Shrinkage of the log house - wait, you can not work. When you need to grind a log house from a log What to do after you have assembled a log house

Despite the variety of modern building materials, wooden buildings do not lose their popularity. A log cabin is a wooden structure made of several crowns of timber or logs, which are fastened together in the form of a quadrangle without a roof and floor covering. Gorodnya, tumbler, quadruple, five-wall, six, octagon, “in the oblo”, “in the bowl”, “in the paw”, “in dovetail”- what kind of log cabins are there! This is a kind of blank, the frame of your future. wooden house. In Russia, craftsmen managed to make log cabins, connecting logs together without a single nail.

When the house is "assembled", you can proceed to one of the most important stages of finishing - grinding. Logs with remnants of the bark, from which the frame is assembled, look unattractive, besides, they are subject to decay and the influence of bark beetles.

Why sanding?

• Protect wood from microorganisms, mold.
• Make the surface smooth for better adhesion (bonding layers paintwork materials) repair cracks.
• Give wood aesthetic appearance highlighting the texture of the material.
• Prevent premature aging of wood.

What is the grinding of a log house

The tool for polishing a log house should have sufficient power, but at the same time not be heavy. Optimal solution- parquet-grinding belt machine with built-in bags for collecting sawdust and dust. Unfortunately, if the house is assembled from a semicircular log, such an apparatus will not cope with grinding. When processing grooves and end sections to help the owner - an angle grinder, popularly known as a grinder. Grinding is carried out using nozzles of different grain sizes. Fine and coarse abrasive grinding wheels used alternately to obtain a perfectly flat surface.

Stages of polishing a log house:

• Rough peeling of the bark.
• Medium processing - smoothing wood with a coarse abrasive with a grain diameter of 40 and above.
• Delicate processing using a fine-grained nozzle (80-100).
• Finishing sanding before applying paints and varnishes.

When is the best time to sand a log?

Before choosing a tool, you need to decide on the time of grinding work. Grinding precedes all others Finishing work: it is carried out before applying antiseptics, flame retardants, impregnations and paints and varnishes.

According to the rules, it is made a year after the construction of the structure. During this time, the process of shrinkage occurs - a natural decrease in the volume of the log due to the drying of the wood and the achievement of a moisture balance between the fibers of the tree and environment. During the year, under the influence of atmospheric phenomena, the log house darkens, and grinding is a necessary stage in its processing before further finishing.

Grinding work on the log house is carried out only after the wood has completely dried. Wet wood will not allow sanding to make the surface perfectly smooth: the fibers will rise and be torn off unevenly by the machine.

It is better to grind a log house in warm, dry weather. The optimal time is the end of spring and summer. abundance sunlight and high temperature with minimal humidity contribute to the drying of the logs before grinding. If the time has come for prolonged rains, and the log house has not been polished, and, of course, it has no opportunity to dry, it is worth covering the logs with polyethylene or other covering films (for example, roofing felt) and wait until the dry weather settles. As we wrote above, moisture interferes with the operation of the grinder, the fibers swell and rise. Hired workers can insist on working at any time of the year and in any weather, as they are driven by the time limit. However, remember: after grinding, they will leave, and you will live in the house and admire the consequences of grinding. True professionals will definitely warn you about the disadvantages of sanding in wet weather and will not start the process even to the detriment of their time.

Interestingly, the optimal time for assembling a log house is winter, and grinding work is recommended to be carried out a year after construction - it turns out that also in winter. But above we wrote about what the most good time- summer period. In addition, after grinding, it is necessary to treat the surface with antiseptics, which work only at positive temperatures. So what if there is no opportunity to postpone grinding until warmer times?

Grinding a log house in winter

In winter, concentrated in upper layers moisture freezes, forming an ice crust. Ice does not allow deep antiseptic, which is applied after grinding. Therefore, all protective impregnations lose their effectiveness. In addition, wood fibers expand, deform and form cracks. On the other hand, in winter, all natural processes slow down, mold and fungus cease to pose a particular danger to wood, so antiseptic treatment can be postponed until spring. But there is another problem: a polished frame without applying protective impregnations albeit with a weak, but still significant impact of UV rays, it may turn yellow, which will lead to the need for re-grinding the log house in the spring.

So, if there is no way out and you have to start grinding in winter period, special technology must be observed. It is extremely difficult to grind a log house on your own in winter, moreover, even the most savvy amateur is not immune from mistakes that will eventually bring all the work to naught. It is better to entrust winter grinding to specialists.

At negative temperatures grinding is prohibited outdoors, therefore, a kind of sarcophagus is being built around the building - installed around the perimeter scaffolding covered with polyethylene or other covering material. However, the problem of the ice crust on the surface of the wood is still relevant, so hot air is blown into the sarcophagus with the help of heat guns until the desired temperature is reached. Only after these procedures is polished with professional equipment.

