Maintenance

1. Keep trees trimmed and away from the logs.
    
2. Any leak you notice inside your house when it rains should be repaired.
    
3. Water splashing off decks will rot your logs, especially the bottom logs. (see photo - right)
    
4. Keep plants at least two feet away from the logs.
    
5. Watch for water splashing off objects stored near your house.
    
6. No soil or leaves should touch the logs.
    
7. Eave troughs are necessary to keep logs dry - especially around roof valleys.
    
8. Windows and dormers should have flashing around them to prevent leaks.
    
9. No log should project beyond the edge of the roof.
   (see photo - right)
    
10. Re-stain or re-paint your house when water will not bead up when sprayed on a log surface. How often you need to finish varies.
     
11. Caulk around vents and pipes passing through logs.
     
12. Any crown (corner) or perlin that extends beyond the drip line of the roof should be trimmed and refinished to help prevent rot. (see before and after photos - below)

 

1. Make sure flashing between roof and logs is sufficient to keep the logs from getting excessively wet.

Click here for a drawing of the proper way to flash an upper log wall to a lower roof system.

Related Article

Preservation & Maintenance of Log Structures
Prepared by the Technical Committee of the Log Homes Council, Building Systems Councils, and the NAHB, this 14-page document is a must if you are contemplating designing, building, and living in a log structure. It compiles features and methods that will ensure the permanent quality of the log structure.
File download : Preservation Maintenance of Log Structures 10-15-03.PDF

 

 

Some good advice: Keep a record of who did what and when to your house, including any blue prints and what types of preservative, stain, caulk, or chink were used.