Restoration of log houses: to caulk or not to caulk?

In the log house industry, as in all industries, the implementation of techniques, products, and procedures varies from company to company. From concept to design to actual construction, each log home will have its own unique set of variables and challenges. However, a particular procedure is often performed improperly, or poor quality products are used, or may be neglected altogether.

Ignoring proper installation and maintenance of this very important aspect of the building process can and has caused significant damage. Logs, trim work, fascia, soffit and other areas of the log home have succumbed not only to major mold and insect infestation problems, but more importantly to wood rot .

This important procedure is caulking. Probably at least half of the log homes I inspect or work on are poorly sealed, not fully sealed (meaning the house is weatherproof), or not sealed at all.

Generally, most log houses have a certain amount of caulking. It is usually found around windows and doors. Sometimes the corners have been sealed with caulking or some form of expanding foam may have been used. However, most of the time, this is all the caulking that can be found.

Now depending on who you talk to will determine the answer to what and how much should be caulked in a log house. The reality is that common sense will reveal the truth.

I recommend caulking all joints and seams from under the eaves of exterior walls to the rim joist of the floor. Starting at the top, this would include placing a bead of caulking between where the soffit meets the siding or logs. This is one of the most overlooked areas of the home and one of the largest areas that is not necessarily leaking from water intrusion, but from air and insect infiltration. Most of the time, this wall meets the soffit and rarely has any kind of waterproofing.

Then, if the window and door trims were installed, it’s hard to tell if these areas were caulked properly or caulked at all. If the builder is reputable, chances are they’ve been careful, but you’d be wise to check. It may be necessary to remove the trim to be able to see where the logs meet the window/door frame.

Now to the records. This may be debatable, but it seems to me that if there is a crack or gap between two pieces of wood, this is an invitation for air, water, and insects to enter. When we use a chemical strip to remove bad old finishes during a log home restoration, we always find leaks. It doesn’t matter if the house is one or a hundred years old. Every log home will leak to one degree or another. We have stripped many log houses from large lakeside homes to small cottages and to date they have all leaked somewhere to some degree.

That said, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. When a leak is found, it is marked so that later, when the caulking process begins, we can identify where the leak was and address it as needed. Of course, these leaks were caused by high pressure water being forced over the logs. However, if water can enter the house, so can ambient air and insects.

Therefore, at a minimum, all windows and doors, butt joints, log corners, and controls should be properly caulked and caulked.

The next questionable area is the seams between each stacked log. Most, but not all, manufactured log houses have a tongue and groove system milled into the logs. During construction, each log will typically have some form of gasket, usually foam, and a bead of putty along the length of the log in this groove to form a seal between the two adjoining logs, making them airtight. the weather. In theory, this should be enough. The problem is in new construction these new logs will shrink, settle, twist, warp and bow over time as well as expand and contract due to temperature changes and depending on the initial moisture content of the logs all this can cause considerable movement. This movement will most likely cause the caulking and foam joint material to fail, the logs to separate at joints, and the butt joints to separate as well.

If this happens, the only remedy is to caulk. But until this is done, water, bugs, and air can easily get in and start causing damage and, at a minimum, create a drafty log home.

This can be easily removed early on if the homeowner asks for the entire house to be caulked in the construction phase or when the log home needs to be restored. Once the old caulk is removed and the clean wood is exposed, then it would be the perfect time to install new caulking, thereby eliminating any potential problems with water, air, or bugs.

Properly caulking a log home only takes a few days, depending on the size. If it’s new construction, there’s not a lot of prep work. If it’s a log home restoration, some old caulking may need to be stripped off first, but after that, the new application is applied, works with tools and wipes off easily to leave a clean proof seal. weather that will last several years.

Remember, log homes are constantly changing, shrinking, and swelling, so there will always be caulking issues that need to be addressed. The solution is to stay on top of it by doing annual inspections and making any necessary repairs. It doesn’t take long and most people can do it themselves or hire a professional to do it. Just make sure it’s done before any real damage occurs and you face real expense of replacing damaged logs or other wood work. Maintenance of a log house costs much less than restoration of a log house. You make the call.