Concerning sanding a log house in rainy weather, it is better to avoid dampness in the process of processing wood. Wet fibers swell and rise, cutting unevenly grinder. In the event of the inevitability of grinding in the rain, the same technology is followed as with winter work: preliminary construction of a thermal sarcophagus.

Important! Do not leave a sanded surface unfinished. It is recommended to observe a time interval of no more than 48 hours between grinding and applying a primer and antiseptics, otherwise the log house will require re-treatment.

Sanding is a time-consuming and responsible process, however, ignoring it now, you will lose much more time and money in the future, trying to restore the once beautiful wooden building, darkened due to untimely processing.

Regardless of whether you yourself will put up a log house or hire people, you should know the basic nuances and features. The assembly of a log house from logs and timber is slightly different, but the main differences are in the connection of the corners. All other technology and features remain the same.

Types of log cabins

Log cabins are made from logs and timber, only timber and logs are different. All of them have advantages and disadvantages, and about them - below.

What are log cabins

There are logs manual processing- from them manually (with an ax, planer, other hand tool) the bark is removed, the shape is not corrected. So they remain on one side of a larger diameter, on the other - a smaller one. When laying on the wall, the logs are unfolded so that thick and thin butts alternate. The assembly of a log cabin from such a log is exclusively manual piecework. Each bowl is drawn on the spot, it is adjusted to fit the log laid from below. The process is lengthy - put in place, draw a notch and bowls, roll back, make a groove for the entire length of the log, cut out the bowls, “plant” in place, if necessary, earn a groove and / or bowls (roll back and fix again, if necessary). For a long time…

Log manual felling(chopped) imperfect, but attractive

Calibrated or rounded logs are processed on a special machine. From it they come out the same in all lengths. They make them standard - a certain diameter. Immediately at the enterprise, a longitudinal recess and a deformation groove are formed in the log (longitudinal cut, which reduces cracking during shrinkage). Also, a bowl can be cut at the enterprise. With this approach, all that remains then is to assemble the log house as a constructor. Baths from rounded logs are assembled quickly. But not everyone loves them: they have their drawbacks.

A rounded log has the same diameter

When processing a log on a rounding machine, most of the popular wood is removed, the most dense and durable layer. As a result, rounded logs are more susceptible to fungus, insects and diseases. All this is “cured” by appropriate processing and good drying. However, for some this factor is important.

Regardless of the type of log, the assembly of the log house is carried out on a compactor. This is moss, jute, lnovatin. They can be in the form of fibers - tow, but it is more convenient to work with felt cut in the form of a ribbon. The insulation is laid on top of the log, usually fixed with brackets made of construction stapler. Carefully line the bowl, also fixing the strips. The crown laid on top presses the insulation and it closes possible gaps. It is impossible to achieve perfect filling right away, the remaining gaps will be filled later, when the log cabin is caulked.

A seal in a log cabin is required

Log cabins - types and features

Collect log cabins and from a bar. He has more correct form- its edges are even or relatively even, which facilitates finishing work. The beam is of three types:

As you can see ideal material no. You need to choose by weighing all the pros and cons, take into account the price not only for the material itself, but also for the cost of its installation, take into account the complexity of the finish. So planed timber is the most cheap option. But if you plan to leave the walls without sheathing, putting them in order - leveling, grinding - is long and difficult on your own, and with the participation of hired workers - expensive.

Prices for log cabins

A little about the price of a cube of building materials and the thickness of the walls. If you look at the price per cube, then the log is much cheaper. But a log cabin requires much more building material in terms of cubic capacity: it has a rounded shape and, in fact, the thickness of the walls is much less than the diameter. And if you take a bar with a section of 200 * 200 mm, then your wall will be exactly 200 mm. So in reality the difference in the cost of building materials is not so big.

Wall thickness depending on the log diameter (rounded)

The second point is the qualification of cutters and, of course, payment for their work. If assembling a log house with your own hands is not included in your plans, then you will pay more for the services of cutting bowls and assembling walls from logs. The assembly of hand-cut logs is especially expensive. As mentioned above, each bowl is drawn and chopped "in place", and this requires high qualifications and takes a lot of time. Thickets of timber are cut according to a pattern - it is cut out of plywood, outlined and cut out, and most often with a chainsaw. Here qualifications, of course, are also needed, but they are much lower.

There is another option - to order a finished log house at a woodworking enterprise. You give them a project, they bring you a "constructor" with ready-made bowls. Each element is numbered, they only need to be added according to a given scheme. Only one caveat: if you or the team you hired started assembling the log house, and you see that the elements of the “constructor” do not sit down, more gaps remain, check yourself again. Do not start adjusting the bowls (especially if there is a large discrepancy). Most likely you have incorrectly laid logs / timber. If there is any scheme, double-check again, or call the company where you ordered the log house. Let me tell you everything again. Usually such a discrepancy is precisely the wrong installation of crowns, and not unscrupulous manufacturers.

