Deer Tracks & Trails

Timber Wolves

2009-11-12T21:09:00.009-06:00

Timber wolves are wild animals that look like a large dog. They have a long bushy tail and can be identified by their tail. They have longer legs, longer feet, wider head and shorter ears that stand upright. The timber wolf weighs more than 100 pounds full grown. The male weighs more than the female.

The timber wolf is many times called a gray wolf because it's coat is medium to light gray. They are found in Canada, Alaska and in wilderness areas in the northern states, like northern Minnesota and northern Wisconsin.

The timber wolf is smart, strong, quick and is a hunter of deer, moose, small animals and livestock. They work in wolf packs to kill the larger animals.

A wolf pack is a family group of wolves that live together, usually over a long period of time.

Several summers ago, my wife and I were walking down one of the many trails on the cabin property when a timber wolf was walking on the same trail towards us. The wolf was looking down and didn't see us approaching. He raised his head to see us.

I thought the wolf was a neighbor's dog, but the neighbor's dog was black, so I thought it must be another neighbor's dog. The wolf reacted like a flash of lightening and disappeared into the woods in less than a second. It was only a quick flash of his bushy tail that identified him as a timber wolf.

The timber wolf has an innate fear of humans and they try to avoid people.

There is a feeling by our citizens that we may have too many wolves or not enough. This debate is ongoing. All the wolves need is a place where there's enough prey and where people won't kill them.

Closing Up The Cabin For Winter

2009-02-12T00:03:00.001-06:00

I covered the basic steps in closing a cabin and winterizing the water lines in previous posts.

The following is a master checklist we use to close the cabin for the winter or long stretches during winter.

The main item to consider is the removing water from the piping, traps, pressure tank, hot water tank, and toilets. The removal of the water is necessary. As water freezes, it expands and when water is contained, the pipes, traps, tank and toilets may break or leak. Hiring a plumber to fix these items can be expensive.

Consider these steps:
1. Turn off the electrical power to any submurgeable pump and electrical hot water heater. (Natural or propane gas water heaters should be turned off).

2. Turn off the water valve entering into the cabin. This may be a curb stop valve that is in the waterline and below the frost line on the exterior of the cabin.

3. Open all faucets (kitchen, vanities, tub, toilet and any outside hose bibb). Drain the hose at the kitchen sink.

4. Open the valves for the hot water heater and pressure tank. (A Pressure tank is used when a submurgeable pump is used to bring water from an underground aquifer).

5. Open the cold water and hot water valves in the basement or crawl space and let the water run into the basement or crawl space drains. (This is based on the water lines that slope toward water line valves. If the water lines do not slope toward the waterline valves, the lines will be required to be blown with pressurized air to push the water toward the valves.

6. Close the water valve that services to the toilet tank. Flush the toilet to drain the toilet water tank. Sponge the toilet tank and stool dry. Pour one cup of RV anti-freeze into the kitchen, vanity, tub drains, and any other drains. Use 2 cups in the toilet drain as the trap is larger than the other traps. Also place anti-freeze in the toilet tank. The anti-freeze will keep the drain trap water from freezing solid.

7. Turn off all electric and gas heaters. Unplug the refrigerator, toaster, coffee maker, T.V., radios and any other electrical appliance. The main power to the cabin may be turned off or left on, as an optional choice.

8. Turn on any security systems. These may be connected to the main power source. If so, leave the main power on. The power company will charge you for the electrical power that is used, but it is usually a minimum charge and will be worth your expense.

Plumbing, Ventilation, and Electrical Systems

2009-01-10T22:54:00.001-06:00

One of the important features of a log home is the mechanical and electrical systems.

The crawl space below the main floor provides space for pipes, electrical, hot water heater and water storage tank. It is important to keep the depth of the crawl space at least 2'6" (between the bottom side of the floor to the floor of the crawl space). This space makes the workmen's job as easy as possible. More depth may be required for the hot water heater and water storage tank.

The water pipes carry fresh hot and cold water from the water storage tank to the sinks, bath tub, toilet fixtures and the outside faucet. Other pipes carry waste water to the septic tank and leaching field.

The electrical wires are usually placed in the bored vertical and horizontal holes in the exterior logs. The switch and outlet boxes are recessed into the logs. The electrican places these recessed boxes per the local electrical codes.

In the interior partitions, usually framed with wood studs and covered by gypsum board or tongue and groove wood panels, the electrical wires and piping can run between the main floor and the second or loft floor It is best to avoid pipes and duct in the exterior log walls. On the second or loft floor, the pipes, wires, and possible ducts are more difficult to hide. One possible solution is to build a double floor; that is, to build a shallow conventional floor system over the log shaped ceiling joists and wood deck. This provides space to run piping and wire to the main floor ceiling lights and any second floor sinks and toilets. Ducts may also use this space.

If sinks, toilets and ducts are not used on the second floor, the electrical wiring may use a single floor system, using wire chases top routed into the single wood board placed below the main tongue and groove second floor wood deck.

A double floor system on the second floor may also be used to reduce noise between the main and second floor rooms. Of course, this may add expense to the second floor system.

Of course, these mechanical and electrical systems are suggested guidelines. As log cabins vary greatly in design, they may require other solutions.

Log Cabin Fireplace

2008-12-01T12:54:00.001-06:00

From the very beginning, log cabins in America, were built with fireplaces/chimneys. Most early chimneys were built of stone or brick.

Later, log cabins were constructed with metal stack chimneys to accommodate wood burning metal stoves.

Today, chimneys are built on inside or outside walls of the cabin and are stone. The stone fireplace/chimney is a major architectural feature of the cabin, giving the cabin a rustic look which appeals to our emotions.

Many fireplaces/chimneys are built of native small, medium and large flat faced rock, mortared together. These stone chimneys are large and are great works of art establishing a strong sense of substance and scale. The stones are natural color, usually from river rock.

Other stone chimneys are cut to form small or medium size rectangular pieces giving an ashlar style look to the fireplace/chimney.

The stone of the fireplace/chimney is extended to the facing on the foundation walls, piers, retaining walls and, at times, to porch/patio details and plant edging. The stone gives unity to the architectural look of the cabin and landscaping.

A local stone supplier has an interesting variety of stone that is manufactured from natural ingredients; that is, lightweight aggregate, portland cement and iron oxide pigments. The stone is a cast element into many rock shapes. The backside is flat and the front side looks and feels like stone.

Thickness ranges from one inch to three inches, depending on the style of stone to be used. The stone is applied similar to a veneer to a sheathing, concrete or concrete masonry unit back up. The sheathing must be covered with a moisture barrier to protect the sheathing from any possible moisture that may get into the wood sheathing. The concrete or concrete masonry units need no moisture barrier.

A mortar scratch coat is applied over metal lath when sheathing is used as a backup. The mortar scratch coat is applied directly to the concrete or concrete masonry units when they are used as a backup. The veneer stone is then applied directly to the mortar scratch coat using mortar joints between the individual stone pieces.

The types of stone facing are varied, from uncoursed fieldstone (rough or ordinary), coursed rubble, squared-stone masonry, random ashlar (interrupted coursing) or range ashlar (coursed). The look and feel of natural stone are best color- blended together during installation to achieve the desired results.

A beautiful stone fireplace establishes a strong sense of substance and scale for the cabin.

Building With Logs

2008-10-31T13:41:00.004-05:00

Whether the log cabin or home is being built with cedar, larch, pine or oak logs, the structural strength of the proposed log specie may be in question. Of course, certain portions of a tree can be used as structural members in building a cabin. Good rules of thumb have been used in the past by experienced log home builders.

At present, a new building code is being used to provide answers to the question of structural strength. That new code is the International Building Code, 2006. (IBC). This code may or may not apply to certain counties or states as the IBC must be adopted by the local building authority.

The IBC requires inspection by a certain grading agency or a structural engineer of record to estimate the structural strength of the log and the suitability of logs for structural application. This is covered in the IBC, section 2303.1.10.

The grading agency establishes the criteria to guide the strength reducing log characteristics such as holes, splits, checks, and knots allowed for the proposed log specie. The grading agency determines the stress grades and, in turn, derives the strength values.
Of course, the grading strength values are important. Other issues are to be considered; such as connections of round or non-standard shapes because they are custom made and are used without experimental testing information.

The International Building Code (IBC) is not available to all log home builders, as the locale that the builder builds in may not have adopted the IBC.

The best approach to using logs in constructing a log cabin or home is to use the expertise of any experienced log home builder. An alternative would be to obtain the expertise of a licensed Structural Engineer.

Memories of a Great Woodsman

2008-10-27T00:17:00.001-05:00

Once in a life time you meet a great woodsman and story teller. My father met one. They were contemporaries that probably met in their younger days. The times were in the late 1920's or early 1930's, hard times for many. My grandfather owned an old log cabin and a large acreage of wooded land.

My father (on the right in the photo) was one of the lucky employed and his friend (left) was unemployed. We call my dad's friend 'Buck'. 'Buck'was an excellent trapper at the time. My father asked 'Buck' if he would like to go up to the old cabin to continue trapping and to use it as long as he wanted. 'Buck' knew that trapping would be good, so he took up my father's proposal. The old log cabin was primative as it had no well water and only an outhouse. The heating was an old oil drum stove and needed a constant wood source. That kind of cabin living appealed to 'Buck', so he felt at home.

At that time, the timberwolf population was large and growing. The state had a bounty on the wolves so as to control the wolf population.

'Buck' took up trapping timberwolves and other fur bearing animals such as mink, beaver and ermine. Trapping was 'Buck's' main source of income. He trapped out of my grandfather's cabin for a number of years, probably up to World War II.

I met 'Buck' when my father and I visited the old log cabin 'Buck' and his friend now lived in a rented farm house not far from the old log cabin. The farm house had well water and better toilet facilities. My father and 'Buck' would sit for hours telling trapping, hunting, fishing and outdoor stories. I sat back and only listened, being only 10 years old. The stories were more interesting than anything I ever read.

My father and 'Buck' planned many fishing and hunting trips during these visits, and I was included on these trips. We had a 12' fishing boat and an outboard 2- 1/2 horsepower motor with the usual fishing gear.

One fishing trip I remember was a two week trip to a remote great fishing lake in Canada. Many walleyes were taken and again the stories told around the canp fire were wonderous. My father caught a 32 pound lake trout, the largest of the trip.

'Buck' was a true outdoors man. Others say he was one of the best trappers in the state of Minnesota. 'Buck' was also a great story teller as he experienced and lived these great stories of the outdoors. If he had written a book, it would be a great best seller.

