Insect boring holes in knots of pine 7 Replies

I will soon be refinishing a side of my log home (stripping to bare wood, borate, then stain).  I have noticed that some insect has been boring into the knots of the logs in a few places.  In some areas its just a small hole, but on others it appears it ate out most of the knot.  I do plan on treating the walls with borate, but I am unsure if this will even help since it will probably not be absorbed in the knots.  Any idea what is causing this?…Continue

Started by Mike in All About Stains and Sealants. Last reply by Mike on Tuesday.

T&G over logs ?

Hey everyone,we purchased a log home built in the mid 80’s. Logs are “D” logs and the interior is stained dark brown which makes the whole interior very dark.   We love the plain clear coat natural look and not interested in sanding everything and dealing with the mess, not to mention the un-evenness of the finished look.  Has anyone put 1x8 tongue and groove boards directly over their logs on the interior side ?  I know this will be more expensive than sanding.  Any advice ?Continue

Started by Jason Henry in Repair and Home Projects Help May 23.

Rot 4 Replies

Looking for help with this horrible problem, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.My second floor bedroom has a balcony.  The logs run through the entire house and go through the exterior wall to outside, where it's holding up the balcony.  One of the end logs I've discovered is rotten, clear up to the cabin wall (outside)I'm afraid if the rot continues not only will my balcony fall but it may rot all the way in until my second floor may be compromised!I've contacted the builder that…Continue

Tags: rot, Balcony

Started by John & Pat Biehn in Repair and Home Projects Help. Last reply by William j pulliam May 21.

Clogged drain problems 1 Reply

A pool of standing water is formed in my bathroom while bathing. I am facing problems with clogged drains in the bathroom and a foul smell is coming from it. It is difficult to enter the bathroom due to this. It was an embarrassing moment for me when one of my guests who used my bathroom came out of it by covering his nose. As my mother is not well, my sisters used to come to my home. They complained to me about the same.I don't want this to happen again. Not only that it is not a problem to…Continue

Started by Chris Carl in Building and Maintenance Issues. Last reply by Judy Juan May 17.

Sitka spruce for building?

so, I’ve lived here in Alaska for 42 years. I operate heavy equipment and also do carpentry. I do have a question. Has anyone here, used Sitka spruce, or know anyone who has for log home building?i recently bought some property tha has some nice 2nd growth, approx. 80 years old thatwould be perfect. I’ve used the lumber for years and love it. It doesn’t have the rot resistance of the cedars here, but I figured with big overhangs that probably wouldn’t be much of an issue.the trees haven’t seen…Continue

Started by Robert rowland in Building and Maintenance Issues Apr 2.

Removing Sikkens Cetol Film Forming Stain 12 Replies

I need to strip Sikkens Cetol Stain off one side of my house. It was last applied about 6 years ago. I have been letting it weather intentionally hoping, it would come off easier. The person who applied it originally did a poor job removing the previous stain by pressure washing. There are many spots where you can tell the old stain was left on, and severe felting in some spots which the stain has adhered to and dried very hard on.I have tested pressure washing in a small area, using a sodium…Continue

Started by Mike in All About Stains and Sealants. Last reply by Mike Mar 24.

Why Not Limewash for an Exterior Log Wall?

We built a log home in the panhandle of Florida 22 years ago from a Heritage Log Homes' kit. We have used oil based products recommended by various representatives in the log home industry over the years to protect the exterior of our log home. After living in our home for several years, the carpenter bees found our home and we have battled them yearly ever since using many different methods. For the first 2-3 years, we would call our exterminator who would spray the house down and in any…Continue

Started by Josh Adams in Building and Maintenance Issues Mar 18.

would you buy this? 1 Reply

Looking at this log cabin to buy as a primary residence and although I love the idea of one I know almost nothing about them.  This one seems solid inside, but the back concerns me with all those logs that aren't even.  Clearly this needs to be restained or whatever, but most log cabins I see are relatively smooth, but this one seems to be made of a lot of logs that aren't quite the same size and maybe shorter lengths.  This this OK?…Continue

Started by Leslie Stouffer in Building and Maintenance Issues. Last reply by CharisB Mar 6.