Large gaps - most likely the result of an error when laying the crowns

Cutting bowls of logs, ways to connect logs and beams in the corners, adjoining walls are described here.

What are collected

Logs or beams are not just stacked one on top of the other, they are fastened together. Can't be done without fasteners. In the process of drying, both logs and timber “twist”. Installed fasteners hold them in place, preventing them from turning around too much. If there are no fasteners, the crowns fall out in or out - depending on the direction of the prevailing forces. Most often this is observed on the gables, in the walls, where there are windows, doors.

Loose crowns fall out

Fasteners can be metal or wood. It is easier, of course, with metal ones - they do not need to be harvested and it is more customary to work with them. But the metal does not change in size, and the wood dries out. As a result, the log house does not shrink during shrinkage, but “hangs” on studs. This leads to the formation large cracks between crowns. So metal studs are acceptable only when assembling a log house from glued laminated timber: it does not dry out. Nails can't be used at all. They are not for cutting.

It is also not recommended to use pieces of reinforcement, spring knots, and in general, any metal. Wood conducts steam, and it will condense on metal with all the ensuing consequences (rapid oxidation and destruction of metal, and wood “hangs” very well on rusty metal, another disease is the reproduction of fungi in a humid environment). So if you decide to collect wooden frame, it is assembled on wooden fasteners.

Nagels

Dowels and dowels are made of wood. Nagels are long thin bars of round, triangular or square section. More often they use round ones, holes of a slightly smaller diameter are drilled under them (1-2 mm less than the diameter of the dowel), into which the bars are hammered. For triangular or square, it is necessary to select the diameter of the drill bigger size, and it will be very difficult to drill them.

Nagels

The length of the dowel is calculated depending on the cross section of the beam: the height of the three crowns is multiplied by 0.8. If you have a beam of 200 * 200 mm, then three rows are 600 mm, after multiplication we get 600 mm * 0.8 = 480 mm. This length should be dowels.

The most popular dowel diameter/section is 25 mm or 30 mm. They are made from hardwoods - birch or oak. Spruce perfectly resists torsion forces, so spruce can also be used. If you follow the norms of SNiP, then the dowels should have a moisture content of no higher than 12%, they should not have knots and other flaws, they must be treated with antiseptics / flame retardants before use.

Drilling must be strictly vertical

They put the dowel stepping back from the edge of the log / beam 200-600 mm, and then every 1.5-2 meters in a checkerboard pattern. They are placed strictly vertically, in the middle of the log / beam. So that when the wood shrinks, the crowns do not hang on the fasteners, the holes for them are drilled 2-3 cm deeper. To make it easier to track the depth of the hole, a strip of masking tape or bright electrical tape is wound around the drill. They are guided by them. Then, even with a significant decrease in the size of the frame, it will sit evenly.

Assembling a log house on a dowel - installation diagram

When driving dowels, it is important to control efforts and hit strictly from above: so that the wood does not crack. To “enter” the holes, they are easier, they are dipped in oil (you can work out).

When assembling a log house from a bar or log, the technology of work is as follows:

• The first two or three rows are fastened with dowels, spacing them through the required distance.
• Next, two more crowns are laid and fastened to the top row of the previous package. Only the pins are now shifted so that they do not fall one on top of the other, but go in a checkerboard pattern.
• Next, two crowns are again placed and connected to the upper beam of the previous package (also with a shift).

Now a little on the prices of pins. They are usually sold by the piece. The price depends on the size and type of wood, but we can definitely say that they are expensive. To save money, people buy rake handles (they have suitable diameter), cut them into pieces of the desired length and use. Just note that knots and other wood defects must be cut out.

Square dowel

Even cheaper - buy a board suitable wood(dry, "elite" varieties without knots and defects) and cut it into bars of the required size. For example, you can buy a 50 * 25 mm board, make 25 * 25 mm bars out of it, cut it into pieces of the required length, slightly sharpen the edges. Apart from the time spent, this approach is the most low-budget.

Dowels

Assembling a log house for dowels is less popular, as it takes more time. They fasten only two crowns, so there is more work with them.

Assembling a log house for dowels

Under each dowel it is necessary to cut holes in the upper and lower logs. Install the prepared fastening bars, then carefully “put on” the upper crown from above. The work is precise, long and hard.

What does a dowel look like in a cut

Log assembly order

Two layers of waterproofing are laid on the foundation. It may be an ordinary roofing material, but in its modern version it is very unreliable, it breaks after a few years. For waterproofing a log house, it is better to use more modern version something like hydroisol. In areas with high level water or in large numbers precipitation, it is desirable to make a combined waterproofing: first coat the foundation with bituminous mastic, stick a waterproofing on it. For reliability - it is possible in two layers (the second one is also on bituminous mastic).