Anatomy of the Well

2008-06-01T16:39:00.000-05:00

Usually ground water is found in the underground formations called aquifers. The soil and rock that lie between the ground surface and the aquifer act as a barrier against any possible contamination to the aquifer.

The well that was installed at our cabin is 225 feet deep. The well was drilled thru both soil and many feet of rock into an underground stream of water. After the drilling was complete, a submersible pump and motor were installed into the underground stream inside a casing that keeps debris from entering into the piping. Connected to the submersible pump and motor is a drop pipe that extends up to the pitless unit at ground level.

The submersible pump and motor are powered by electrical wire that runs down and parallel to the drop pipe from the pitless unit at ground level. The electrical wire is connected to an electrical control box and the water flow is controlled by an automatic pressure switch.

The water is pumped into the cabin from the drop pipe into a discharge pipe placed below the frost lines. The discharge pipe is connected to the pressure water storage tank and is controlled by an automatic electrical pressure switch. The water in the pressure tank supplies the cabin plumbing fixtures, such as the shower, toilet, sinks and hot water heater. (See sketch for the anatomy of a well).

This type of well is powered by electrical power supplied to the cabin. The water supply is contingent on a continuous flow of electrical power. At times the electrical power is down or interrupted for short periods of time; therefore the water supply is off.

It is still possible to obtain water from this type of well. A PVC pipe shaped well bucket (4 1/2" diameter for 6" pipe) can be sent down the drop pipe into the aquifer or underground stream and pulled up to the surface with a rope attached to the bucket. In the case of our 225 foot deep well, this method is impractical. Therefore, some bottled water for drinking is a must. Of course, the electric power is usually down for only short periods of time and is not a major inconvenience.

Animal Tracks

2008-03-24T18:35:00.000-05:00

The story of an animal traveling through a forest is left by it's tracks. At times the tracks are difficult to see. Tracks consist of bent grass, a dragged leg, or a foot print of the animal.

There are three types of tracks; the nail walkers such as deer or horse; the flat walkers like a squirrel or bear; and toe walkers like a cat or dog.

In our forest, where white tail deer are abundant, the prints of the deer depend upon: the material it is walking on; the movement of the deer; whether walking or running; and the size of the deer. It also depends on the season of the year.

The prints vary in size depending on fore or hind legs. For example: fore: 3"x 2" - hind: 2-3/4"x 1-1/2".

White tail deer track looks like this:

A Surprising Challenge

2008-01-26T22:41:00.000-06:00

Many times surprises occur when one goes into the woods. The surprise is often the sight of a beautiful deer or a red fox.

Recently, we arrived at the front gate of the driveway to the cabin and, to our surprise, a 12 inch in diameter balsom had been blown down and blocked the driveway.

It was 4:30 p.m. and it would be dark by 5:30 p.m. As we were surveying the situation, trying to decide how we were going to remove the tree, we heard this friendly voice. It was our neighbor who lives up the road. He had been hunting and had seen the fallen tree earlier in the day.

"Do you have a chainsaw?" he asked. "Yes, let's go get the saw from the garage." After putting gas and chainsaw oil into the chainsaw, we proceeded to remove the tree. My neighbor is a nice young man who loves the woods. He was very willing to help out.

He first worked on cutting off the branches. I grabbed the cut off branches and placed them into the woods away from the driveway. Soon, he started cutting the trunk into 16" to 18" pieces. These pieces were tossed into the woods and soon the tree was completely removed. All this was completed in about 30 minutes.

It's nice to have good neighbors who help with such surprises!

Burn Piles

2008-01-16T00:23:00.000-06:00

It has been approximately a year since the logging operation in our forest. The logs were hauled away and new growth has begun.

A large pile of branches that were trimmed from the logs and some dead trees remained. It is dangerous to set the pile on fire during the summer months; but, the winter with 15 inch deep snow is ideal. A still day, without any wind, is just perfect to light the 15' high pile on fire. Our logger cleaned off some snow, poured some fire-starting liquid on the pile and lit a fire.
The fire was large and the ashes and remaining pieces of branches and trees were reduced to a pile approximately four feet high. After five days, the pile was still smoldering, but more snow fell, putting the fire out by covering the ashes.

Spring will arrive in a few months, the new growth will continue and the forest will renew itself. What a marvelous transformation!!

Gobal Positioning Systems (GPS)

2008-01-07T19:47:00.000-06:00

A GPS is a positioning device that is a mini computer for road and water travel that can be used in the wilderness. It eliminates the need of using a map and a compass.

The GPS device will give your location per latitude and longitude with fair accuracy. The device uses signals from a number of orbiting satellites, usually a minimum of three satellites is required.

Our GPS device is an older version, hand- held, battery powered, Garmin, Model GPS12. It gives the satelitte status, our position in latitude and longitude, a compass navigation and map to our point of destination. We use our GPS for mapping and locating the boundary of our property.

Before leaving on your trip, plug into the GPS memory the location of your cabin, car or motel. Then proceed to travel, hike or boat ride. When you want to return to your point of origin, enter the cabin, car or motel from the GPS memory and the GPS will guide you back to that beginning location.

Of course, it is a good idea to have a good map and a compass with to see the overall picture of the trip.

Floor Plan Possibilities

2007-12-04T16:13:00.000-06:00

In my opinion, the most interesting floor plan for a proposed story and a half log cabin is an "L" shaped plan. The majority of the space is the "great room" and is the short leg of the "L". I've included sketches for one way the "L" shape plan may be arranged.

In this design, the first floor plan has two bedrooms, each approximately 11 feet by 15 feet which includes a closet. The bath is adjacent to the bedrooms and is near the kitchen and the "great room".

The kitchen is long and narrow with a long counter with base and wall cabinets. Eating space is on one end. There is room for a dishwasher and small combination washer/dryer, if desired.

The "great room" could be used for a larger dining area, if required, in addition to the living room. The "great room" is approximately 23 feet by 22 feet, large enough for any arrangement of furniture.

The second floor plan is composed of one large bedroom approximately 15 feet by 16 feet including closets. The bath is adjacent to the bedroom. The second floor room is under a sloping roof. The floor area may seem a bit large, but the useable area is restricted by the sloping ceiling.

A stairway fits into a corner opposite of the bath. The stair runs between the first and second floors.

The "gem" of this floor plan is the "great room" with its massive fireplace and hearth in addition to it's vaulted ceiling space and the three sided bank of windows. It is nice if the "great room" faces the view of a lake, river or mountain scene.

A patio could be placed outside the "great room" to enhance the indoor-outdoor relationship. A crawl space is below the first floor to house the necessary mechanical and electrical services, such as a furnace, hot water heater, and pressure tank for the well water.

This log cabin design has 2064 square feet of floor area. Of course, other plan configurations are possible.

Wood Truss

2007-10-23T00:51:00.000-05:00

Of all the wood trusses that are constructed for use in a cabin, as an engineer my favorite is the wood truss that is shown in the sketch.

As noted in the sketch, the span of the truss is 24'-0". Of course, this truss would work between 20'-0" to 28'-0" of span. The spacing of the truss is 12'-0" on center.

With the roof slope of 12 on 12 and the heights involved, a cabin using this truss could lend itself to a story and one-half with the first story composed of the living room, kitchen, bathroom and lower main bedroom or bedrooms. The upper half story could house at least two bedrooms with a bathroom.

The truss shown has two large 10" x 14" horizontal timbers that carry the roof loads. The lower timber is placed at 7'-0" above the finished floor. This would match the height of the exterior doors and windows. The space between the lower timber and upper horizontal timber could house a strip of 2'-6" windows giving significant day light to a living room space. That 2'-6" space between the horizontal timbers could also be filled with a decorative wall surface.

The lower horizontal timber can be a member that raps around the entire structure adding a decorative feature to the exterior. Of course, the upper timber also raps around the entire structure and carries the roof rafters.

In order to provide day light to the upper one-half story, dormers with windows could be used and windows could be placed on the gable ends.

Both the interior and exterior can have more architectural interest by the use of this arrangement of the horizontal members matching the horizontal members of the truss. Other wood exterior surfaces and logs can be worked together to create horizontal, diagonal and vertical shadow lines on the exterior walls.

A massive stone fireplace could fit into an exterior or interior wall of the living room space.

Communication and Construction

2007-08-16T01:34:00.000-05:00

The work to select a good builder for the log cabin is complete and the builder has been selected. A written contract has been signed. Now what should be done to keep the owner in control of the building process? I learned, of course, communication is the key.

The contract should include the contractor's time schedule to complete the log cabin. Of course, the contract should include a list of exceptions which may delay the contractor's schedule and over which the contractor has no control, such as acts of God or delays by suppliers or sub-contractors.

The owner should keep an on-going written diary of the progress of the construction of the cabin. All communications with the contractor should be recorded. Using e-mail may be one method of communication, but use a hard copy of the major decisions to the contractor.

Inspections of the construction process by the owner is extremely important. Ask for a schedule from the contractor about the various components of the construction, such as the foundation work, the first floor framing, the log assembly, and the roof construction. You get what you inspect. Ask a lot of questions!

During the contruction process think and decide about the various fixtures in the cabin. What would you like for the kitchen cabinets, vanity cabinet, toilets, bathtubs, showers, stove, lighting, etc.? Balance your desires with your budget.

The Builder

2007-07-18T00:41:00.000-05:00

The most important decision you make in building your new log home or cabin is choosing a good general contractor (builder) who is knowledgeable of building log homes or cabins.

Of course, the builder should have good references from past and current customers. The potential customer should inspect a number of homes or cabins that the builder has recently built. A careful inspection should include:

1. Log work tightness

2. Trim work alignment and tightness

3. Cracks in foundation walls, interior partitions, and interior finishes

4. Rain water infiltration

5. Levelness of floors and ridge lines

6. Check detailing of doors, windows, stairs and interior cabinet work

A good builder makes a project go smoothly as he or she knows the sub-contractors, and how to order materials and their delivery. The builder also knows permits required, driveway construction, sewers, water, electric power, the various costs, and the quality of the various materials. The builder can be a great help with the various details and decisions an owner must make on the project.

Communication is key. The owner must explain to the builder exactly what they want and at what cost. Therefore, an early estimate of the cost is very important.

Next, pre-qualify yourself for the total amount of the money you can afford to borrow. An old rule of thumb may be that 28% of your gross income should go for all long-term debt. Don't forget the down payment required. Also, shop for the lending institution like you shopped for the builder.

I like to obtain a set of drawings of the proposed house or cabin with specifications. One can then obtain bids from the good builders you have selected. It gives you more control of the bidding process.

