Is Solar on Your Radar?

"Simply stated, if you are going to be paying an electric bill anyway, why not apply it to a system that you will own. With the average ROI on a system being 8-11 years in this area, by the time you pay the loan of, you will have made the “power” to “pay” the system off."

Read on this blog post, Is Solar on Your Radar?, for more information about solar power for your homes.

Joys of Log Home Living

This morning I was sitting at my desk, which faces a window overlooking our front yard, and movement caught my attention. And what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a magnificent male deer…this 60 second video shows a buck having brunch in our yard.

Tom Heatherington shares his joys of log home living. Check out his blog post.

Joys of Log Home Living

Common Log Home Maintenance Guide

Never pile firewood beside or around your home. Maintain the firewood with a distance of 24”- 36” away from log walls to avoid parasites in the firewood from crawling into the log walls.

Pay attention to the accumulated dirt and natural debris alongside the outer surface of your log. Get rid of dirt 24” beyond logs and shed debris.

Ensure that plants & shrubs aren't close to the log wall. If plants are too close, transfer the plant at least 2 feet away from the log wall. Cut the branches of the plant making it a minimum of 18” apart from log walls allowing good air movement amongst the walls and the plants.

Inspect outdoor water control systems like downspouts, gutters, sprinklers, etc. They are usually the source of destructive moisture conditions in the log walls. Get the required servicing.

Search for termite tubes underneath the house as well as in the base of the logs and check if there are small holes in the logs with sawdust (frays) on spaces due to dreary beetles. Call a pest control services and cure it with a borate solution.

Check for wasp nests, under eaves, log ends, and nooks & crannies in the log corners. Find carpenter bee open holes all over the trim and under eaves. Eliminate wasps using an insecticidal spray and take away the nests. Treat bees by using a powdered insecticide.

To learn more about log home maintenance, visit our website.

Log Home Maintenance During Fall

Fall is a wonderful a chance to perform a final assessment in the exterior of your home before you decide to get ready and savor the warm, dry and comfortable winter inside your home. The objective at this point is to clean, not burning the logs so be sure you apply a maximum of 500 psi and 15-20° power washer tip. After cleaning the log and made them dry, check the below mentioned areas. In this case, you will need a ladder, a hammer and an awl or other pointed tool.

NOTCHES AND CORNERS. Inspect the corners for any indications of capping, moisture damage and rot. Several roofing types really don't effectively protect corners from the weather and any open, uncovered horizontal wood surface can be the major nominee for rot problems.

WALLS. Curbs and fractures in logs are natural so don't be surprised. They in most cases don't cause any problems but once you see any up-facing curbs that could let water to sink into the log then seal them off with a caulking wax that suits the shade of your log. Varnishing is the effective way of protecting it to the climate change.

Visit log home directory for more tips about log home maintenance.