of dimensional lumber, (sorry guys "LHBA") (Got to do what ya got to do) it was the fastest way we could think of to build a small house. It is 16' X 24', and is about 500 sq ft. and we did it in 34 days, weathered in.

We are contacting the logger soon, first week in January 06 to start with a WINTER CUT for the rest of the logs. If we start now we might get them all by April. Ha, Ha. We have to acquire a few more things to complete the list for the finished build but we are confident and grateful to have the knowledge to complete the job. We will continue to keep you all informed.

UPDATE March 10th, 06

OK, we contacted the logger the first week in Jan 06; he was working another logging job. He said that he would be done with this cutting and could start the Red Pine cutting in March. We spoke with the logger the first week in March. He was going to start our cutting mid March and should have all the logs ready to truck when the roads dry out sometime in April. We already have a Trucker in place for that window, to move the logs to our property.

UPDATE Aug, 15th, 06

Hello all,

The house logs and some of the roof rafter logs are here! Well about 2/3rds of them anyway. We received the first load of logs end of July and the second load on the 6th of August, giving us a total of about 70 house logs and 14 rafter logs so far. We will not get the third load until the spring of 07. So reluctantly, back to the day job I go, to get some more capital saved up and then we will do it all over again after the winter and mud season is over.

UPDATE 6/11/07

The last two loads of logs. The last load of logs has arrived, June 11th, 2007. We received one load on June 2nd and the other today. 52 additional logs added to the inventory, making a total of just over 100, 46-35’ wall logs, 3-45’ floor genders, 2- 45’ cap logs and One 50’X 24 “but end” X16 “top end” Ridge pole, It is a beauty and strait as an arrow, well my arrows anyway. I think it has a 2 inch curve over the entire 50 feet. Not bad, “Ridge Pole Envy” anyone. Now the fun begins, all these puppies need to be peeled. I still have one more week of my day job, then two weeks on vacation to a wedding in TN on the 30th of June and then a quick trip to GA for a few days and then back home and then two or three months off to start and finish the wall, roof, floors, windows, exterior doors and chinking before the winter sets in. Here are some new pictures of the last two log loads.



Here are pics of the new logs

UPDATE 12-02-07

Hello All, Well we got 10 courses up this summer. We started the walls about the 15th of August. We had some little obstacles to hurtle over. Nothing major, just time consuming things. And of course the honey dew list, that must be done when I am home, (which is not as often as I would like it to be). Things like fire wood for the winter, renting a small excavator about the size of a backhoe to rework some of the land and get the logs to the building site with my 4wheeler before we started, among other things. But after about three weeks we were on the way. The first 3 courses my wife and myself pulled up by hand. (The biggest logs of course!) This was not fun and I quickly came up with a way to use the 4wheeler. I chained a snatch block to the bottom of the lifting pole and ran the rope from the top block and tackles down the pole and out horizontally. (I know, I Know, I was suppose to use the old Buick) I don’t know were my head was, at that time, it must have been the testosterone or something in the water, ha, ha. We don’t have a lot of room around the house site so this work around, decreased the amount of pulling distance needed almost in half, rather then to pull the rope strait from the top blocks. Another hurtle was the way I had hung my double hooked blocks off the chains. They wouldn’t swing correctly from one wall to the other. Originally, I couldn’t use one hook. Just by the way they needed to be put together. I soon found out they were very inadequate for the larger bottom wall logs that I had, (29” buts). I needed to increase to three wheels right from the start, lesson learned. “I learned a lot of lessons this summer”. After rethinking the blocks that’s when I should have made them single hooked blocks with one in the center, so I had to rework the chains to have loops in them. You can see the changes in the pics. They will all be reworked to have only one hook before we restart the biuld next sumer. We used the Home Brew Borate Solution (equivalent to Boracare) on the logs so they should be ok, up on the wall until then. I would still be working on the house, but I work for FEMA and I was called out here to the CA fires to help out. And can’t see myself getting home until February or March at the soonest. So the build is on hold until spring or summer of 08.

While I have been out here in California, I have met with a log home building gentleman that uses Orange oil to stop mold, mildew, and bugs. First he treats the wood or logs with a 50/50 mixer of turpentine and linseed oil and after the wood dries, he applies orange oil. I have herd radio advertisements here in California that say they use it for treating ants and termite and give a 100% guarantee. (No Tenting involved) So maybe I will change my method just a little and see how it works. It sure seems like a good idea to add it to the borate solution after it cools and they say it leaves the great smell of oranges in the air.



Here are pics of the LOG WALLS



CABOOSE: I also built another log hauler device that I am calling a Caboose to hold the far end of the log off the ground when I have to move then around and up hills. It works quite well and cost me less then $250.00 to make, Pictures link attached below.

And here is a Video of the Caboose towing a 35” up the hill, not sure if it is going to work to get our 50 footer up the hill, we will see.

Here Is A Video Link of the Caboose in action:


We will keep you posted on the progress of the build

Here is a link to last years Logs.
Just press the PLAY button for the slide show to begin"

Power Washer Information.

One more thing, as far as peeling the logs goes. We used the spud on all the logs that we pealed last year 05, (the logs that we cut up for the small guest house) we are temporarily in until the log house is weathered in next summer/fall. I know that we have been told that a pressure washer is not the way to peel logs. But we've found that it is a big time saver (dirty work) but a time saver and if the proper technique is used, there is virtually no damage done to the log at all. If there are some small parts that might get damaged, it is far less then the damage from (falling of the tree, dragging of the log and the damage caused from the log picker when going on and off the truck). Now, I am not saying that the log can't be damaged, but if you are very careful and you take the first strip of bark off with the spud, (this will leave enough space to allow the tip of the pressure washer to be aimed at the cambium layer at an angel between the log and the bark and act like a FILET knife). It is like skinning an animal or taking the fat off a piece of meat like a butcher would do. It works very well, and I can remove all the bark in about 1 hr and 15 min. And if you have someone with a spud help to pry up the larger pieces of bark) it can be done in about 45 min. on an average 12inch log. Now that is about 2 hours faster then using a spud alone.

Here Is A Video Link also:
"Peeling Logs With a Power Washer"

Thanks for all your support, Chris and Brenda

E-mail: RiversLogHomes@yahoo.com

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