Timber Roof Trusses

2007-05-30T17:42:00.000-05:00

Many log homes and cabins have trusses that support the roof structure. The trusses accent the open ceiling and give the log home a sense of "structure".

The choice of truss configuration is based on the skill of the workmanship, cost, joinery and, most of all, aesthetics.

Trusses are expensive as they are time consuming to build and are labor intensive. The joinery is the major consideration as the truss members are pieced together by a variety of methods. Usually the trusses are pre-built; that is, they are assembled off site or on the ground at the site and lifted into place by a mobile crane.

The trusses should be engineered. Calculations based on the prevailing snow and wind loads of the area should be determined along with truss member sizes and the timber specie. I like to use rectangular sections of timbers, such as 4"x6", 6"x6", 6"x8", or 6"x10". The timbers are connected together with 3/4" round Thru-bolts with 1/4" steel plates on each side of the timber members where connected to each other. Each connection should be calculated to determine the proper number of 3/4" Thru=bolts on each side of the joint.

Trusses are best used in large rooms. A room 24' x 24' would be an ideal space for one large truss that is spaced at approximately 12' on center. The span of the truss is 24'. Small roof purlins with a 4' spacing then can frame from the end walls to the truss. Of course, other truss spacing may be used, but aesthetics dictate a large spacing for the trusses with purlins at the underside of the roof slope providing a nice arrangement of the structural pieces.

There are many different truss configurations. Just to name a few; Queen, Fink, Howe and Pratt. If the truss span is in the 18' to 25' range, the most economical truss is probably the Fink truss as it has the minimum number of truss pieces; thus reducing the number of connections of member to member.

The Fink truss has a straight bottom chord and sloping top chords that follow the slope of the roof. The web members; that is, the members that tie the top and bottom chords together form a "W" shape with the center of the "W" connecting at the ridge.

Other truss configurations are also used to create a more aesthetic arrangement of the structural pieces. Check with the builder or the log supplier as they may have a favorite truss to build.

More Wildlife Art

2007-05-25T00:35:00.000-05:00

In a previous post on wildlife art, I gave kudos to the great wildlife artist, Philip Goodwin. I believe he ranked with the great artists such as N.C. Wyeth, Charles Russell and other contempories of the past.

Several years ago, I worked with a fine architect named Scot Storm. From the very beginning I saw in Scot his artistic eye. He was very conscious of doing a good job for our clients. After I got to know him better, he showed me some of his wildlife art. Wow! Not only is he a great architect, he is a great wildlife artist. His art work of ducks is unbelievable!

I retired from engineering work, and shortly after, a colleague mentioned that Scot had gone on his own to do wildlife art full time and his work is now for sale. I knew he would succeed. He has received many awards & recognition including first place in the contest for the 2004-05 Federal Duck Stamp.

For a great visual treat, please take a look at his website: www.Stormwildlifeart.com

Wildlife Art

2007-05-10T13:11:00.000-05:00

Some years ago, when I was a teenager, our family would visit the 'old' cabin on the present property. My father had wildlife art around the cabin walls. He always had the calendars with "predicament" wildlife art. I just loved those old calendars.

The "predicament" wildlife art was usually a copy of an original art depicting a hunter or fisherman with an encounter with a bear, moose or other dangerous animal. A female bear with two cubs running from a fisherman's cabin with a large chunk of bacon and sausages with the fishermen near by watching in surprise is an example of this "predicament" art.

About twelve years ago, I saw a similar 'old calendar' that had "predicament" wildlife art the same as I remember from my teenage years. The calendar was in an antique store. The price on the one section of the calendar framed was $200.00. I had to find out who the artist was who painted this "predicament" wildlife art. The artist's name was Philip R. Goodwin.

A quick look at the artist's biography indicated that he lived from 1881 to 1935. Philip was educated at the Rhode Island School of Design, Drexel Institute, and Howard Pye's School. He loved the outdoors and earned a living as a commercial artist. His most famous commercial trade mark is the horse and rider on the Winchester Fire Arms Posters and Advertisements. Philip was a contemporary of and knew N. C. Wyeth, Charles Russell and Carl Rungius, all great artists.

My search continued to find those great old calendars or posters painted by Philip Goodwin. It wan't long, when my daughter surprised me with a framed Philip Goodwin print for a Christmas Present. The print shows two hunters near their log cabin. One hunter is coming out of the cabin entry with a fry pan and the other hunter is reaching for his rifle as a mother bear and her cub are looking their way. I really enjoy that piece of art and all the art by Philip Goodwin.

One Goodwin print isn't quite enough! My search for a second Goodwin print soon ended in a gift store that catered to outdoor and wildlife art. The print shows two campers jumping into a birch bark canoe ready to chase a swimming bull moose. I bought it!

Both Goodwin prints are masterful in composition, subject and vivid colors. They are great examples of "predicament" art and are to be placed on the interior walls of any cabin or house.

Traditional Chinking

2007-04-30T16:21:00.000-05:00

Years ago log cabin construction was made with handcrafted logs. The logs were straight and of durable first growth timber. The bark was skinned from the trees while green and was set aside for drying (seasoning). Some logs were pressure treated to resist weathering, insects and termites.

In constructing the old traditional cabin walls, the largest logs were placed at the bottom of the walls, tapering to the smallest logs at the top of the wall. The logs were reversed by placing the log top end of one log directly above the butt end of another log. This method insured a more uniform space between logs. This space between the logs was about two inches, with a minimum space of one inch.

After the logs were placed, chinking of the space between the logs proceeded. Six inch strips of expanded metal lath or heavy, small spaced wire fabric was placed on a diagonal between the logs. The metal strips were securely nailed to the bottom inside face of the top log and nailed to the top outside face of the bottom log. These metal strips were then covered by the mortar that ran continuously between the pgs for the length of each log.

The mortar my family used on our old cabin was a portland cement mortar mix; one bag of portland cement, 20% of lime by volume, and 3 cubic feet of loose plaster sand. These materials were mixed together dry. Water was added to produce a stiff mix. This mortar was allowed to stand for about one hour under a cover of wet cloth, then remixed. No additional water was added to the mortar.

The mortar was then ready to be placed for chinking. The mortar was simultaneously placed into the log spaces from both sides of the wall with compacting tools, pushing the mortar through the openings in the metal lath or wire fabric thus forming an anchor for the mortar.

The compacting tools were wood blocking about ten inches long with convex shaped face to produce a curved concave face to the chinking.

Feather edges against the logs were cut off with a trowel leaving approximately 1/4 inch shoulder on the top and bottom of the joint on both sides of the wall. Two to three hours later, the chinking and logs were painted with water glass (a sodium silicate solution). The water glass film began to peel and flake after several days and was removed with a dry rough scrub brush. The surfaces were then finished with sandpaper and finally stained. This sealed the walls from snow, wind, rain and animals.

In modern chinking (if used), the space between the logs is somewhat reduced. The space is filled with strip foam near the center of the logs and backer rods tight against the foam on each side. Then a synthetic chink is placed tight against the backer rods covering them, the foam and sealing against the logs. This new chink looks and feels like mortar. It is a permanent seal because of the elastic properties of the synthetic chink.

Selective Logging

2007-03-22T15:30:00.000-05:00

When the logger arrived at our place he said "You should have logged the property some ten years ago"

The logger was right as many of the large balsam, aspen, birch and pine trees have fallen because of high winds, decay and "old age."

I hired a local logger last summer who had a great reputation for selective logging of properties; taking only the most mature trees that needed to be harvested and leaving the healthy, younger trees so they will continue to grow.

The logger had all the equipment to cut, trim and lift the large trees into his large logging trucks. The local processing plants were not accepting any trees for a while, so the harvesting was delayed. The local processing plants use the trees to make home building products, such as wood sheathing. The trees can be also used at the paper mills to create paper for newspapers, magazines, etc.

When cutting down the trees, the logger cuts a wedge-shaped piece out of the trunk of the tree with his chain saw. Then the logger makes a chain saw cut on the opposite side of the wedge-shaped cut. The tree loses its strength and balance and falls toward the wedge-shaped side of the trunk.

The logger was able to fell the trees exactly where he wanted them. The falling tree avoids striking other trees or hitting stumps, large rocks, or equipment which might damage the falling tree's trunk. He trims the limbs and may cut the tree into shorter pieces. Some pieces may be 30 to 40 feet long.

Our logger created a landing (a central place to collect the fallen trees) and skidded (dragged) the fallen trees to the landing. He then placed the logs on the truck trailer and when the trailer was loaded with the logs, he transported the logs from the forest area to the processing plant some distance away. He also assembled the cut limbs into brush piles and when sufficient snow was on the ground, burned the brush piles.

The processing plant delay was lifted and the logger proceeded to log the property. Logs must be freshly cut when they arrive at the processing plant. Because of the delay at the processing plant, the logging took more time than expected.

The logger did a great job in selectively logging the forest. Now only healthy trees remain, the paths are open and we can see through the trees and underbrush. The forest will now rejuvenate and young, healthy growth will soon cover the land.

I am excited to see what species will spring up, and also I am looking forward to obtaining some small seedling pine trees and plant them this coming spring.

The Great Room

2007-03-01T16:40:00.000-06:00

When planning the spaces in our log cabin we wanted a spacious, open, bright larger room. We called it a Greatroom.

We focused on entertainment and family living. The Greatroom is a combination of living room, dining room and kitchen with a near smooth vaulted ceiling. The high vaulted ceiling gives the room a nice feeling of space.

The double hung windows are spaced around the Greatroom and provide an open feeling to capture the outdoors and much needed sunshine. During the evening hours, the vaulted ceiling is illuminated with flourescent strip lighting to cast light up into the vaulted area. Lighting is a key to the success of our great room. There is a five bulb hanging light over the dining table to add some light for evening dining and a table lamp is placed on top of the desk for reading.

The wall finishes of our Greatroom are all wood; logs or wood wall boards with a clear urethane finish. The kitchen cabinets are pine wood and the counter to is red laminate material.

The floor is wall to wall commercial carpeting with a diamond check pattern of green, red, orange, and blue. It is placed on the 3/4" plywood floor sheathing. The carpet adds color to the room.

The black wood stove is positioned on top of a 4" raised platform of green 12" quarry tile. The platform is made of unglazed ceramic tile placed on 1/2" thick cement board with floor tile adhesive. The cement board is supoorted by 2" x 4" wood framing at 16" on center. The size of the platform and the use of non-combustible materials conform to the building codes. This platform provides a base for the major winter focal point: the wood stove with its glass window.