Waterproofing example

Before laying logs or timber, they must be treated with antiseptics and flame retardants. But the fact is that if you later plan to grind a log house, it is better not to process it: treated wood requires many times more effort when grinding. On the other hand, there are parts that will not be available after the assembly of the log house. If they are not treated before the wood has dried out, fungi may start or it will darken. Darkening is not terrible, it can be bleached, but fungi are already worse. Especially for the log cabin of the bath, where periodically there will be high humidity. The way out then is to coat with impregnation only those parts that turn out to be closed, and impregnate free surfaces after grinding.

After the logs/beams are impregnated and dried, the actual assembly of the frame begins. The first crown is laid on the waterproofing, its geometry is checked - the diagonals are measured, the corners are checked. Then it is attached to the foundation with previously laid studs. If there are no studs, drill holes and install anchor bolts(holes are drilled under the caps so that they are recessed). Next - technology. If you collect on dowels, then install them through two rows.

Anchors must be hammered to a depth not less than the height of the beam / log

The first crowns are laid by hand without any problems. With the climb, it becomes more and more difficult to lift the logs. The problem is solved simply: two inclined beams are placed. Two slings are nailed from the inside to the lower crowns of the log house, thrown over the wall. They are threaded under the log / beam, which must be lifted, and stretch upward along the inclined bars (see photo).

So they raise logs or timber to the log house

They put a log house with solid walls - without windows and doors. They are cut out after the walls are completely driven out and the roof is installed. If the log house remains to winter without a roof, you can not cut out the windows / doors: there will be enough ventilation anyway. But if the log house was brought under the roof, then window and door openings are necessary for normal drying.

Before they are cut out, the frame is fastened (the fixing burs is nailed, which keeps the crowns stationary). After the opening is cut out, a pigtail is installed (a beam that holds the opening, and to which the door or window frame is then attached). The beam is held in the groove only due to the force of friction; it is not fixed by anything else. So the logs / beams remain in place and the log house can sit down.

They cut out / cut out a groove into which the timber is driven. It is no longer held on by anything - no nails, screws

If you cut openings, be sure to install a pigtail. At least in such a variant as in the photo above - a bar driven into a groove. Just pay attention once again: it is not attached to anything. It is held only by friction. That is, it is simply hammered into the groove. If you leave the openings loose, the logs/timber will most likely go into different sides and you will become the owners of such walls as in the photo below. It is possible to align them, but it is long and difficult.

What will happen if you do not put a pigtail for the winter

At the same time, the doors and windows themselves are not installed: a draft is needed. If you want to prevent visits, tighten the doors with a mesh, a membrane, clog the openings with boards crosswise, but the air must pass.

After the walls are kicked out, start the assembly truss system roofs. The upper crown is used as a Mauerlat. If necessary, holes are cut in it for installation. rafter legs. roofing material may not be mounted. For the winter, you can leave the rafters with a crate, covered with a windproof membrane. It is only necessary to fasten the membrane according to all the rules: start from the bottom, move up, lay the canvases overlapping one on top of the other, with gluing the joints with double-sided tape. Fasten with staples with a wide back from a powerful stapler.

The cabin is ready for winter

During the debate that flared up after the publication of the article "Ours in America", a reader who wished to tell about his personal experience. Vyacheslav has been living with his family in a house made of a solid log for four years now. And according to him, if he knew all the "nuances" at the time of choosing the material, he would build a house of brick or blocks. Below in the text - his personal "Top reasons why you should not build a house from a log house." To maintain authenticity, we left the text almost unchanged, making only light stylistic changes.

Why did we want a wooden house?

1. Once we saw with our own eyes a log house - we immediately liked it, it looked very beautiful, we wanted the same one for ourselves.

2. For practical reasons: initially it was assumed that we would come on weekends, heat a solid fuel boiler and quickly warm up the house (the concept changed during the construction process).

3. Environmental friendliness: I wanted the house to breathe easily, smell like a pine forest. In general, I liked the traditional concept of life in a private house: a wooden frame, grass near the house, a nearby forest, etc.

summer house

Start of construction

back view

Here we managed to learn a little from the mistakes of others. My friend, in order to save money, bought the wood himself. As a result, a timber truck came to him, the cutters selected suitable logs, half of the timber truck went back ... As a result, 120 cubic meters wood turned into 200 for him. I worked with contractors who sorted wood at their base, and only what really went into work was brought to the site.

view from the yard

Initially, I did not worry about the construction process, as I trusted the contractors. In the course of the work, they nevertheless “screwed up” in places, but not much (more on that below). The logs were laid on the moss. Chopped and hewn - by hand. After they made a “box” with a roof, the house stood for a year.

from the entrance

Of the interesting things in the construction process, I can note the discrepancy between the actual dimensions of the rooms and their visual perception until the moment the ceilings are covered. I personally measured a 19-meter kitchen with a tape measure, because visually it seemed that there were 7-8 meters. And so - with all the rooms.

