Planning Out a Log Home Build Made Easy

For many people, building their own home is a dream. So, why not make it a reality. More and more people are turning to log homes as a way to live naturally and sustainably in a more authentic way. Read on to find out what you should do when planning the build.

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Draw Up Plans with an Architect

Building a home might be a big construction job, but it all starts with ideas, pencils and some paper. For many people, the planning process is the most interesting part of the whole project. It allows you to embrace the creative aspect of the whole process. You should definitely hire an architect to help you with the technical side of things though. If you don’t, then your plans will probably not be detailed enough, and they won’t be understood by professional builders. When you hire an architect, you should speak to them and find out their areas of expertise before you sign any deals. Ideally, you’ll hire someone who has worked on this kind of project in the past.

Make it a Hybrid

A hybrid log home is the kind of home that doesn’t just focus on the timber. It does use timber logs, of course. But it also uses other materials that will be seen on the interior of the home. So, the home will still look the same on the outside. But on the inside, you will be able to see ordinary flat walls rather than logs. There are a couple of reasons why this hybrid method is best. For a start, it allows you to take advantage of the most modern building methods, and the home will be more secure. That can only be a good thing for you and your family in the future. You can discuss this further with the architect you hired.

Buy Materials

The next thing that you need to do is buy the right materials. Materials are not cheap, and this is where the bulk of your money will be spent. It’s actually true that timber is less expensive than most other kinds of building materials. But that doesn’t mean that you won’t have to spend a lot. There are also the other materials that need to be bought as well as the timber. And when you’re building an entire home from scratch, that takes a lot of wood. If you ask me, you should plan this out in advance and make sure that you can afford all the materials before you even start the process. Having a budget in place will also allow you to make sure that you don’t overstretch financially.

Hire Builders

Even if you want to build the home with your own hands and play an active role in the process, you will still need help. Very few people are capable of building a home by themselves without the help of professional builders. And it’s not something that I’d recommend if you don’t have experience of building log homes. There are mistakes that can be made, and they could ruin the entire project. So, shop around for the best building quotes and speak at length to them about what you want to do. When you are working alongside builders on a project as vast as this, it’s very important to have a good relationship with them. If you don’t, the whole process will be a struggle.

Have it Insulated and Wired

Insulation is a big deal because it will dictate how much energy you have to use when you move into the home. If it doesn’t have the right insulation that is installed correctly, you will end up paying more to heat the home during winter. But the good news is that most log homes made from timber are actually very efficient. That’s because timber is able to store heat and then release it later. So, as long as you have the right insulation to back you up, you should have pretty low energy bills. When that’s done, it’s time to wire the home. It is notoriously difficult to wire log cabins, so don’t try to do this alone. Instead, hire an electrician and let them get on with the work.

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Protect the Home’s Exteriors

After the bulk of the building process has been completed, you will need to think about how you can protect the exterior. The wood needs to be protected if it’s going to last for decades into the future. Start by thinking about how you can prevent termites from eating away at the wood and woodpeckers attacking it. Both of those threats are very real, and you shouldn’t ignore them. Then you can look into things like Mountain Home Building Products. These are for making sure that the wood is stained and not left open to threats from the natural environment. Finally, make sure the roof is secure and there are no gaps in it or in the walls. When you have done that, you’ll be nearly finished.

Have the Structure Assessed

When the structure of your home is in place, you will need to make sure that it is safe to live in. This shouldn’t be a problem, and it’s really just a formality. But it is always better to be safe than sorry. There is no need to take risks, so why would you? So, you can find a local building surveyor who knows about log homes and ask them to assess the work that’s been done. Log homes can be as safe and structurally secure as any other type of home, so you should find that it passes the assessment. If it doesn’t, then you will have to listen to what the surveyor said and make the changes they outlined. Moving into a home with structural problems is clearly never a good thing to do.

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Now that you know exactly how to plan for your log home build, all that’s left to do is to take action. This is when all the hard work really starts, so what are you waiting for?