Log home problems sometimes include rotting railings around a porch or deck. The look of log railings is often desirable but railings are prone to rot for a number of reasons.

To get the most longevity out of your log railings, here are three things that we recommend homeowners do to extend the life of their log railings:

1. Use caps on the top of the posts. These are available from a number of different outlets on the web. The nicest ones I have seen are made of copper and fit snugly around the top of the post. It is important to glue them on rather than using screws. This helps insure that moisture can’t penetrate into the end grain around the screws.
2. At the bottom rail, we recommend drilling a ¼” hole up from the bottom into each larger hole coming from the top. What we are doing here is giving the water that will inevitably make its way into this hole a place to go and drain out the bottom.
3. We recommend “stand-off” post bases. These create an air space between the end grain of the post and the ground or footing.  By placing these post bases between the bottom of the post and the ground, air is allowed to move through this area and dry out the post.

Doing all these three of these things will add life to log rails.

The last important thing to do is to keep a good finish on the railings.  The fact that they are typically out in the sun and rain makes it very important to keep good finish on the railings.

Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. Railings have so many surfaces and contours that they are a real pain to apply and keep stain on. None-the-less, it is important to keep a quality stain on them, which is part of the solution to maintaining and extending the life of the railings and keeping them from becoming a log home problem that you have to solve.