Sweat the Small Stuff
It is easy to overlook some of the small but
important details of log home design and construction.
Let's look at some of them now.
Electrical Outlets and Switches
Switches and outlets for lights and appliances
require more planning than for a conventional
home. The reason is that for most log systems,
holes for wiring must be drilled in the logs as
they are being stacked. These holes cannot be
drilled after a wall has already been constructed.
Therefore, plan ahead and place more outlets than
you think you'll need. Try to locate switches
and outlets on interior stud walls instead of
log walls where possible. Because log homes have
large open rooms, there may not be stud walls
in the area where outlets are needed, which can
make it necessary to install floor-mounted outlets.
Electrical Fixtures and Lights
Fixtures such as ceiling fans and lights must
be planned well in advance because the wiring
in exposed beams and floor joists must be run
at the same time that the beams and joists are
installed. This makes it difficult to impossible
to change or add fixtures later without making
an ugly installation. Make sure you know exactly
where you want fixtures to be located. Log homes
require extra lighting to account for light absorption
by all the wood in a log home. Plan for twice
as much lighting as in a conventional home.
Bathrooms
Most log homes have exposed second-floor joists
and decking, which is generally considered to
be an attractive aesthetic detail. However, upstairs
bathrooms require under-floor plumbing for toilets
and drains. This makes it necessary to either
build up the floor in the bathroom area, or box
in the exposed joists with ceiling material to
hide the plumbing. For this reason, you may want
to locate your bathrooms over downstairs areas
for which exposed joists are not important —
possibly over a utility room. Also make sure there's
a 6-inch downstairs stud wall nearby to minimize
long plumbing runs. Back-to-back bathrooms on
the same floor can also reduce routing problems.
Storage Space
Many standard log home floor plans do not have
an abundance of closet and storage space. This
can probably be blamed on the "weekender
cabin" heritage of modern log homes. It's
too late if you find this out after your home
has been built. Therefore, you should carefully
consider your needs for a kitchen panty, linen
closets, coat closets, utility storage, clothes
closets, tool storage, and miscellaneous storage.
Beams and Support posts
Most log homes have large downstairs open spaces
without load-bearing stud walls. This means that
there is at least one large girder beam that extends
the length of the house that supports the entire
second floor. This beam then requires support
posts at key locations on the first floor, typically
along the center line of the house. These posts
can sometimes be hidden in stud walls, but are
often out in the middle of an open area. Plan
for them and take advantage of them, because they
won't go away.
Landscaping considerations
One of the hard and fast rules of preventing log
home maintenance problems is to keep moisture
away from the logs. When you plan your landscaping
around your log home, keep shrubs and trees far
enough away so that they never touch the logs
on the house, now or in the future as they grow.
Keep lawn sprinklers from spaying water directly
on to logs, or any wood.
Gutters and Porches
Gutters can be especially important for a log
home because of the need to keep water away from
the logs. Many log home warranties specify that
gutters must be installed. You may find alternatives
to traditional gutters and downspouts, but make
sure they do the job. Porches are not only a great
way to improve the comfort and aesthetics of a
log home, but also a good way to channel water
away from the walls and minimize weathering effects.
Windows and Lighting
To maximize lighting in your log home, you will
want to consider installing as many windows as
you can afford, facing in the directions that
will be most effective. You can also consider
installing skylights or ducted light systems,
especially for interior rooms. Consider that porches
and roof overhangs can interfere with lighting.
Doors
Every house has both interior and exterior doors,
but the space needed for the swing of each door
is essentially wasted "dead space."
Make sure you account for this fact as you plan
the swing direction of each door. Should the door
swing in, or out? Should it swing to the left,
or to the right? Will the door normally be open,
or closed? Will it block or conflict with other
doors, cabinets, fixtures, or appliances? Can
the door be made smaller, or converted to a sliding/pocket
door to reduce or eliminate dead space?
Heating and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
Installing heating and air conditioning systems
in a log home is a bit more challenging than for
a more conventional home. With all the open spaces,
both horizontally and vertically in a typical
log home, zone management is much more difficult.
This makes it more critical to properly locate
thermostats, vents, and returns. Finding space
to install upstairs HVAC units and ducting can
be a special challenge in a story-and-a-half design.
A qualified HVAC technician who understands log
homes can be of great help with this issue.
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