This generally increases the apparent R-value of a log by 0.1 per inch of thickness in mild, sunny climates that have a substantial temperature swing from day to night. Logs act like "thermal batteries" and can, under the right circumstances, store heat during the day and gradually release it at night. Because of the log's heat storage capability, its large mass may result in better overall energy efficiency in some climates than in others. The extent a log building interacts with its surroundings depends greatly on the climate. Your state energy office may be able to provide information on energy codes recommended or enforced in your state. To find out the log building code standards for your area, contact your city or county building code officials. Based only on this, log walls do not satisfy most building code energy standards. Ignoring the benefits of the thermal mass, a 6-inch (15.24 cm) softwood log wall has a clear-wall (a wall without windows or doors) R-value of just over 8.Ĭompared to a conventional wood stud wall (3½ inches (8.89 cm) of insulation, sheathing, and wallboard, for a total of about R-14) the log wall is apparently a far inferior insulation system. The R-value for wood ranges between 1.41 per inch (2.54 cm) for most softwoods and 0.71 for most hardwoods. In a solid log wall, the logs provide both structure and insulation. If you are really interested in the details, James has plenty of other videos about the cabin at his website.A material’s thermal resistance or resistance to heat flow is measured by its R-value. The floor is made of two inch thick pine planks, torched to help repel water and to give them a rustic barn board appearance. The cabin is made of cedar fence posts, twelve feet long and the cabin measures 10 feet x 20 feet inside with a one hundred square foot sleeping loft on the second floor. The tiny house will continue to be operated with power, not even renewable energy for now, so I'm heating the cabin with a woodstove fire place, which I also cook on. Once the log walls were up, I again used hand tools to shape every log, board and timber to erect the gable ends, the wood roof, the porch, the outhouse and a seemingly endless number of woodworking projects.įor the roof, I used an ancient primitive technology to waterproof and preserve the wood - shou sugi ban, a fire hardening wood preservation technique unique to Japan and other areas in northern climates.īecause the cabin is offgrid, I have used handtools for most of the build and without power, I have no options on site regardless. Once on site, I spent a month reassembling the cabin on a foundation of sand and gravel. Once I was finished notching the logs with a log scribe, saw, axe, adze and wood carving gouge, I loaded up the entire cabin of logs and moved them to my land near Algonquin Park, Ontario Canada. All summer, I cut the notches in the logs as I built the cabin up, offsite. I drag the trees into place and clear the cabin site. Then I flashback to the first balsam fir tree I cut down with a saw and axe near the cabin. I'm glad he got the exterior done before winter set in! From the YouTube page:Īt the beginning of the video, I show a winter drone photo of the cabin in the snow in December. Canadian outdoorsman Shawn James shows how he did it, then explains more. Watch an exceedingly pleasant time-lapse video of a guy building an entire log cabin by hand.
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