Finishing

The most interesting thing began at this stage. Firstly, the whole house needs to be sanded from two sides. This work is dreary and not cheap - you can look for prices for work on the Internet, four years ago it cost us a pretty penny (375 sq. M. At $ 5 per 1 sq. M.). Moreover, when estimating the area of ​​work, the bend of the log is added to the formula "height for length" - the area increases.

top plinth - curved fit

Then - impregnation ($ 0.7 per 1 sq.m.). Then - painting in one layer. Then - in the second (both - $ 1 per 1 sq.m.). Moreover, in order for the materials to lay down with high quality, paint the house by hand(which stretches the process in time). After all these procedures, the question of a "breathing house" and "the smell of pine" was removed by itself.
We did not make a basement, so our foundation is simple: PGS pillow, insulation, concrete. The builders pouring the floor did not cut the lower logs to the end in doorways. As a result, a year later in these places it “broke” floor tiles(porcelain stoneware). I had to remove the entire damaged tile, cut out the logs, fill the floor with a new one. It turned out to be easier than somehow cutting out the laid tiles - not every tile cutter takes porcelain stoneware.

a crack in the tile remained in the doorway

To the "pleasant" moments of finishing is added regular finishing off the moss stolen by birds, and sealing joints with sealant. This work is long, costly and dreary. Fortunately, there is a sealant manufacturer in Belarus that offers products at reasonable prices. If I had missed the import, I would have gone bankrupt to hell.

Laying communications in a log house also becomes a problem. Plug socket into round log- the same task (and the "tariff" is appropriate). You can't hide pipes inside. Attaching a plinth to an uneven log is also not an easy task, you will have to “think” and work with your hands.

plinth - plank + mastic

Due to the long shrinkage of the house, doors and windows were inserted into the frame of the boards. If you try to bet on a "live log" - the risks of getting "sloppy" increase significantly. Like risk of damage to the door or window. But even this “trick” did not help us personally: for 4 years of operation, the doors were adjusted twice. And some windows still "siphon".

House operation

kitchen box (on the left against the wall)

The house is constantly "breathing". When the heating is on, when it's not, everything moves. To hang the kitchen, it was necessary to build a metal frame, sheathe it with drywall, and only attach the kitchen to it. No other way. So loved by our citizens sliding wardrobes it is absolutely impossible to establish - there is nothing to "attach" to, and the wall and ceiling live their own lives. The ladder, which was “tied” to the wall, ended up warped, the railing was torn out.

instead of wardrobe...

Any decorative boxes covering communications turn into a work of art - they need to be somehow match with log wall, and this process turns into a jewelry fit with a construction cutter in hand.

The joints smeared with sealant were greased twice in 4 years. Does not matter - cracks appear. The wooden floor on the 2nd floor also dries out, there are also cracks, and this is inevitable.

crack between logs

By autumn mice enter the house, in the gap between the lower log and the foundation. It is not yet possible to block this road for them, since the interface line is very uneven. And if on the main "animal paths" this phenomenon can be "nullified" with the help of poison and mousetraps, then when mice frolic between logs without coming "to visit" - nothing can be done with them. Damn it.

Also between logs every year wasps make their nests. The issue is resolved with the help of Dichlorvos. But it still has to be decided.

In autumn and early winter on the second floor - the kingdom of flies. First flies get in the cracks for the winter. Then the house becomes warm - and they climb inside. Against this brethren, we have not yet come up with any other means than a vacuum cleaner.

And also we - best friends sellers of Tikkurila paint. There need to tint, here you need to tint: steps, joints, terrace. They did not keep accurate records of production, but a lot of buckets of paint were bought over 4 years.

In spring, when pine blossoms (and then also birch), the whole the house is covered yellow pollen. And - a thick layer. On a flat vertical wall it just wouldn't accumulate that much. This issue is solved by washing the walls with a jet from Karcher. But again, it needs to be addressed.

Bath

Inside the house dust accumulates on the bend of the logs. Here already universal means no - the dust can only be removed manually, the old fashioned way.

Sometimes spontaneous, inexplicable bursts of life happen inside the house - some bugs, midges, insects appear, but I have not installed any system here yet.

In the bath, near the bed for guests, some perky creature lives in a log, crunching on a log all night. It is not possible to find and kill her.

And finally - about the famous "winter" forest. My house was cut down from February. Bath - from the August. Haven't noticed a difference yet.

Issue price

Given all of the above, such housing cannot be called cheap. House with total area 240 sq. m. (with a small attic floor) cost me $ 40,000 only at the first stage: foundation, box and roof. Then the project expanded, we also built a utility building, a bathhouse from the same "round timber", ennobled the territory, the street next to the house. All this (together with materials, finishes, windows, doors and a geothermal boiler) cost us $ 180,000 in total.

shrinkage to the roof

Conclusion: What we got for these torments is very beautiful house. And some indescribable pleasure from the feeling of a thick, uneven log, its rough appearance, rich texture ... Friends who began to build across the site from mine listened to approximately the same text, my complaints and advice to build from blocks. And in the end ... they also cut down the log house. Here, of course, everyone decides for himself. But I gave you fair warning.

