Question of Log thickness in TN

[just_sawing]

I am researching building a cabin using 4 inch thick wall. Yes I know 6 or 8 is better but the actual thickness on most modular built is four to five inches at the joints.
My question is there anyone here that has REAL experience in living with the thinner walls?

[Yvonne's hubby]

I built our cabin with 5 inch thick tulip poplar logs for the walls. I did go with 6" oak for the bottom sill logs as they also support the floor. We have been living here full time for several years now. They seem to be doing fine. The only "issue" we had was the thinner logs did bow a little while curing out but by making sure the bows were pretty much all in line with each other as I stacked them its not a problem.

[jwal10]

4" of wood without insulation or dead space isn't much to hold heat in or out....James

[moeh1]

Mine are 8 in logs, so probably 7 at the joint. I saw a 2 story house built with the 6 in version and the cathedral wall had to be braced as it was being shifted by any high winds. If you are going to be one story, probably a lesser issue...

[Yvonne's hubby]

Originally Posted by jwal10

4" of wood without insulation or dead space isn't much to hold heat in or out....James

This is somewhat true... but then again our poster is in Tennessee... isnt dealing with the super cold temps of our northern neighbors. I heat our place... roughly 1800 sq ft... with a set of ventless gas logs in the living room most of the time. When it gets brutally cold, below ten degrees, I will fire up another smallish heater in the bedroom for a few hours during the day.

[TnAndy]

Record low for my neck of Tennessee is -23.

It can get kinda cool here.

[Yvonne's hubby]

Originally Posted by TnAndy

Record low for my neck of Tennessee is -23.

It can get kinda cool here.

I have seen 20 below here in KY too... but those kind of temps are pretty rare, and short lived. Its not the same as the winter I spent up north where it never got above zero for the entire month of January and half of February. Our normal lows are still in the teens or twenties most of the winter, with highs up in the fifties and sixties. It was 68 last night when I went to bed.

[davel745]

Not really related to what you are asking but a log home with rounded logs on the inside will be a nightmare to dust and clean. I suggest you get logs that are milled on 3 sides.

[just_sawing]

I have an abundance of ceder and can get 16 foot 4by4s or 6by 6s. I can handle the 4By 4s my self easy. Looking at building my Daughter a cabin. It will be based on 16 by 16 foot sections

[Fire-Man]

I seen one built out of "Treated Flower Bed Timbers"----after 12 years---it is still holding up good, uses a small wood heater in the winter, But it does not get that cold here.

[fishhead]

Insulation isn't just for heating. It's also for cooling and living comfort.

[ET1 SS]

Originally Posted by TnAndy

Record low for my neck of Tennessee is -23.

It can get kinda cool here.

That is interesting, the coolest temp I have seen here in -20F

[TnAndy]

That is the record, set in Jan, 1985.

We had just moved in our newly built, semi-finished house on New Year's Day, 1985. It was sunny, near 70 degrees ! Three weeks later, the bottom literally froze out of the thermometer.....

And by semi-finished, I mean we had a fireplace for heat and very little wood cut. It was an interesting winter.

Typical winter here is maybe a few days it might dip into single digits, many winters low point is the mid teens.

But every so often, a cold front blows in from the northwest out of the Arctic region, and things get interesting !

Snow....we typically get maybe a foot total for the entire winter....some years more, some less. Late March, 1993, we got 3' over a two day period. Heavy, wet kinda snow too. When you scraped down to the ground, it was melting, as the ground wasn't frozen. But it took power lines down all over the place, and we were without power for 10 days. They had to rebuild the entire line coming up into our valley.


They say if you don't like the weather around here, just wait a few days. That seems fairly accurate.

[just_sawing]

Followed through and found that due to the NEW energy rules you have to have a min of eight inches to meet the governments code.

[jwal10]

I built a cabin here with studded walls with the veneer log siding inside and out. I used the lapped ends, outside and a 4"x"4 vertical for the inside corners and butted the ends to that, came out looking just like real logs. It is the D shaped siding....James

[unregistered41671]

Originally Posted by TnAndy

Late March, 1993, we got 3' over a two day period. Heavy, wet kinda snow too. When you scraped down to the ground, it was melting, as the ground wasn't frozen. But it took power lines down all over the place, and we were without power for 10 days. They had to rebuild the entire line coming up into our valley.


They say if you don't like the weather around here, just wait a few days. That seems fairly accurate.

March 13th 1993, I remember it well. We had close to 2 ft snow here in GA. Had some 4 and 5 ft drifts. Don't want to see that again. Man it was windy. We had snow that blew up into out attic through the gable vents over the garage. What a mess.

[Yvonne's hubby]

Originally Posted by just_sawing

Followed through and found that due to the NEW energy rules you have to have a min of eight inches to meet the governments code.

I hate to hear that. In all but the most severe cold spells our place stays quite comfy with oneheater set on low. Burro crats need to throw the books away and get out in the real world now and then.

[wogglebug]

I have no experience in the terms you asked for in the original post. However, as you'd be doing your own sawing of lumber, I'd like to make a couple of suggestions for you to think about. They aren't recommendations because I don't know enough about your situation to tell you your business - just things to think about. It's more work than a straight log cabin, but if you're getting your timber more-or-less for free it shouldn't cost too much more except in time.

Suggestion: build an outside log-cabin wall of 4" logs, cut to "D" section. I assume these would be more-or-less thinnings so shouldn't cost much. If you'd prefer the 6" logs, then it's your choice.
On the inside of the log wall, fix 4"x4" lumber vertically (across the horizontal run of the logs) as thick, wide battens.
Build heavy-duty wide thick board flooring. Later you can polish and seal this, and it will be just beautiful.
Set up wall and roof insulation, then fix interior walls to the heavy-duty battens/framing running vertically across your horizontal log exterior. Your choice: just about any interior wall cladding. What I'd do is use plywood panels, but you'd have to buy those. Could use drywall, but I don't like that stuff. I'd suggest in your case, with timber and a sawmill in your back pocket, you might consider ship-lap planks, or even vertical planking.

A further suggestion for you to consider: while you're building, put in a fireproof and waterproof brick or cinder-block annex with quarry-tile floor as a porch/mudroom, laundry, bathroom, the side towards the house could also hold a wood-burning cook-stove as part of the kitchen; and set up a wood-burning heater for the entire cabin in that fireproof section. This could make a BIG difference in insurance. Even without insurance, it could still make a difference in risk.

[just_sawing]

This has been a interesting project that has turned in places that I didn't expect.
Our great wonderful Nanny Government has deemed that any new construction where the zoning is in place has to have a certain R value. For a Log structure that is a minimum of eight inches.
Using your own lumber in code areas has to be stamped.
The good thing is that there is a avenue for independent inspections.