Vertical log home bulding

Check out this months edition of Backwoods Home. Dorothy built a beautiful vertical log home with very little money and alot of sweat . Handy

 

Here are some photos of the one I built.

http://community.webshots.com/user/hoop_john

If you have any questions email me hoop@newnorth.net

 

Those are nice looking buildings Hoop. Curious why you chose horizontal logs for house? Also are logs just spiked to each other or something more elaborate like splines? Also how are logs attached to floor/sills? I've looked at vertical log construction before and thought maybe strongest way would be to flatten two sides of log, then drill holes in two to three rows (top middle bottom) and run length of sucker rod through with threads at both ends to tighten logs in each wall together as shrinkage occurs.

 

Years ago, being of the female human type, we added on to a log cabin, using Horizontal logs, because I felt lazy, not wanting to lift 20 foot logs. And short Lodgepole Pine fit nicely in my pickup truck. That, and I could get them on my firewood permit.. I did have to flatten the sill logs, with my chainsaw and a hatchet, it took awhile, but worked fine.. The corner logs were raised, and a top sill plate was spiked in... Then each log was toe nailed 3 ways on the bottom, and spiked into the top, by spiking down thru' the top sill plate.. If some were not close enough, I ran the chainsaw in between to shave off bumps.. Windows were easily framed.. Later I stuffed the cracks with insulation, with a screw driver, and over time bought quarter round and tacked that over the cracks, silconing any needed spots... I found it a great way to built if you have the right kind of logs. Or like Hermit said.. IF you can you could flatted the logs, as some old timers use to do on some of their regular log cabins... Tho' some had 6 inch gaps to allow for settling... (There's some old ones like that near me, what chinking jobs they used, 'cuz those old logs never settled... )
Tho' if dry logs are used, you'll have very little shrinking. I used dead standing trees... I did find, that if you get a log that has a tendance to rot, this method of building works great, because you can easily replace that log.
Would I do it again??? Yes, if I had Lodgepole Pine, but here we only have Ponderosa Pine, and it's not good to build with, unless it's boards... The sucker rod sounds like it would add to the strength, or could you use cable like they do on round roofs??? Happy building, and you are right Hermit, those are nice photos Hoop....

 

The horizontal logs for my house were cut and in the process of drying before I started the vertical log structure. Most of the horizontal logs were cut 12' in length. No way was I going to cut the 12' logs into 8' sections and discard all that wood.
If I had it to do over, there would be no question of my chosing the horizontal building method.

My vertical logs were sawn flat on 3 sides. I used 3 6 inch pole barn nails (top, middle, bottom) to attach the logs to each other. I drilled holes about 3" deep so that the nails would "connect".

Most of my logs dried for 2 years before I started building. I had little shrinkage.

 

Back Home Again magazine this month has some articles on this type of log building also !!