Engineered Logs
Logs in their natural state are beautiful. Nothing man made compares. They represent nature's artwork at its finest. The knots and the grain are unique to that log only, so no two logs are ever the same. But logs in their natural state are a fairly poor choice in building materials.
Why is that true?
The log was originally a tree trunk. As a tree trunk, its primary duty was to provide structure and support to the tree and serve as the main conduit for water and mineral nutrients going up from the root system and organic nutrients coming down from the leaves. When a tree is harvested, the trunk is used to make the log for your home. When it is harvested, it is saturated with water. As this water evaporates, the wood fiber shrinks around the heart of the tree. It is this shrinking that causes the checks and splits you see in natural timber log homes. Walls will settle and shrink as the logs used to build them dry out. Gaps will form between the stacked logs. Doors and windows that worked properly when the home was built are tight, sticking, or just plan stuck. The only way to prevent this is to not let the logs dry out, but unfortunately that is impossible. Drying can be slowed, but it cannot be stopped. It is a natural event.
Why our logs are better than traditional logs.
Our laminated and insulated logs are an engineered product. We start with the same tree, with the same natural beauty and characteristics. We saw the trunk into large slabs. These slabs are kiln dried to below 10% moisture content at their core. The moisture related shrinkage of the wood has been completed by us. This is a key point as you will hear many log home companies say their logs are kiln dried.
But dried to what?
It's the core moisture content of the log that determines the amount of future shrinkage that will occur. In the typical softwoods used for log homes; pine, cedar, hemlock, or fir the majority of the shrinking, checking, and splitting occurs as the moisture content falls below 16%. A log's surface moisture reading means little. To know the likelihood of future shrinking and splitting you must ask the question "What is the log dried to at the core?"
Hand picked perfection.
We take these kiln dried slabs and machine them to a smooth planed surface. These planks are inspected. Some wood planks cannot tolerate being dry and they check and split. We reject these planks for use in our logs. Only wood that has no insect damage, fungal stains, or physical defects is selected for lamination. We then take these hand chosen planks and laminate them together with a structural bonding resin under very high pressure.
This laminated log is:
1 -- Dry from the inside out.
2 -- Lighter in weight than a natural log still retaining a high percentage of water.
3 -- Stiffer and stronger than it's natural timber counterpart.
4 -- We can place high density insulation in the core of the laminated log. This will typically increase the log's r-value by 100%. This is not important if you believe energy costs are going to come down, but if you believe that energy costs will continue to climb, it is extremely significant.
The completed laminated or insulated log has the same appearance as a traditional log, but will not shrink and settle over time. Checks and splits are virtually eliminated. Annual maintenance on your log home is minimal. Live in your dream, don't work on it.
Get your dream home started now!
If you have questions please contact us.
Phone: 231-670-2886
E-mail: chris@greatlakeslaminators.com
If you would like to speak to home owners that chose the engineered log advantage, let us know and we'll provide you with their contact information. If you would like to visit some of these homes to see firsthand, we'll help you.