The furniture blends with the rustic interior wall finishes. The dining table and chairs are log furniture made by a Canadian company . Our desk, beds and several other chairs are also made from logs. The couch is dark red leather and one chair is of green textured upholstered fabric. The colors blend well and accent the natural beauty of the logs and other wood construction.

The log stairs with hand- shaped log railings also add a nice rustic look to the furniture and other log construction.

In addition, several wild-life pictures are placed around the Greatroom to add visual interest. We have also enlarged and framed pictures we have taken of the forest. We have winter, spring, summer and fall pictures of one of our favorite areas. Each season displays a different beauty.

The Greatroom is open, spacious and inviting and it is very home-like to us.

Old Log Cabins

2007-02-23T19:30:00.000-06:00

For your viewing pleasure. Some photos of old log cabins of friends, family and local folks.

Some of these cabins look virtually identical, but if you look closely you can see the differences. Most date from the mid 1800's to the early 1900's.

Please keep in mind that during the Great Depression it was common for people to make a living by trapping and living off the land.

Winter Preparations

2007-02-21T16:46:00.000-06:00

We frequently visit our cabin during the winter months, so preparations for winter are fairly simple. We know there will be many days when the temperature drops below freezing and even below zero degrees, so precautions must be taken with anything that can freeze.

The first items to consider are the food items . We remove all canned and bottled goods as they will certainly freeze. Some dry goods, such as dry soup, flour, sugar, dry cereals, etc. can be stored in metal or glass containers to prevent any insects, mice, etc. from enjoying them. The covers should be tight fitting.

The blankets and bed linens are laundered and those which are not on the beds are stored in a large trunk or hard plastic boxes. (Once we had moths enjoy the flannel sheets and a cotton blanket.) It is too much work to put all the bedding and blankets away each time we leave, not to think of the work in making all the beds when we revisit the cabin.

As our main source of heat is the wood stove, we always fill the wood box and the log holder on the porch before we leave so that starting the fire will be easier. We also have a kerosene heater which we start as soon as we arrive as the indoor temperature is about the same as outside temperature. We need to be sure we have a good supply of kerosene available.

All the food is removed from the refrigerator. The refrigerator is turned off, disconnected and cleaned with the doors propped open to prevent mold and odor build- up. We have found that our refrigerator starts better if we first turn off the appliance and then unplug it.

Finally, as discussed in this link to a previous post, the water lines are drained and antifreeze added to the toilet, toilet tank, the sink drains, etc.

The Ants Go Marching One By One

2007-02-13T01:45:00.000-06:00

As soon as the hornets had been dealt with.....large ants started to appear on the exterior and interior log walls of the cabin. We captured a few of the ants and placed them in small glass containers and sent them to the University of Minnesota for exact identification.

The University Extension Entomologist indicated they were carpenter ants.

Carpenter ants are destructive and can eat up the wood of the log walls. They seem to find the little cracks and openings in the wall and create hidden holes and tunnels within the logs if the wood remains moist and especially if wood rot occurs. Carpenter ants can enter the cabin walls many ways.

At first, we noticed a few ants marching across logs and then found wood shavings, mostly in one particular corner. We realized we needed to be concerned about this issue.

Our first attempt was to apply a liquid insecticide on the inside and outside faces of the log walls. Next, we tried a powder dust especially formulated for carpenter bees and carpenter ants. We used these treatments every 3 to 4 weeks during the summers, less frequently during winter months.

When the log cabin needed a re-staining, we tried an insecticide in the log finish.

In spite of all the attempts to rid the cabin logs of ants, we had little success. One very hot summer we noticed an increase in the number of ants both inside and outside the cabin. As there are many rottings logs in the forest, we could not find their nests in the woods. To our amazement and amusement, we watched as the army of ants marched one by one back and forth across the sandy soil surrounding the cabin. Hundreds of ants were actively working that day.

Something further needed to be done!

We happened upon the cabin's original builder and told him of the carpenter ants. He suggested that I go to a particular small, local store and get a liquid concentrate there which is mixed especially for carpenter ants.

We stopped by the store and asked for the carpenter ant concentrate. The store clerk knew exactly what we wanted and poured a small amount of the mysterious concentrate into an old glass quart jar. The jar cover did not matched the jar. So, in an attempt to seal the improper cover to the jar, the store clerk placed some waxpaper over the opening of the jar before putting on the lid.

We were on our 3 hour return trip back to the city from the cabin when we purchased the concentrate. A number of miles down the road, we were overwhelmed by a strong, pungent odor coming from the back of our van. We guessed it was coming from the jar of concentrate with it's imperfect lid.

We stopped on a gravel road just off the highway. We couldn't drive all the way back to the city with the smell......how do we do eliminate the smell? We didn't have any other jars or containers in the van with a better closing lid.

After some discussion, we decided to place the jar of concentrate with it's faulty cover under a nearby small pine tree in the forest, about 20 feet from the edge of the back woods road. I placed a flat rock on top of the cover of the jar to hold the jar upright and keep an accidental bump from knocking the jar over. We decided we would plan on picking up the hidden jar on the way back to the cabin the next week end.

A week later we did go back to the cabin and stopped by the small pine tree in the woods to pick up the jar with the concentrate. It was still there! We put it into a new, larger plastic container with a tight cover and continued on our merry way up to the cabin odor free.

The concentrate was to be mixed with water in a 10 to 1 ratio. One ounce of concentrate and 10 ounces of water could be placed into our plastic spray container. We sprayed the mixture into the rock landscaping that surrounds the cabin, on the foundation, lower logs and the wood skirt board that was placed below the bottom wall log. This treatment appeared to be very effective.

Early this coming Spring we will spray this same insecticide to treat the cabin again. Here's hoping the march of the ants is a thing of the past.

Uninvited Guests

2007-02-06T20:01:00.000-06:00

As soon as the cabin was finished, a number of uninvited guests arrived.

The ants, spiders, hornets, wasps, bees, deer flies and mosquitoes all showed their presence. Of course, the usual insects were there before us and we had to blend into their surroundings.

Summer is their season, but we can escape into the confines of the cabin interior. The screens are on the windows and a big fly swatter is nearby. We put sticky fly strips on the bottom of the high windows.

Everything seemed under control.

But, then the hornets showed up and built their nests at the soffits of the roof overhangs. They make their nests of hornet chewed plant fiber. The nests look paper-like. Every spring we expect a hornets' nest under one of the eaves of the cabin, garage, or wood shed.

The female hornet starts the nest and lays some eggs. The young become mature and become workers for the female hornet helping to build the nest larger, gather more food and have additional hornets. Soon, we had hundreds of hornets.

The hornets can be a needless pest and they can give painful stings to anyone who disturbs them. The stings are poisonous and can cause painful swelling. I have been stung several times by these critters.

I like to get rid of these uninvited guests by using "BLACK FLAG" spray that is made specifically to kill hornets or wasps on contact within their nest.

I dress head to foot with a long sleeved shirt , full length jeans and gloves and cap. I try to keep my neck and face covered as much as possible. At evening time, after sun set, when the hornets become least active, I give the hornet nest a good 2 to 4 second shot of the Black Flag. The spray coats the nest and saturates it, killing the whole nest and any hornets which return to the nest after the nest has been coated. This seems to control the hornet population for most of the season.

Other "uninvited" guests??? Yes!!! ......To be continued.

Wood Decay

2006-12-30T18:18:00.000-06:00

Wood decay is created by microscopic fungi which feeds on the starches and sugars that are in the wood. The fungi slowly destroys the wood cell structure of the log.

There are several types of decay fungi, but the prevailing cause of log damage is from brown rot. The wood appears brown and crumbly and looks unusually dry. Sometimes this rot is called "dry rot".

Wood decay fungi requires four conditions to survive: a warm temperature (about 70 degrees to 100 degrees F), oxygen, wood (food source), and water. Keeping the water away from the log contruction is the most effective means of decay control.

Of course, choosing the proper wood species helps control wood decay too. Wood species such as cedar, cypress, redwood heartwood are naturally resistant to decay and insect attack. The heartwood is that portion of the log that is the central column of wood that runs through the center of the log. The sapwood of the log is that wood that surrounds the heartwood and is less durable in nature. The sapwood is the light colored wood: whereas, the heartwood is the darker portion of the log.

The historic log structures of Europe, United States, and Canada are grand because of the virgin timber of years ago. These virgin timbers had large portions of heartwood, thus these log structures have stood for years. Some good examples are the Lodges of Yellowstone, Glacier, and Yosemite National Parks.

(Grand Canyon Lodge photo curtesy of the National Park Service. Photo by L.S. Harrison)

The Anatomy of the Log

2006-12-21T00:30:00.000-06:00

The choice of the log species used to build a cabin is determined by availability and the cost. The wood that is indigenous to the local area is a good choice.

It is best to have the logs winter cut and air dried. This will help reduce the overall weight of the logs for shipping and will aid in lifting the logs for construction. It will also help shrink the logs prior to setting the log in the log walls, thus reducing to precautions necessary to accommodate shrinkage and detailing around windows, doors, interior walls, etc.

When the moisture content of the logs gets below 19%, a large amount of the log shrinkage has been done. The moisture content is best measured by a moisture meter. It is ideal to get the moisture down to 15% or below to be sure the logs won't check. Of course, shrinkage will vary and will reach an equilibrium with the environment, and will have some differential moisture content between the inside and outside of the exterior walls. This differential is most pronounced during the winter.

This leads to the log profile (or how the logs join together). The choice of log profile and the wood species is important because some joining systems work better with some wood species than with others. As an example, Western Red Cedar is easier to cut to very close tolerances, thus making the tight fit between logs.

Another important factor of the log profile is the ability of the log to shed rainwater. If the log is milled to square or other shape other than round, it is necessary that rain water remain on the exterior face of the wall and not enter the joint between the logs.

The log chosen for our cabin was a Red (Norway) Pine, indigenous to our area and was low cost. Western Red Cedar was an option, but more expensive. The log is curved both on the inside and outside of the log and has a flat top and bottom. The top has two tongues and the bottom has two grooves. The tongue profile matches the groove profile so as to fit together. During erection of the logs, two 1/8" Butyl Strips are placed on top of the two tongues to aid in fitting the joint together. (See photo of the log profile). The center of the log is very near the center of the cut profile which adds to the structural stability of the log wall.

Also, note that at the corners where the logs overlap, the log ends are flush and are not a butt and pass corner. Usually, the butt and pass corners permit weathering of the logs which will lead to log decay.

The log shrinkage in the exterior walls of the cabin was allowed to happen as vertical steel rods were placed in the wall corners and other locations that run the full height of the log wall thru vertical holes placed at the center of the logs. This wall shrinkage keeps the log to log joints tight and keeps the rain water out of the joints.

