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STRUCTURAL INSPECTIONS & DEFECTS ADVANCED INSPECTION METHODS AIR BYPASS LEAKS AIR LEAK DETECTION TOOLS AIR LEAK MINIMIZATION AIR SEALING STRATEGIES BEST CONSTRUCTION PRACTICES GUIDE BUCKLED FOUNDATIONS due to INSULATION? CHIMNEY INSPECTION DIAGNOSIS REPAIR CRAWL SPACES Crawl Space Dryout Procedures CRAWL SPACE GROUND COVERS DECK & PORCH CONSTRUCTION DECK COLLAPSE Case Study DECK FLASHING LEAKS, ROT Case Study DISASTER BUILDING INSPECTION & REPAIR SAFEY DEW POINT CALCULATION for WALLS DEW POINT TABLE - CONDENSATION POINT GUIDE EARTHQUAKE DAMAGED FOUNDATIONS ENERGY SAVINGS in BUILDINGS ENERGY AUDIT - How to Use a Free One ENERGY SAVINGS MAXIMIZE RETURNS ON ENERGY SAVINGS PRIORITIES ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT CASE STUDY ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT LEAK SEALING GUIDE ENERGY SAVINGS RETROFIT OPTIONS ENERGY USE MONITORING FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-priorities FLOODS IN BUILDINGS-mold FLOOD DAMAGE ASSESSMENT, SAFETY & CLEANUP FOUNDATION BULGE or LEAN MEASUREMENTS FOUNDATION CRACKS & DAMAGE GUIDE FRAMING DAMAGE, INSPECTION, REPAIR FRAMING DETAILS for BETTER INSULATION FRAMING DETAILS for DOUBLE WALL HOUSES FRT PLYWOOD ICE DAM PREVENTION LOG HOME ENERGY EFFICIENCY LOG HOME GUIDE Antique & Old Log Cabins Cracks, Checking or Splitting Beams & Log Homes Condensation &Moisture in Log Homes Energy Efficiency of Log Homes Leak Diagnosis & Cure for Log Houses Log Wall Height Changes R-Values of Log Homes Sealants, Caulks, & Coatings for Log Homes Shrinkage In Log Home Walls Slab Log Cabin Siding Spline & Gasket Designs for Log Buildings Spline Gaps & Gasket Omissions Types of Log Houses - Log Choices Vertical Log Walls on Cabins & Homes Wall Insulation Values in Log Homes LOG HOME WALL INSULATION VALUES MOBILE HOMES, DOUBLEWIDES, TRAILERS ROT, FUNGUS, TERMITES ROT, TIMBER FRAME SHEATHING, Gypsum board SHEATHING Homasote & Other Board SHEATHING, OSB SHEATHING, Plywood SHEATHING, FOIL FACED - VENTS SINK HOLES SLAB CRACK EVALUATION SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEMS Splits in Structural Wood Beams STAIRS, RAILINGS, LANDINGS, RAMPS Straw Bale Construction STUCCO OVER FOAM INSULATION STUCCO PAINT FAILURES SUMP PUMPS GUIDE THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS THERMAL MASS in BUILDINGS VENTILATION in BUILDINGS WATER ENTRY in BUILDINGS WIND TURBINES WINDOWS & DOORS WINTERIZE A BUILDING More Information InspectAPedia Blog - News Updates Air Conditioning & Heat Pumps Bookstore Electrical Environment Exteriors Heating Home Inspection Insulate Ventilate Interiors Mold Inspect/Test Plumbing Water Septic Roofing Structure Accuracy & Privacy Policies Contact Us |
Checking or splits in solid logs used to construct both antique and modern log houses worry homeowners even though usually they do not present a structural problem. But checks in structural wood beams as well as checks and splits in logs used to construct log homes can result in water or air leaks into the building. Also see ROT, TIMBER FRAME for a discussion of the cause and prevention of log checking during log or timber dryout, and for a case study of rot in timber frame construction. Our page top photo shows the author's precision probing device exploring checking (also called splitting or cracking) of a structural wood beam in a pre-1900 home that had been moved to a new concrete block foundation. As solid wood beams and logs cure, shrinkage produces not only checking (large cracks that are normal and are not necessarily a problem) but also an actual reduction in log or beam diameter. This series of articles provides information on the inspection and diagnosis of damage to new and older log homes and includes description of log house and log siding insulation values and alternatives, and also a description of the characteristics of slab-sided log homes as well as all other types of log home construction. We include illustrations of log structures from several very different areas and climates in both the United States and Norway. Our page top photo shows a modern kit log home constructed in New York State. © Copyright 2010 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. An Owner-Builder's Guide to Shrinkage In Log Home WallsLog homes will shrink considerably in wall height as the logs dry during the first one or two years after construction. This is so even in factory cut "dry" logs which may have absorbed moisture in transit or on site, and it is even more true if the logs used in construction were "air dried" or were used while still "green". The more moisture that was present in logs at the time of construction of a log home, the greater the amount of shrinkage that will occur in overall wall height, and the larger and more extensive will be the checking cracks that occur in log walls. Usually the crack in the wood beam or solid log radiates from the outer surface of the log towards the log center; it is not common for a log or beam split or crack (or checking) caused by the drying process to pass beyond the center of a log or beam. However more severe splits and cracks can occur in a wood structural member, even passing through its full diameter, due to structural loading or damage.
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Checks even in the lower radius of log walls - that is just below the center or outward-most face of the curved log face may also be a problem if they occur in a position and shape to send water running down the log wall into the log interior. Rain or melting snow sending water into these checks can cause these problems:
So as our photo (above left) shows, even a structurally harmless shrinkage crack or check in a log wall can lead to an interior leak if the window was not properly constructed. This particular log check reached to the center of the log and bypassed the caulk that the builder had placed around the window frame on the log wall exterior.
Checks in the lower radius of the curved outer face of a log wall and checks in weather-protected location are unlikely to cause damage and are only cosmetic.
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Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.
LOG HOME ENERGY EFFICIENCY
LOG HOME GUIDE
Antique & Old Log Cabins
Cracks, Checking or Splitting Beams & Log Homes
Condensation &Moisture in Log Homes
Energy Efficiency of Log Homes
Leak Diagnosis & Cure for Log Houses
Log Wall Height Changes
R-Values of Log Homes
Sealants, Caulks, & Coatings for Log Homes
Shrinkage In Log Home Walls
Slab Log Cabin Siding
Spline & Gasket Designs for Log Buildings
Spline Gaps & Gasket Omissions
Types of Log Houses - Log Choices
Vertical Log Walls on Cabins & Homes
Wall Insulation Values in Log Homes
LOG HOME WALL INSULATION VALUES
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02/25/2010 - 09/22/1991 - InspectApedia.com/structure/Log_Checking.htm - © 2010 - 1988 Copyright Daniel Friedman All Rights Reserved - InspectAPedia® is a Registered U.S. Trademark