Interviewed by: Dmitry Malakhov

Building wooden houses due to the special properties and characteristics of the material is actively in demand. In order to new house make their owners happy long years, it is important during its construction to think over a specific plan of action and clearly follow it.

First of all, a foundation is being installed on the site, on which a log house is then assembled and a roof is installed to protect it from moisture. After the object is left to shrink. Since the shrinkage of a log house is a natural process in which wood dries out and changes linear dimensions structural elements, it is recommended to wait at least 6 months before proceeding with the installation of the roof. General term home shrinkage can range from 1 year to 3 years. Moreover, it is for 1 year that up to 90% of the change in size occurs, and after 3 years, the shrinkage of the structure is minimal and practically does not affect its design. The location of the house also directly affects the shrinkage period - in the shade, the drying of logs will be much slower than in an open and sunny area. The same dependence is preserved with respect to the northern part of the house in comparison with the southern.

Important! During the shrinkage process, the log house must be freely ventilated inside.

Stages of work after shrinkage of the log house

Reducing the humidity of the walls from the outside allows you to start a sequence of other works:

• cleaning and polishing logs from the outside for further processing - the log house in some areas may darken during shrinkage, so such minor defects are eliminated so that the walls become smooth with a uniform shade of wood along the entire length;
• treatment of logs with an antiseptic - after grinding, it is advisable to cover the log house with protective compounds. It is advisable to carry out this process at an air temperature above +7°C and in sunny weather. So the logs are saturated faster and deeper. It is recommended to cover the log house with an antiseptic for at least 2 layers, with a break of 1 day until completely dry. V protective compound it is allowed to add color to give the house a shade;
• hemming of gable and eaves overhangs - used to decorate the under-roof space wooden board treated with an antiseptic, or other materials - siding, spotlights. At the same time, you can choose a contrasting color for the cornice and gables, or arrange them in the color of the windows;
• installation of a drainage system - semicircular or rectangular section, made of plastic or metal. In addition to material selection drainage systems presented in different colors, which will allow you to highlight it with a contrasting accent at home, or vice versa - pick up all the elements in the same color as the roof. During installation, it is recommended to additionally fix all connections and fasteners with sealant to increase the service life of the system;
• installation of windows and doors - window and door openings are additionally strengthened to eliminate the effect of shrinkage. Everything wooden materials for work they are also covered with a protective compound;
• log house caulking with jute - carefully process walls, gables, vertical overhangs and other structural elements, both outside and inside. Large gaps can be filled with insulation. After the surface of the walls can be varnished;
• laying communications - the choice of a septic tank device or the use of a filtration ring. When choosing a specific scheme, it is necessary to be guided by the number of people living in the house and characteristic conditions operation;
• installation of a permanent fence, if previously it was only temporary, and a gate on the site;
• landscaping of the territory of the site and around the house - installation of a gazebo, recreation area, barbecue with barbecue or Russian stove;
• finishing of the basement - after the introduction of all networks and communications into the house;
• installation of electrical wiring, sockets;
• interior finishing of premises - walls, floors, ceilings.

Log cabin from natural wood especially appreciated for its durability. In addition, a wooden house is always an individual and original building. To make it suitable for comfortable living, you will have to make a lot of effort. Basically, after 1.5 - 2 years from the start of felling, it will be possible to invite guests to a housewarming party and move in yourself.

According to experienced builders, the best time to install a log house is late autumn and early winter. A smooth decrease in temperature helps to slow down all processes in the wood, which makes it possible for it to shrink evenly and preserve the quality of the log house. But in the summer it will be possible to start all other work on finishing the house, including inside. Building a wooden house in winter is also beneficial from the point of view of financial savings, since in the off-season the prices for material and its assembly are significantly lower.

Chopped log - the most unpredictable construction material. During the shrinkage of the log house, the crowns can twist so that through cracks appear in the walls, and their appearance will be hopelessly damaged. Insufficiently diligent builders can distort a house, the construction of which went to a bar, gun carriage or rounded log. Repair.Divandi experts tell you what you need to pay attention to in order to get a beautiful, warm and durable wooden cottage (or bath).

Customer errors

A minor mistake made by builders during the construction of a wooden house can dramatically worsen the thermal performance of the house or shorten its life. But customers can also make mistakes. Conscientious builders always dissuade a private trader from buying log cabins that have stood at the production site for a year or more. As a rule, their lower crowns have already begun to rot or are affected by a fungus. To give a presentation, the log house can be bleached, but this will also have a bad effect on the durability of the wood.