One possible problem with the double tongue and groove system (shown in the photo) of the cabin is that moisture can form between the grooves, caused by condensation in the winter time. The thin Butyl Strips tend to mitigate this potential problem. After ten years of the logs in place this condensation problem hasn't been detected in our cabin.

As an additional insurance, we applied a high quality stain sealer (High Sierra Log Stain) to the exterior of the cabin and caulking was placed in the exterior corners.

Lost

2006-11-03T13:25:00.000-06:00

Some years ago, my mother and her friends planned a blueberry picking trip. They knew of a great spot in the woods near the old cabin where blueberries were abundant. The time was late August and the blueberries at the their best.

The blueberries are of low bush variety, several feet high and thick with many green leaves and when in bloom they have white or pink blossoms. The blueberries grow best in sandy or peaty soil that must be acidic and drained to a depth about 16 to 20 inches. The underlying soil below the sandy or peaty soil must have abundant mositure for the blueberries to thrive.

The group was having a great time enjoying the harvest of berries. Each of the group proceeded to pick, going in their own direction, spreading out and following where the best picking was. Soon the group was spread out, far from each other, but still enjoying blueberries. Time passed.

My mother found herself isolated from the group. She thought she could call for help, but there was no response. She walked back to where she thought her friends were, but couldn't find them. Evening was approaching. A little panic settled in.

My mother collected her thoughts and looked for a clearing nearby to sit down and rest. She had a nice pail of blueberries to eat when she felt hungry. Just, maybe, her friends would stop by or call. She waited. Darkness came. She curled up and fell asleep.

Her friends looked for her, calling her name, but could not find her. They called the sheriff's office and explained about the lost person. The sheriff stated that they would form a search party in the morning which included an airplane and pilot who was trained in searching for lost people. The area to be searched was somewhat remote, but well defined.

My mother was an experienced outdoorswoman and did not wander, but stayed near the clearing where she stopped early the previous evening. Morning came, and my mother awoke to the noise of a low flying airplane. She waved at the pilot and the pilot tipped the wings to acknowledge her wave. Within an hour the search party arrived. Needless to say, my mother was happy to see the group.

When she arrived home, her friends stopped by to ask about her night in the bush. She talked for hours about her adventure. She even got her story in the local newspaper. Mother was an ideal survivor in that she didn't panic, collected her thoughts, sat down and rested, had something to eat, and had a strong belief in her friends who would help in finding her.

The Wood Shed

2006-10-15T23:15:00.000-05:00

When the fall and winter months come to mind, our thoughts go to: "We need to cut some firewood." We have an Avalon wood burning stove that warms the cabin and has proven to be an adequate provider of warmth during the winter. The fuel for the stove is wood from the forest.

In the Spring of the year, we scout about for dead or near dead trees, fell them, and cut the logs into 16" to 18" pieces to fit into the stove fire box. Many types of trees are available, but we have been cutting maple, aspen, ash and birch trees. We prefer the hardwood such as oak, but oak is not available. The need for a wood shed was obvious.

The 6' wide by 12' long wood shed is located about 8' from the garage. It is placed atop a sloping ledge rock: the same area we originally planned to locate the cabin. It is not the best place, but a good location and convenient.

Building atop the sloping ledge rock was a challenge. A level floor was desirable so, we cut 4 - 10" round forms (sonotubes) to fit the slope of the ledge rock. Jim, a friend who can solve the most difficult of problems, accepted the task of drilling four holes into the ledge rock for the vertical reinforcing rods, 1/2" in diameter. Jim proceeded with an electric drill and 1/2" diameter carbide tipped drill bits. The rock was very, very hard and the drilling very, very difficult. After many hours of drilling and wishing we had diamond tipped drill bits, we accepted about 1-1/2" deep holes. While Jim was drilling the holes, I busied myself by gathering the bags of sack-crete, the wheel barrow, shovel and water for mixing the concrete. We placed the reinforced rods into the holes and poured concrete into the forms (sonotubes). The tops of the poured concrete piers were now level and ready for the wood posts and other wood framing .

After waiting several days for the concrete to gain strength, we placed 4" x 4" treated wood posts atop the concrete piers and placed wood rafters to form the sloping roof. My daughter and I placed the plywood sheathing over the rafters and applied 30 pounds building paper. Next we nailed asphalt shingles (GAF, Timberline) over the building paper, forming a roof over the wood shed. The same shingles were used as were used on the cabin and garage. We also applied the same stain.

The capacity of the wood shed is about three regular cords of wood, but the usual load is less than 2 cords. It is most enjoyable to sit on the nearby couch and watch the wood burning in the fire box of the Avalon Stove. The heat is a radiant type of heat and feels more comfortable than convection heat. Grab a cup of coffee, a good book and savor the warmth of the stove.

The Boat(s)

2006-09-08T15:16:00.000-05:00

Many years ago, my father owned a home-made 12 foot canvas covered boat with a 2 1/2 horsepower Johnson outboard motor. The boat and motor were used for years for fishing and lake exploration. The boat was light enough to be placed on boat carriers on top of the family car. My father sold the boat and motor in the late 1950's.

In the late 1940's, my dad and I took the 12 foot boat on a week long trip thru a number of large connecting lakes. We camped in a tent on some of the islands, caught some fish to eat and enjoyed being together. When we started out, the weather was nice, a little windy and sunny.

Later in the week, the wind picked up when we were crossing one of the large lakes. The waves grew into "white caps" and then into large rolling waves., That 12 foot boat did well in those waves. When we went into a wave trough, we could not see land. May dad had that 2 1/2 horsepower Johnson humming along just great. We both had our life jackets on and hoped we would not take on much water. Eventually, we reached a beach near a resort which my dad knew; and there we took on a big splash of water. We were safe and sound and waited out the wind storm at the resort. The people at the resort said that even the big boats would not go out into that wind storm.

After the wind storm subsided, we resumed out trip. On our way back to our point of beginning, my dad suggested that we portage the boat, motor and our gear. The portage was about 1/2 mile and required several trips. We placed a small wheel on top of the top deck at the bow of the boat. We turned the boat over, with the boat bottom upward. We both grabbed the stern transom and wheeled the boat across the portage. Another trip back, and our motor and gear were across the portage. We found the bay was very calm. We continued on doing fine, but the wind slowly picked up as we were going down the center of the bay toward the main part of the large lake.

All of a sudden, the boat landed atop a large submerged rock. The motor stopped and there we were!! We could not move. My dad suggested we get out the paddles.

The paddles were placed vertically, one on each side of the boat. My dad had one paddle and I the other. The paddle tip was placed atop the submerged rock and we waited for a larger wave. After a few minutes a large wave came along and my dad called out that we both push down on our paddles.

Alas the boat came off the rock. My dad started the motor and we both felt releaved and out of danger. The rest of the trip was without any major event.

We arrived at the public dock at our point of beginning . Here my dad ran into an old friend and they talked for at least an hour about our week long wonderful trip and that 12 foot boat.

In the 1970's I purchased a used 17 foot alumacraft canoe. I still have the canoe, but we don't use it much. It is ideal for portaging from one lake to another and for canoe trips.

I thought I needed a fishing boat and a larger outboard motor. A deal came up and I bought a used 14 foot boat with a console control system, a 25 horsepower motor and trailer . Big Mistake!!!

The boat size was too small for the large lakes in our immediate area. It would be okay for the smaller lakes, but not the big ones.

I traded the 14 foot boat, motor and trailer in for a new 16 1/2 foot Aumacraft boat, a new Johnson 25 horsepower and a new Shorelander trailer. The boat was wider and deeper with more stability. The boat came with cushion seats, fish well, storage compartments, night lights and bulge pump. Just enough items to add some comfort.

The 25 Horsepower Johnson is unique as it has 3 cylinders, in lieu of 2 or 4 that other motors have. It runs well, with ample boat speed.

Most of the boats and motors in the marine docks around, are larger with faster and more powerful motors. Motors up to 200 horsepower are not uncommon.

The lakes around our area are numerous; Almost a life time of fishing and exploration. Within a 15 mile radius from our cabin there are 25 different lakes of various sizes and shapes.

More Construction - The Garage

2006-06-25T13:46:00.000-05:00

Almost as important as the cabin is the garage - and storage. The accumulation of more possessions dictated the need for a garage and storage.

Garage construction is different than cabin construction. Deep foundations, insulation, and interior finishes can be omitted.

A 22 foot by 28 foot garage was built using the thickened edge of the concrete floor as the footing for the load bearing wood frame walls. A compacted sand and gravel fill was placed below the garage slab to support the slab and the garage structure and to keep any frost action from lifting the structure.

Pre-engineered roof trusses were used to span the 22 feet between the exterior bearing walls. A Micro-Lam beam was used over the 8 foot high overhead garage door.

So often the case, the beams over the 16 foot wide garage doors are undesigned. The potential snow loads on any roof are high in our area, as the building code would require up to 46 pounds per square foot of snow for the design of the roof trusses and supporting beams for garages.

Beveled pine boards were used on three sides of the garage and log siding was used on the front of the structure. The log siding recalls the log structure of the cabin. The stain used on the garage is the same as used on the cabin and the roof shingles are also the same. The service door is painted green to match the door to the cabin.

When the floor slab and concrete apron were poured, I was surprised when the contractor did not use any curing method to help cure the concrete. So, I quickly applied a coating of water over the top of the slab and then a covering of contruction plastic was placed over the entire slab. A curing method should have been applied to minimize potential slab cracking of the concrete which happens when a rapid evaporation of the water in the concrete occurs.

Some small cracking did appear in the slab after a number of days. After about a month of curing, a high quality penetrating sealer was applied (Hydrozo Clear 650). This sealer acts as a water repellent sealer which prevents water, salts, acids and freeze - thaw cycles from deteriorating the concrete.

The 220 volt electric wiring was extended from the cabin into the garage. A number of ceiling lights were installed along with a number of electrical outlets. An outlet was installed near the overhead garage door for a future garage door opener.

The garage is a great addition to the property as it provides cover for a boat and motor and a number of other items, such as a work bench and storage, a lawn tractor and small wagon, snow blower, and of course a place for the family automobile.

What Shall We Fish For?

2006-06-20T11:45:00.000-05:00

June is a good month for fishing in this northern climate. Our favorite fish is the walleye or walleye pike, a member of the perch family.

