Ask the Log Doctor
Noticing many questions are the same or have already been answered, we have broken this area into categories. Please browse the category questions and answers as a form of your question has likely been asked in the past. If you can't find your answer, The Log Doctor is here to answer any question you may have regarding the repair and restoration of your log home or cabin. If you are not a do-it-your self-person, please contact us and put all our knowledge and experience to work for you!
Here are the TOP FIVE points addressed by the Log Doctor over the past year:
- NEVER POWERWASH your log home or cabin! The pressure drives the water so deep into the wood fiber that it will never dry out properly. The best way to strip a home is with corn blasting. It's a dry process and keeps the logs dry for the staining process.
- NEVER PAINT your logs! Paint doesn't allow the logs to breathe properly!
- Even for the experienced Do-It-Yourself-er, WE DO NOT recommend you try replacing logs yourself. Several factors have to be addressed prior to removing any log in the home.
- DON'T FILL CHECKS unless they run into a door or window jam and allow wind, water, and/or bugs to enter the interior of your log home or cabin. Checks are a natural way for the logs to breathe. If you do have to fill some, be sure to inspect them at least twice a year for breaks in the caulk. If water gets behind the caulk, it can't dry out fast enough and will cause log rot!
- QUICK TIPS to ensure your log home or cabin is around for generations to come: 1) Be sure your overhangs are a minimum of 30 inches and extend existing ones if they're too short. 2) Rain gutters are a must; a dry log is a happy log! 3) Spray a borate on all raw logs! 4) Keep a quality stain and chinking/caulking on the home with regular maintenance updates! 5) Keep your shrubs away from the log home!
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