Alexey Galimov

A similar situation can be if the timber was brought to the construction site, but they did not start cutting it right away, but dumped it on the ground. After some time, the logs begin to turn blue - this starts the process of decay. Blue is removed with chlorine-based chemistry, but as a result, the oil that is used for finishing log house. If under construction big house, then the forest must be brought in as necessary so that it does not lie, but falls on the walls as quickly as possible.

Another problem with old log cabins is that there is a possibility that the cutters who made the box are already working elsewhere, and other people will be assembling the log cabin. A hired team will easily shift the blame for poor-quality assembly onto unknown cutters. Those, they say, made a frank marriage, and it is impossible to collect it qualitatively. The assembly of the log house should be trusted only to those who made it. Otherwise, there will be no one to ask for quality.

By the way, not only chopped logs, but also other materials deteriorate from improper storage.

Alexander Bunkov

Aleksey Markin, director of the AMstroy company, tells about another mistake often made by customers.

Alexey Markin

For example, a person decides to build a house from a gun carriage, rounded log or profiled timber. Log cabins from these materials, as a rule, are made on special equipment. The customer comes to the enterprise with a project that was prepared for him by a third-party architect, and it turns out that here they cannot make the nodes the way they are in the project. The equipment is designed for other sizes. As a result, one has to either abandon the selected material, or completely redesign the house for the technologies available at the enterprise. It happens that reworking a project costs as much as the project itself.

Another tip that saves you from mistakes can be considered naive, but in some cases it will come in handy. Builders categorically advise against contacting companies that promise to build a log or timber house in a month. Construction of a timber building natural humidity or even dry wood is always carried out in two stages - the construction of a log house with a roof, and after about a year's break, windows, ceilings, and floors are put on the shrinkage of the log house. Shrinkage is not needed only at houses made of glued laminated timber. Earlier, the Repair.Divandi portal talked about.

Photo #1- A log house with huge cracks.

Builders' mistakes: typical and gross

As Aleksey Markin notes, the most common mistake in making a log house from chopped log, - these are small areas where the log fits to the log (small width of the interventional groove). The thermal performance of such a house will be low. The head of the Domostroy-SK enterprise, Oleg Valuev, adds that in some cases the crowns may not be adjacent to each other at all (photo 1). Huge gaps will have to be regularly caulked, which will require considerable additional costs. At the same time, the appearance and thermal characteristics of the house cannot be radically improved.

Photo #2- The log house cannot sit properly due to incorrectly set racks.

It happens that builders build a house in such a way that it simply cannot sit down.

Oleg Valuev

This is a very common mistake. Often the house has open veranda under common roof. It turns out that part of the truss system relies on the frame, and part - on the veranda racks. The log house shrinks - by 10-15 cm per year - and the racks are not shortened. As a result, the upper crown hangs on the rack, the edge of the frame closest to it cannot sit down, gaps appear here. If the material is damp, it can warp the roof.

As Oleg Valuev explains, if it is planned to make a veranda under the roof, then a special shrink jack must be installed between the upper end of the rack and the upper crown (photo 3). It will allow the frame to sit evenly. Instead of a jack, you can put a few boards that will need to be knocked out periodically. By the way, shrinkage jacks are clearly visible in the first illustration (Fig. 1) to ours.

Photo #3- Jack for shrinkage (photo "Domostroy-SK").

Another mistake that prevents the log house from shrinking is an attempt to fasten adjacent crowns with nails. The log lies unevenly on the head of the nail, and an intervention gap appears. Due to the loose fit, the log may begin to “spin” during the drying process.

Alexey Galimov

There are some very difficult cases. One day a man came to us with a request to fix a frame made of profiled timber. We came to the facility, and there the crowns were fastened not even with nails, but with self-tapping screws. If the log can somehow slide down along the nail during shrinkage, then the self-tapping screw holds it tightly. There are huge gaps in the log house, all the jute is outside, the blue has gone at the joints. Here the treatment is only a complete disassembly, processing and installation on a new one.

The problem of poor-quality waterproofing of the lower crown of the log house has somewhat lost its relevance. As a rule, the installation team performs this operation with high quality. However, the customer should pay attention to how the foundation is paired and wooden walls. If the foundation is tape or grillage, then the surface of the tape should be leveled, and between the foundation and the lower crown there should be 2-3 layers of roofing material, or a waterproofing layer of a similar efficiency.

However, excess moisture can get into the wood not only through the foundation. If you lay floors in the house and hang ceilings before the log house has sat down and dried, this will impede air circulation and lead to “steaming” of the house - on inner walls mold or fungus may appear.

Alexander Bunkov

Especially the issue of protecting wood from moisture is relevant for the lower rims of the bath. We recently had a case - they were repairing a bathhouse, which had rotted bottom logs. It turned out that the builders had insulated the floors in the steam room and washing department polystyrene foam. The space under the floor was clogged. The water that got under the floor from the sink did not dry up. For six months, the lower crowns rotted. We raised the log house on jacks, changed the crowns and redid the floors. The repair cost a third of the price of the bath ... The floors in the washing department and in the steam room must be done without insulation.