The walleye pike is common in the Great Lakes and the Upper Mississippi Valley area. The walleye likes clear water with rocky or sandy lake bottoms. Its size may be anywhere between 2 to 20 pounds. The most common length is 10 to 12 inches. The walleye may be caught with a simple pole and hook. It is easy to catch, and will bite almost on any kind of bait and may be caught any time of the year.

The walleye that weighs about 2 to 3 pounds is the best eating. It has a very pleasant taste for a fish and has few bones.

It is best to fillet the fish before cooking the fish in a fry pan or grilling. My own preference is to grill the fillets.

Of course, northern pike, bass, crappies, etc. are all fun to fish and are good to eat; but walleye pike is the local favorite.

Fishing Opener is May 13th

2006-05-12T20:08:00.000-05:00

Anglers who are heading to the lake for the Minnesota fishing opener should get their fishing license as early as possible. The DNR stated that those fishermen would avoid long lines and possible glitches.

Vendors, who sell licenses, use a dial-up system to the DNR. The telephone system in some northern commumities recently went down sporadically. The telephone problems have been solved, but overload on the DNR system may happen as thousands of licenses are purchased early tomorrow.

GOOD FISHING!!!!!

Making Tracks In The Snow

2006-04-30T17:32:00.000-05:00

A snowshoe is an odd shaped device that permits a person to walk over deep snow without sinking into the snow. The snowshoe distributes a person's weight over a large area. The adult snowshoes are about three feet long and a foot and a half wide. Children's snowshoes are smaller as their weight is less than an adult.

The traditional snowshoes are made of a light weight wooden frame, bent into a long oval. A weave of strings of raw animal hide are stretched across the frame. The strings are tied to the wood frame and both are coated with several coats of water resistance varnish. Native Americans were the first to use snowshoes in the regions of deep snow. Many of the traditional snowshoe shapes are modeled after these early Native American snowshoes.

To walk with snowshoes, one moves their feet so that the snowshoe glides over the surface of the snow. An outward motion to the snowshoe with each forward step must be used. With practice, one can cover many miles over the snow. It is an excellent form of exercise, different than walking, but is most enjoyable; as it gives one the ability to view the wonders of the winter forest.

Today, modern snowshoes are made of light weight tubular metal shapes and wide plastic webbing similar to the tranditional snowshoes. The modern snowshoes have small and different shapes and other accessories to aid the user in snowshoeing, especially when climbing or going down hill. Our traditional snowshoes seem to support us better without sinking deeper into the snow than the modern metal snowshoes.

It is magical to walk in the deep snow with snowshoes at night, especially when the moon is full. The snow glistens from the light of the moon. The snowshoes steps make no sound and the dark shadows of the winter forest seem ghost like. It is a scene that shines with a luster with a dropback of the large pine trees that appear as silent sentinels against the sky and the sparkling snow.

Chicken and Egg

2006-04-15T18:19:00.000-05:00

We started looking at furnishings for the cabin in the antique stores in our area. We did find an antique wood box which we purchased to keep logs near our stove. We also looked at mission furniture.

An ad in our local newspaper caught our eye. A local liquidator had log furniture for sale. Our visit to that store changed our mind about the style of furnishings to buy. The prices were great, so, a log bed, log desk, night stand, and two chairs were purchased. Another trip back, and an additional night stand was purchased. All the log furnishings were "Chicken & Egg"; a high quality log manufacturer from the West Coast.

I had planned to remodel the second night stand into a bathroom vanity, so I cut a circular hole in the top to receive the bowl, but waited for the faucets to cut the piping holes. I set the remodeled night stand aside for a time.

The next step was to order the kitchen cabinets. Our orginial kitchen layout was small and when we ordered the cabinets, the vendor extended the base cabinet several feet . We ordered a vanity base to match the kitchen cabinets. I had forgotten the circular hole that was cut into the night stand.

When the kitchen cabinets arrived for installation, a new vanity base was also there. OOOOOPS!!! Now two vanity bases existed. A confused builder called us wondering how the two vanity bases were to be used. The vanity base from the kichen cabinet store was chosen for the bathroom and installed.

The remodeled night stand was converted back to a night stand by inserting the circular cutout back into the hole. We covered the cut mark with a cloth and the first night stand is back in use.

We are pleased with the appearance and comfort of our log furniture.

Our Elephant Burial Mounds

2006-03-20T19:20:00.000-06:00

The main sewage line is a 6" diameter heavy duty plastic pipe that runs through the crawl space. It collects the dirty water from the kitchen, bathroom and vanity and dumps it into a 1000 gallon precast concrete septic tank. The tank is buried in the ground.

The septic tank consists of two chambers. The first compartment allows anaerobic bacteria to begin the process of decomposition and the second chamber diverts the sewage to a system of open drains through which the effluent leaches back into a large drain field.

The drain systems is buried into the large mound of granular material There the effluent is further attacked by aerobic bacteria and the effluent is rendered harmless. Cess pools, and other disposal systems are not allowed by the county where the cabin is located.

The design and installation of the sewage disposal system is regulated by the county and only certified and licensed installers are allowed to construct the system. The soil is tested to determine whether the soil is suitable for leaching and the size of the drain tile field. If the soil is semi-impervious, a large mound of granular material must be built for the tile field. Our installation is of that design.

We humorously call our granular mound our "elephant burial ground". Balsam trees are planted on one side of the mound to hide it from view.

Wild Rice - Flash Back

2006-02-05T14:29:00.000-06:00

In the late 1940's, my father and I visited an old friend of my father's who had a place on the nearby river. Not far down stream from the friend's place was a widening of the river with a large bed of wild rice.

It was in the fall of the year, and the Native Americans were harvesting the wild rice by pushing their canoes into the wild rice beds. The harvest process began by bending heads of the plants over the gun wales of the canoe and then beating the wild rice grains loose from the plant . One stick was to bend the plant head over the edge of the canoe and the other stick was to beat the grains loose. The grain fell into the bottom of the canoe and collected. After many hours of work the wild rice grains were brought in for further processing.

Wild rice, not related to rice, is an aquatic grass that grows from 4 to 8 feet high. Wild rice grows naturally in shallow rivers and lakes in our area. The grains are long, spindly; grayish is color.

My father and I watched and admired the skill and hard work the Native Americans used in the harvesting of the wild rice. Wild rice is a special delicacy used with fish, duck, pheasant or or sausages. It is also used as a side dish with many meats . Wild rice is rich in vitamin B. .

Winterizing Water Lines

2006-01-29T21:19:00.000-06:00

Of course, we turn off the water, drain the pipes and put anti-freeze into the drain traps for the winter.

The water supply system is designed to drain as the water supply lines are sloped to a low point where turn on-off valves are placed. The sink and tub faucets are opened to allow air into the pipes to replace the water running out.

The electric power to the deep submergeable pump and the 40 gallon electric hot water heater are turned off. Both the pressure tank and hot water heater are drained into a precast circular catch basin. This empties the two tanks of water.

The tank and bowl of the toilet are drained. One cup of anti-freeze is placed into the tank and two cups of anti-freeze are placed into the toilet bowl - drain. One cup of anti-freeze is also poured into the bath tub drain, the vanity sink drain and the kitchen sink drain.

The RV Marine Anti-freeze (Isobar) is used as it protects the drains to minus 50 degrees, F. The anti-freeze mixes with the water in the traps of drains and keeps the water from freezing.

The design of our system allows quick and easy drainage and the turn on process is also simple to use. The shut off process takes approximately one-half to one hour.

Blog Mayhem

2006-01-24T12:41:00.000-06:00

StatCounter (the hit counter on my website) has been down for two days. Because the counter that shows how many people have visited my Blog isn't showing up, its doing weird things to the format of the entire Blog on some browsers. Apparantly, there are quite a few websites & blogs affected by this.

My apologies to anyone that has tried to access my Blog and has ended up frustrated.....because I certainly am :-)

The Source of Illumination

2006-01-22T19:49:00.000-06:00

The electrical service comes in from the power company's main line running adjacent to the county road. The 200 foot power line was placed over head to a single power pole and then under ground to the crawl space of the log cabin.

The 200 amp service panel was placed within an interior partition of the bedroom. From the service panel the wiring was fed vertically from the crawl space into the interior partitions and thru pre-drilled vertical holes in the exterior logs to switches, outlets and the main ceiling.

The wiring of the interior lights was placed below the loft and are hidden by a grooved flat board nailed to the bottom of the wood deck of the loft floor.

GFCI outlets were placed in the vanity space and around the kitchen area.

These outlets are per the electrical code and were used where it is possible to over-load the capacity of the wiring. The outlet automatically shuts off the power. After the shut off the outlet can be manually reset to work again.

In the kitchen area the GFCI outlets were wired in line with only one outlet that had a manual reset. Several outlets down line from the manual reset outlet lost power. We tested the outlets; but no power. We thought the wiring had gone bad, until the up line reset outlet was pushed. Wow - the outlets worked again.

The electric stove, the submergeable water pump, the hot water heater and the base board heaters were wired with a 220 volt service.

An electric heater was installed in the crawl space near the pressure tank and the hot water heater to provide heat to the crawl space during the colder weather.

A trouble light and outlet was placed in the crawl space near the presure tank and hot water heater. The light came to our aid providing illumination when I replaced the burned out electric electrodes in the hot water heater.

An exterior waterproof outlet was placed on the porch for electrical accessories. It came in handy for an electric cord hook- up to a head bolt heater in our car during a cold weather spell.

Interior and Exterior Finishes

2006-01-05T13:56:00.001-06:00

The cabin was now ready for the finishes. Our first task was to lightly sand the burrs and rough spots on the logs. We used a palm sander for this task. There was one interior loft log that had many burrs and rough surfaces. A larger belt power sander was used on this log.

The sanding process went on for hours. Finally, the surfaces were smooth enough to apply a couple coats of polyurethane. The contractor applied the same finish to the pine board ceiling.

The loft rails were shaped differently than the main wall and loft logs. Each of the verticals and horizontals were hand crafted and shaped so each had to be hand sanded before the finish coat was applied.

The 2 ' 8" wide stairs were crafted with half logs as treads fastened into the sides of 2-1/2" by 11" deep wood strings. The stairs turn 90 degrees near the bottom of the stair run into a platform about 16 high. One rise of the longer stair run was purposely positioned at 1-1/2" higher than the normal 7-1/2" riser. The string was cut for this 1-1/2" to compensate for the wall log settlement that was anticipated. The stairs loft edge and railings form an interesting architectural composition and invite comments from visitors.

The urethane finish was applied before the kitchen floor and wall cabinets were erected. This pre-finishing behind the cabinets prevented the mold from harboring behind the cabinets.

