Generally people think that log cabins kits and houses are great only for a weekend getaway located in woods or forest areas. But the reality is something different. You may be surprised to know that ninety percent of log homes are the primary residences of their owners, with over eighty percent situated in and around metropolitan regions.
Wood is a great natural resource for building residential cabins. It is self-renewing and harvesting wood is also less damaging to the environment. Also, it is easy to work with when compared to stone, brick, concrete, aluminium, steel or glass.
Log cabins basically come in two types ‒ manufactured and handcrafted. Handcrafted log homes require expert skills; craftsman shape, strip and custom fit each log in its place, which is often very time consuming and expensive. On the other hand, manufactured or modular log cabins are prefabricated homes made of uniform milled, smooth logs that come numbered and packaged and are easy to install. A milled log is one which has been put through a saw mill.
Lots of people think that owning prefab log cabins means compromising on quality. But this is not borne out by the facts ‒ in many instances prefabrication can even mean better quality and more durability. There is certainly nothing inferior or sinister about prefabrication. As per the definition, prefabricated means fabricating (making) the parts of something at a factory so that construction consists chiefly of assembling standardized parts. In the world of home building, prefabrication refers to making large or small parts of a log house in a controlled factory environment to similar standards on large assembly line-type ‘jigs’ for the framing and other systems for the rest of the construction.
Prefab log homes are largely built in the factory and delivered to the building site in panels, sections, modules etc. There are numerous benefits of already built log houses as compared to handcrafted cabins. Here we will be discussing a few of them:
Quick to install: Already built log cabins take a much shorter time to build. As a result, if you are in urgent need of a residential space or want to add extra space to your house fast, then these cabins can best help you meet your requirements. In general, they take approximately two months to get ready in the factory. It then just has to be transported to the site to be installed and put together. In comparison, a traditional house takes a few months to a year to be built. You can either erect the log cabin yourself or, in general, manufacturers will present you with a complete installation service as well as making it easier for you to start using these log cabins instantly.
Better insulation: Prefab log cabins, being built in a factory setting, provide better insulation. The improved insulation of these structures help you save on your heating and cooling costs.
No settling: The framed wall sections, great fastening systems and centre beam log or timber construction reduce the chances of settling. A stacked log cabin can settle approx. 6 inches. This settling must be continuously monitored and adjusted during the first few years after construction, or else windows may break and doors may not open or close.
Less cracking: Reputed manufacturers use full length logs which have been chosen carefully and contain less than 19% moisture content.
Better protection from insects: Already built houses are made in the factory and as a result they offer improved protection from insects. So, you don’t have to put in a lot of effort to keep your log house bug and termite free.
Tightly sealed from the elements: High quality chinking between the hand planed log siding, high quality insulation and double-glazed windows ensure that no air will enter or exit without your permission, helping you enjoy a nice temperature-controlled environment.
Stronger: Log cabins are stronger than traditional houses. As a result, they can handle natural disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes much more efficiently than a traditional construction.
Easy to design: You can design your log cabin in any way you want. You have all the flexibility and freedom to choose the features of your residential log house, like the size, number of rooms, storeys and everything else.
System built: Manufacturers use highly experienced and skilled craftsmen to ensure that the logs are perfectly cut as per the industry standards, making installation a lot easier and trouble free. Quality is carefully monitored at every step.
Less on-site waste: With all the components pre-built and pre-cut, there is little on-site debris. Everything that is required to make the cabin is brought on-site, including, walls, windows, flooring, doors etc.
Huge choice: You can choose from a huge variety of colours, designs and sizes of already built log houses available on the market. Also, depending on your budgetary levels you can choose the species of log. Some of the popular options include: spruce, pine, cedar, and fir.
More environmentally friendly: As already built log cabins are made from recycled and renewable materials, consume less energy and are non-polluting, they are more environmentally friendly than traditional homes.
More pocket friendly: The cost of already built log cabin is much lower than a handcrafted log cabin. Also they can be altered and additions are easy to make.
All these benefits make investing in already built log houses a smarter choice for an investment. Obviously, buying kits with pre-shaped logs is more pocket friendly. It is less expensive not only in materials but also needs less labour. You can also look at it this way; it is easy to see that from the two choices, you could get a residential log cabin more expensively in a way that is more labour intensified and takes a longer time or you could have already built logs to simply put together in a shorter time with less effort. We think you’ll agree that the latter is definitely the more logical choice. Also, log homes beat concrete stick-built homes in character as well as beauty.