The head of the Domostroy-SK enterprise, Oleg Valuev, notices that in the washroom it is also not necessary to make baseboards on the floor. Moisture collects under them and the process of decay also begins.

Photo #4– Mold on unventilated wooden structures.

Unpredictable wood

Even experienced builders cannot always predict where moisture will go and where it will begin to accumulate.

Alexey Galimov

A very recent case. They polished inside the log house from chopped logs. The days were very hot. The heat presses - moisture goes inside the house. The inner surface of the walls turned out to be more wet than expected. The sawdust, formed during grinding, stuck to the walls and underneath it went blue. Well time noticed, cleaned up. So that moisture does not form anywhere inside the log house, the log house must be well ventilated.

To skew or not to skew...

Many Yekaterinburg builders consider it a mistake not to use pins (dowels) when assembling log cabins. These are wooden rods installed in vertical holes and uniting two logs adjacent in height. In general, the scheme is as follows: dowels pierce the first and second logs. When the third is placed on top, holes are drilled in it and in the second log (with an offset relative to the existing ones) for the dowels of the “second portion”, and so on along the entire height of the log house.

Alexey Galimov

Main mistake during the installation of log cabins - they do not dodge. And without dowels, the log may begin to spin when it dries. However, one must take into account different factors. For example, if a profiled timber of natural moisture is laid in winter, then the drying process will not be fast. Such a log house and without dowels can sit down normally. And if you build in the summer, then dowels are required. Otherwise, the log house will lead, it can snatch a cup.

Not all builders agree with this position. Some believe that cutting should be done in such a way that the walls stand firmly and without dowels. However, recently there have been much more supporters of the use of dowels. After all, the additional fastening of logs allows you to make the shrinkage of the log house more predictable, and in some cases, correct the shortcomings of the lumber. The presence of pins in the walls with openings for windows and doors is especially important.

Photo #5- Installation of dowels when assembling a log house from profiled timber.

Aleksey Markin, director of AMstroy, emphasizes that when working with a beam, rounded log or gun carriage, incorrect installation of dowels can lead to hanging of the crowns. Other experts are reminded of the same.

Oleg Valuev

Usually dowels with a diameter of 22 mm are used. The holes for them should be slightly larger in diameter. For example, we use a 25 mm drill. Otherwise, during the drying process, the log may pinch the dowel and this will prevent the shrinkage of the crowns, since the log will not be able to move down and hang on the dowel. I also remind you that to drill holes for dowels, you need to use a very sharp drill. So that he cuts through the jute laid between the crowns, and does not pull it through. Otherwise, the occurrence of cold bridges in this place is possible.

Photo #6- Laying jute in the interventional grooves (photo by Domostroy-SK).

A heater / sealant is laid in the interventional grooves - moss, tow, linen or jute felt (more often they just say “jute”). The last option is the most popular today. Oleg Valuev draws attention to the fact that in the cup the width of the pairing of logs is almost twice the width of the interventional groove. Therefore, in this place, the builders must not forget to increase the width of the insulation tape (photo 6).

There are other points that a private developer should keep in mind.

Alexander Bunkov

The side of the log that was facing north at the tree has denser wood. This can be seen on the cut - the annual rings on the north side are thinner. The north side should be put logs out. Then there will be fewer cracks. However, the brigades, as a rule, do not pay attention to the annual rings. They put it how they feel comfortable. True, and customers also do not take this moment into account. When we offer for a surcharge - 50 rubles. linear meter - laying logs taking into account the rings, customers, as a rule, refuse.

Yaroslav Kulikov, specialist of the VIRA Group company, reminds that a wooden house presents special requirements also for roofing. Usually a log house has not only external, but also internal walls. They sit down faster than the outer ones. This can lead to deformation of the rafter system, which relies on both internal and external walls. To prevent this from happening, small backlashes are laid in the attachment points of the rafters, and the rafters are made sliding.

Yaroslav Kulikov

I would also not recommend using tapwood for construction. These are tree trunks from which the resin was collected. They show a characteristic Christmas tree made of cuts. There is no resin in this wood. She is fluffy. The house will not last long. By the way, in order for the house to be durable, we use the following technique in the manufacture of a log house - on the lower surface of the log along the lunar groove, a compensation cut is cut with a depth of 3-5 cm. Then, when the wood dries, the cracks will go inside. Outside, large cracks should not appear.

If the house is being built from a chopped log, then the presence of cutting wood in the prepared materials can be calculated from the characteristic Christmas tree from the cuts (“the top” of the Christmas tree is directed to the butt part of the log). If a timber or a rounded log is used, then the absence of a "tap" will have to be taken on faith. However, some assurance is given by the fact that last years(about 15-20 years) in the Ural region, pine tapping is practically not carried out.