Log house

Log construction was the most common building technique in large regions of Sweden, Finland, Norway, the Baltic states and Russia, where straight and tall coniferous trees, such as pine and spruce, are readily available.

It was also widely used for vernacular buildings in Eastern Central Europe, the Alps, the Balkans and parts of Asia, where similar climatic conditions prevail.

[3] Settlers from northern Europe brought the craft of log cabin construction to North America in the early 17th century, where it was quickly adopted by other colonists and Native Americans.

They were factory built from sawn or milled logs, numbered and dismantled for transportation, and reassembled on the buyer's site.

As logs and timbers dry, the differential shrinkage (radial versus tangential) causes small cracks (known as "checks") to open slowly over time.

[5] The actual moisture content of "green" logs varies considerably with tree species, the season in which it was cut, and whether sapwood or heartwood is being measured.

[6] One type of air-dried log is "dead standing," which refers to trees which have died from natural causes (bug kill, virus, fire etc.)

If the logs are to be dried to equilibrium with the local climate the process may take several years, depending on the location and size of the timbers.

In some environments, the logs must be kept under some type of roof or cover to reduce the impact of rain storms on the drying process.

It is uncertain whether this process is advantageous; it depends on many factors such as local climate, wood species, its size, and the location of the log structure.

Green timber is placed inside a large oven, where heat removes moisture from them; however, they can suffer severe checking and cracking if the kiln controls are not properly monitored during the drying process.

Some mills are capable of joining together small timbers by using a combination of face and edge gluing and a process known as finger- jointing.

A high degree of craftsmanship is required for success in this method, and the resulting tight fit of naturally-shaped logs have aesthetic appeal.

Log houses which settle require slip joints over all window and door openings, adjustable jacks under vertical elements (such as columns and staircases) which must periodically be adjusted as the building settles, allowances in plumbing, wiring, and ducting runs, and fasteners for the walls themselves to prevent uplift.