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Here we the types of sealants, chinking, splines or gaskets used during the construction of both traditional rough cut logs and modern milled log or solid log houses. Readers should also see Spline Gaps & Gasket Omissions and Log House Leak Diagnosis & Cure. Our page top photo shows a modern milled log that uses a double raised rib or "spline" that mates itno a groove milled into the bottom surface of each log above. Gaskets (or in some cases caulk) are used on top of each spline (or on occasion along side them) in this design.

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.

For modern kit and factory-sourced log structures we include details of common construction and building defects that cause water and air leaks and ultimately rot damage and we point to key problem areas that need to be inspected carefully when buying or maintaining a log home.

© Copyright 2009 - 1991 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.

Types of Log Wall Spline & Gasket Sealing Methods

On both traditional rough-cut log buildings and on modern kit logs and milled log structures there are many designs for sealing the interfacing logs as well as sealing at windows, doors, and building eaves. Here we provide photos and text of basic log sealing methods, both traditional chinking and weather stripping and modern splines, gaskets, and caulks.

Traditional Log Walls Used Chinking not Splines nor Gaskets

As our photo (above left) shows, a traditional log house, built from individually-cut logs, may have included cutting or sawing the mating surfaces of horizontally (usually) or vertically (less common) placed logs against one another to obtain a flat surface. Other homes were constructed with fully-round logs and no planing of the mating surfaces.

But in all cases, to avoid terrible drafts and water leaks, a variety of log wall chinking methods were used between the logs of a log house:

• Mud and straw or oakum or animal hair
• Wood strips nailed between logs on the building interior often over newspaper or oakum. Often milled quarter-round strips were added on the interior of an older cabin such as this one that was built in the 1920's on the shore of Lake Superior. (Photo at above right is of a combination vertical and horizontal log cabin wall in Two Harbors, Minnesota)
• Concrete log wall chinking (photo at above left is of a native-log rough-cut un-milled vertical-wall log cabin in Pennsylvania)
• Modern log wall chinking materials such as Perma-Chink™ that may be used as a retrofit repair product on all of these older log buildings

Single-Splined Log Mating Surfaces

Double Splines Between Log Mating Surfaces

Caulk or Gaskets Used at Multi-Splined Log Mating Surfaces in a Log House Wall

We advise against simply using generic caulks in these locations.

Luckily, and probably because this is a common error, there are special products that can be used to remedy leaks in log walls. If inspection or if cold, windy weather reveals air infiltration leaks, call your inspector or log manufacturer for suggestions for special log chinking, caulks, or other log home crack or leak sealants.

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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

• Thanks to Arlene Puentes for the photograph of a checked log in a log home exterior. Arlene Puentes, a licensed home inspector, educator, and building failures researcher in Kingston, NY. Photographs © Arlene Puentes 2006 All Rights Reserved. Text © Daniel Friedman Arlene Puentes 2008 All Rights Reserved.
• "The Logless Log Home," Jim Robbins, New York Times, 02/25/2010 Home section, p. D1 & D6.
• "Shop Talk," Martin Mintz, AIA, Builder Magazine, April 1986, detailed solutions for log shrinkage movement by using a "T" jamb at windows and doors. A January 1986 Builder Magazine article shows window installation details in 8" thick log walls.
• "Caulking, Chinking, Insulators, Sealants - which System works Best," Log Home and Alternative Housing Builder, Nov-Dec 1983.
• Insulating Characteristics of log homes were neatly summarized by Roger Rawlings in "Log Homes in a New Light," Rodale's New Shelter, April 1983, p. 28
• Lincoln Log Homes Marketing, Inc., 6000 Lumber Lane, Kannapolis NC 28081 704-932-6151
• Merrimac Log Homes, Henniker, NH, sells log home products, milled log home kits, log siding, and log home plans and log home construction accessories. 866-637-7462 or logs@mlhnh.com - merrimacloghomes.com

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