Sometime after the sanding of the logs and before the entire finish was applied, the temperature rose to a very, very high degree for the area, and the humidity also rose to high levels. Mold appeared at the interior corners and other interior surfaces of the logs. Much effort was used to remove the mold. References were checked, and commerical products were applied to no avail. The contractor and log supplier were contacted. The solution to the mold problem had escaped everyone.

A water-Hilex bleach solution was applied to the logs along with scraping and sanding. Nothing seemed to work. More scraping and sanding. More water-Hilex bleach solution was used. The water Hilex solution appeared to work best but the results were not satisfactory.

Finally, the log supplier applied an anti-mold chemical to the logs with mold and placed caulking in and around the interior open joints where the logs cross at the corners. The caulking made the corners tight against the rain and weathering. The mold problem appeared to be solved and the interior finishing continued.

The interior partitions received two coats of finish. The loft floor, log stairs and log rails have three coats of finish to protect the wood decking from foot traffic.

A green tile was laid in the bathroom and under the wood burning stove in the great room. We chose a green, red, blue and orange plaid carpet for the main floor great room, kitchen and dining area. A deep red carpet was laid in the bedroom on the main floor.

The tile below the wood stove is a 6" by 6" tile the same as the bathroom. It is built up into a raised platform to elevate the stove about 4" above the main floor.In addition to the elevated platform, the tiles were laid at floor level making the tiled area 12 square feet meeting the requirements.

The exterior face of the logs and other siding was finished with HighSierra Log Stain by Sashco. The contractor sprayed the stain on the logs. The stain helps preserve and protect the logs from the sun and weathering.

A Special Treat From The Forest

2005-11-27T22:15:00.000-06:00

You can put them in pies, pancakes, pastry, muffins, coffee cakes, with oatmeal or other breakfast cereals or eat them with cream and sugar. Blueberries are in the woods of our area.

The blueberries are a small fruit that grow on bushes. The plants are about 12" high and grow with many green leaves. The berries grow in small clumps of six to ten berries.

The plants grow best in a sandy or peat soil. The soil must be acidic and drained. Below the drained depth a source of adequate moisture is required for the roots of the blueberry bush.

Where do you find the blueberries? Sometimes we find them in sunny open rocky areas where the rocks provide pockets of the sandy soil which has accumulated and the bushes can grow. We look for open large rocky areas with a scattering of small trees and shrubs. We have found the blueberries along side of the road where some peaty soil may exist. They can also be found in peat bogs.

Blueberries begin to ripen during July and reach fruitation during August. This is the best time to pick the berries.

It is desirable to eat the blueberries as soon as they are picked as the berries are fresh. Another option would be to freeze a thin layer of berries placed on a baking sheet and when frozen, place them in freezer bags or containers. Blueberries freeze well and keep for a long period of time when frozen.

Wild strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are also found in the area. Our favorite is the blueberry, especially mixed into a big batch of pancakes.

A Covering Component

2005-11-17T00:08:00.000-06:00

With all the logs now in place, the gable ends are constructed with 2 " by 6" wood studs, wall insulation and cedar exterior siding. A large laminated veneer lumber LVL beam is next placed on the ridge line. The ridge beam is supported at the gable ends and at a log post near mid-span. The ridge beam is positioned to receive the 2" by 12" rafters into connections on the sides of the ridge beam. The rafters are sloped 9/12 or 9" rise in any 12" of horizontal dimension.

Fiberglass insulation is placed between the rafters and a vapor barrier is attached to the bottom of the rafters, before the ceiling boards are secured.

Two inch by 4 inch boards are placed on top and perpendicular to the sloping rafters and 1/2" oriented strand boards (OSB) are secured to the 2" by 4" boards. The boards provide an open air space above the rafters for air flow from the vents at the soffit line to the continuous ridge vent. This air flow will protect the insulation from any moisture build up that may occur within the insulation.

Fifteen pound building felts are stapled to the roof sheathing. Sometimes thirty pound building felts are used depending on the choice of roofing material.

Cabin roofs are generally shingled, which may include wood, asphalt, slate, metal or tile. In the past, roll roofing was common.

Wood shingles are the oldest form of roofing. Today, wood shingles are sawn from red or white cedar, dipped in a staining medium that preserves the life and durability of the shingles and supplies color. Wood shingles are used today to give the log cabin a very handsome traditional look.

Asphalt shingles are common today because of a greater fire reisitance and their economy. They account for 80% to 90% of all residential roofs. In the 1980's and 1990's some of "improvements" by the shingle makers turned out to have flaws. Some splitting and cracking problems appeared in fiberglass shingles. Some shingles warranted for 20 years or more would fail in 3 to 7 years, with the warranty service frequently leaving owners dissatisfied.

Organic shingles remain popular in the northern United States and Canada, and may hold up better than the fiberglass shingles.

Metal roofing has long been used for agricultural building, but it's been popular for log cabins. The metal roofing can shrug off ice and snow and has natural fire resistance qualities. It is also immune to unsightly mildew growth that may form on asphalt shingles.

The installed cost of metal is higher than that of asphalt shingles, but life expectancy is longer and may compare favorably to lower priced roofing materials.

Steel, galvanizing steel, aluminum, aluminium 2" coatings, painted metal, and copper are used on metal roofs. There are a large number of choices in the metal roofing industry.

An aluminium with a galvanized coating roof was considered, but a brown GAF Timberline Asphalt Shingle roof was selected for the cabin because of the color preference.

Instead of using dormers, skylights were used over the loft bedroom and blend into the asphalt shingles.

Hunter From The Sky

2005-11-07T00:05:00.000-06:00

When you think of the fiercest and most courageous hunter of the sky, you think of the Bald Eagle. What an awesome sight with a wing spread up to seven feet and their feathers spread out like fingers. They are one of the largest and most powerful birds in the world.

There are many eagles in the area. They typically build their nests (Eyrie) in the tops of the tall trees near the many rivers and lakes. It takes about four years for the bald eagle to have a white head.

When boating, all eyes search the sky for the soaring eagles and each time we see one, we watch awe-struck at the graceful ease of their flight. It is hard not to watch this majestic bird. Many times we see more than one, maybe two or more (as many as eight or nine).

The eagle is a protected bird by Federal Law as a number of years ago their numbers had diminished in North America. Now their numbers are coming back.

Fish are one of the choice foods in the Bald Eagles diet. The eagle flies over the water and snatches the fish from the water only getting its feet wet. They follow schools of fish or follow other fish-eating birds. They intimidate and take away fish from other birds, even other large birds. The Bald Eagles also eat dead animals. They hunt by day and many times they can be seen eating their lunch on rocks near the lake shore.

By far, it is our favorite bird.

Photos courtesy of J & K Hallingsworth/USFWS

The Logs Have Arrived

2005-11-05T01:20:00.000-06:00

The main floor, composed of 3/4" plywood sheathing and 2" by 10" wood joists, and wood beams, was constructed over the crawl space and on top of the foundation walls.

After the shop drawings were checked and approved, the logs were cut to length, notched at the corners and ready for assembly. The logs arrived on site on a truck bed. The small mobile crane quickly placed the logs. Vertical holes were drilled for the vertical steel rods and the electrical wires. The vertical steel rods were placed on each side of the window and door openings and about 8 feet, on center, to reinforce the logs at the openings and help in vertical and horizontal alinement of the logs.

Vertical rods are placed in the corners with threads, washers and nuts on the bottom. The nuts are placed finger tight to the bottom side of the bottom log. At that point, the logs project out from the foundation.

At the time the logs were erected, it was estimated the gap would be about 2". At present, the gap is approximately 1-3/4" to 2", or slightly over 1/8" per log. This would indicate that the logs were properly dried before construction and that the planned spaces over the windows, doors, and interior partitions were correct.

The logs are straight, without twist and have a tight connection between the logs. The corner cross-overs will be carefully caulked on the exterior.

The goal was to minimize the cracks and gaps between the logs to help prevent water and bug infestation. These goals were achieved.

Creatures of the Forest

2005-10-17T23:58:00.001-05:00

There is nothing more beautiful than a white-tail doe in her sleek red summer dress with her new born fawn, or many times her twin fawns. She makes people stop to admire their elegance. There are many white-tail deer on our property and adjacent properties as they favor open woodlands. Their tracks are on all the many trails near the cabin.

In comparison to the graceful white-tailed deer, the moose is large and awkward. They are the the largest and most powerful deer in the world. They are an awesome sight with their tremendous palmate antlers. Moose tracks have been seen on the trails of our forest and we have seen the moose in the local area.

Black bear also are seen in the woods. They are not as dangerous as grizzly bears, but can be deceptively friendly. They love the berries, roots and grass of the area. They can be found eating blueberries during July and August.

Bears hibernate during the winter months. They find a cave or hollow log to sleep in from late October to early April. Their young are born during the winter. When spring arrives, the cubs are introduced to forest life.

Seldom seen, but never the less nearby are the red fox and the elusive timber wolf. Both have been seen on our land.

The fox and the wolves share many common characteristics: long narrow muzzles, erect ears, bushy tails and slender bodies. They have keen sight, smell and hearing. Both fox and wolf are intelligent.

Not long ago, my wife and I were walking up one of our trails when we saw a light coated timber wolf walking toward us. We thought it a large dog. As soon as the wolf saw us, he immediately disappeared into the woods. He had the characteristic bushy tail.

The gnawing creatures abound: snowshoe rabbits, chipmunks, beavers, squirrels, and wood chucks.

One note about the beaver. The beaver can build a dam. They fell trees and can dig a canal to bring logs to the dam under contruction, can fill chinks in the dam with stones and mud. They are without doubt master dam builders. (The animal kingdoms' civil engineers) They are to be found in the small rivers and ponds in our area.

Another group of creatures can be found near the cabin: the weasel tribe. They are the weasel, mink, marten, and otter. This may include the skunk, the expert in chemical warfare.

The short-tail weasel is small, ranging 8 to 12 inches long and less than a pound in weight. In the winter, the weasel's fur turns white and is called ermine. In the summer he is brown. The weasel has reckless courage and, at times, fights larger animals and occassionally wins.

The marten is a larger animal; about 25 to 30 inches long and 2 to 4 lbs. in wight. They are called pine martens here because of their tree climbing ability.

During deer hunting season, members of the weasel tribe can be seen as the ground is covered with snow and many hunters use deer stands to see the deer from a higher elevation. In addition to black bears, pine martens and weasels have been seen from the deer stands.

Construction

2005-10-09T20:58:00.000-05:00

After the site was cleared of brush and trees, construction began.

Excavation for the footings and foundation walls began only to find shallow ledge rock, requiring the foundation to be moved about 8 ' to the northeast. Below the main floor, a 2 ' 6" crawl space will be used to provide space for a 40 gallon electric hot water heater and a pressure tank for the water supply system. Most of the electrical service will be supplied from the crawl space.

The footings are poured concrete with a 5' frost protection to the finished outside grade. Reinforcing bars were added to the footings to minimize cracking of the footings.

The foundation walls are 8" thick poured concrete with insulation board forms. The forms were tied together with a plastic tie system which held the forms in place while the wet concrete was still fluid. The top of the 8" concrete wall was reinforced with two #4 bars to minimize any vertical wall cracking.

After the foundation wall was poured, 1/2" anchor bolts were placed in the top of the poured concrete wall to anchor a treated wood sill plate for the wood floor system which will be contructed next.

The insulation board forms were left in place to provide insulation for the crawl space. The outside face of the insulation board will be coated with a heavy textured coating which will protect the insulation board from weathering and UV rays of the sun.

Heat, Light and Other Decisions

2005-09-29T14:17:00.001-05:00

We wanted to have a warm and cozy feeling, so to heat the cabin during the fall, winter and spring months, we selected an "Avalon" wood burning metal stove. The stove door has a large glass window to view the fire. When no one is enjoying the cabin during the cold weather, there is no heat in the building. When we visit the cabin during the winter months, the stove is fired up and we sit around in our jackets for several hours until the cabin is sufficiently warm. Our Avalon stove does a remarkable job in heating the entire cabin. Two large ceiling fans circulate the air. Sometimes the loft gets over heated and the stove heat must be "throttled" back.

"Arroyo Craftsman" and "Troy" lighting was chosen for the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and porch. Other lighting fixtures were picked for the dining room, loft and great room. Strip flourescent fixtures were planned in the "great room" at the top of the log walls, casting light upward to the vaulted ceiling to enhance the volume of "great room" space.

"Marvin" double hung windows were chosen as they are very energy efficient and have a traditional appearance that fits with the architecture. We wanted the mullins added to recall the "old" cabin windows.

The kitchen cabinets selected are knotty pine with a red "Nevamar" countertop. The bathroom would have the usual fixtures: a stool and bathtub with shower. The vanity was planned to be in the hall separated from the stool and tub "a la" a motel layout.

Water "Witching"

2005-09-24T16:18:00.000-05:00

After accepting the builder's bid and locating the cabin on the property, we decided to locate the spot where the well was to be drilled.

A"witching" man or water diviner was suggested by the builder. The water diviner showed up with a "Y" shaped willow stick. He grasped each side of the stick and held it in a horizontal position and walked slowly around the property near the location of the cabin.

Suddenly, the willow stick turned down, not being twisted by the diviner, but by a strange unknown force. The diviner asked that we mark that location.

The water diviner continued walking slowly and found yet another location which he thought was a stronger force. Here another marker was driven into the ground. The diviner gave the depth to water as 90 feet. After a short discussion the second location was suggested as the location the well driller should drill to locate our water.

The water diviner raised a certain amount of skepticism as he would not guarantee the results nor accept any fee. The diviner came with a good reputation and told a number of stories of the well locations he had found. We accepted his findings on pure faith.

Some months later when the well driller arrived, we indicated that the well should be drilled on the spot the diviner had located. They drilled the well, and found water at about 90 feet, but went down to 215 feet as the water flow was more sufficient.

The drilled hole was cased with a 6 inch diameter pipe and an expensive submergeable pump was placed at the bottom, which pumped water into a pressure tank and then into the cabin water system. The water has been tested and meets our state's standards. It is good water, always very cold and with excellent taste.

A Difficult Task

2005-09-05T22:02:00.000-05:00

A college class of surveying proved valuable in locating the cabin on the property. I had to find the section corners of the property. A quick call to the county surveyor was helpful as one of the section corners was quickly found. The other section corner was more of a challenge.

The section corner is a permanent monument with a brass cap on the top indicating which section corner it is. The brass cap is secured to a stone or concrete pier set into the ground and should be visable. Our guess was that the monument is located in the woods near a home. After a careful search, the monument could not be found. We approached the residents of the house asking if they knew where the section corner was. The adults were most cordial, but didn't know where the monument was located.

As I described the monument, the 6 year old son said he knew its location. The young man walked right up to it in the woods near their front yard. I was delighted with his information and thought he deserved a treat. He was pleased when I gave him a couple bucks for an ice cream cone.

Wall Street Journal

2005-08-27T16:25:00.000-05:00

The Wall Street Journal of July 1, 2005 cites other pre-cut (log home kits) problems. The article states that when the log supplier and the builder are separate, problems may arise.

New Cabin - Design

2005-08-27T14:09:00.000-05:00

As the pre-cut log builders are more prevalent in our area, I decided to find a local pre-cut log supplier and builder. I visited a number of log home builders and obtained brochures from others.

I chose a local log supplier and builder to further investigate. The builder showed me several log cabins that he had under construction. The cabins showed his mastering of his trade. He also had an excellent record of past experience in building log cabins. This builder had a good working relationship with the log supplier.

I asked him if he would bid on a log cabin design. He agreed and that started my quest for an architectural design of the cabin.

My first scheme didn't go over very well with the family. The layout was too small.

I enlarged the architectural plan to about 1000 square feet of floor area. The floor plan I drew is 24 feet by 28 feet with a loft of 24 feet by 13 feet. The loft is a second bedroom with two large beds and a reading space. The loft is placed above the lower bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. The living and dining room (Great Room) occupy the other 24 feet by 15 feet space. A 15 foot by 8 foot covered porch is positioned on the south side as a shelter for the front door and as a place in the summer to sit and drink coffee and tell fishing and hunting stories.

Fishing Flashback

2005-08-16T21:14:00.001-05:00

In the 1940's, my two uncles and I enjoyed visiting the old cabin on weekends with Fishing on the agenda. We had a 12 foot canvas covered square stern boat which we used fishing. The motor was a 2-1/2 H.P. Johnson. I had carved a fishing plug and placed a fishing hook on the plug. Some green and white paint was added.

My uncles viewed the carved plug. Nothing was said; but my feelings told me, they were not impressed.

Later that day, when the walleye count was taken, I had twice as many as my uncles. They took note and wanted to see the carved plug again to see what "magic" it had.

I still have that old carved plug in my tackle box. The walleyes seemed to like that old plug!!!

New Cabin - continued

2005-08-13T15:06:00.000-05:00

After studying the "Directory", I decided to investigate the pre-cut logs vs. the handcraft logs. Most of the "log home" publications showed the pre-cut logs. The log home contractors/suppliers in our area indicated their preference for the pre-cut logs with a few log home contractors supplying the handcraft logs.

The pre-cut logs are formed by cutting and shaping machines. Each contractor/supplier shapes their logs so they look identical; with the log lengths varying.

The handcrafted logs are individually cut and shaped. No two logs are identical. Each log is hand shaped to fit to the other logs and are built into an assembly that forms the walls and openings of the cabin.

The handcrafters have created many beautiful homes, ski lodges, and other fine structures. They used craftsmanship that was learned from famous master handcrafters whose roots are planted in a European Tradition.

The pre-cut log home industry was born when the saw mill was invented and was developed ever since. The pre-cut log home industry has had a checked past regarding quality of construction. The "Directory" cites some of the basic construction mistakes.

The log home industry is largely un-regulated and not usually covered by any recognized building codes. The 2003 International Building Code does not include log structures.

New Cabin

2005-08-09T17:22:00.000-05:00

RESEARCH

I started my research by subscribing to a "Log Home" magazine for the year 1993. This magazine proved valuable and showed pictures of the many types of log home being built along with the furnishings.

A friend sent a very important report published by USDA Forest Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, titled "Protecting Log Cabins From Decay". This report answered many of my questions about the practical details of log cabin construction and protection from wood decay. The report gave practices of exterior finishing and maintenance along with selection of logs, preservative treatment and types.

The construction details from the report indicated that:
1. Steep roof slopes drain the rain water faster
2. Eaves must extend well beyond the face of the log walls. A projection of 24" for
a one story cabin is recommended.
3. The splash zone of the rain water needs protection (a distance above the exterior
grade) (This distance may be up to 3 or more feet.)
4. Stone or concrete piers or foundation walls provide cabin support and good
ventilation.
5. Slope the exterior grade to allow rain water to flow away from the foundation
structure.

I will refer to the publication as the "Report".

A 1990 annual directory published by "Muir's Original Log Home Guide For Builders and Buyers" also proved valuable. This directory covered the topics of pre-cut logs, the
handcrafted logs, settling, specie selection, profile, joinery, sealing, insulated wall systems
and a method of evaluation.

I will refer to this publication as the "Directory".

To be continued.

Introduction

2005-08-09T16:46:00.000-05:00

I am now a retired structural engineer living in a large city many miles from the old cabin. My boyhood memories of the cabin, fishing, hunting, etc. came back to me over the years and about ten years ago, I decided to build a new cabin in the same woods.

Old Cabin

2005-07-31T15:43:00.000-05:00

This is a photo of the old family cabin with my father and his friends sitting out front. This photo was taken in the 1940s.

My memory goes back to the 1940's. The log cabin was old at that time. It may have been built in the 1870's or earlier. It was a typical gable ended one story cabin with a full bedroom loft and a kitchen and garage addition. The kitchen and small garage were added some time after the original log cabin was built; perhaps sometime in the 1920's as motor vehicles and roads appeared during that era. The log portion of the cabin was build from field cut pine trees from the area. Chinking was placed between the log joints and the corner junctions were square cut by a saw cut. The fixed sash windows were single pane and indicated some ripples in the glass (an older type glass). The roofing was roll roofing; a common roofing material used during the 1920's . The enclosed photo of the old cabin shows the roll roofing.

The heating of the log cabin was by a wood stove made from an old oil drum placed on metal legs. A large cast iron wood fired stove was used for cooking with a water tank on the side used for hot water to wash dishes. A metal sink was on the exterior wall of the kitchen with a drain that exited thru the exterior wall of the kitchen. A large wooden kitchen table and benches was used for the meals.

The drinking water was brought in from a nearby spring. The water used for washing was caught in an old wood barrel placed to catch rain water off the roof. An outhouse was some 100 feet or so from the cabin.

Our family used the cabin as a weekend and summertime retreat. We loved to fish in the many nearby lakes and rivers, explore the wood, hunt deer, and generally relax.

As with many old buildings, the roofing decayed through neglect and lack of attention. The roof wood boards collapsed on the loft, taking the upper logs and other parts of the structure to the ground.