.
We
love the outdoors - we hunt, fish, horseback ride, enjoy campfires, gathering
pinon nuts, sledding in the winter and the list goes on. The area we most
frequently drove to for recreation was barely an hour from our home in
the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We finally decided it was time to look for
some property up there. We found a five-acre parcel that we liked and bought
it with the dream of someday constructing a log home. The property is on
the Kern Plateau at 6300-ft elevation. It is walking distance to the South
Fork Kern River and there are many trails to ride our horses on. In fact,
we have immediate access to the well known and recently completed Pacific
Crest Trail which begins in Mexico and ends in Canada.
After buying our mountain property we knew it would be awhile before we
could build a log home so we proceeded to make the property comfortable.
Then we started our search for a log home company. Getting information
on log homes a few years ago wasn't as easy as it is today. Nevertheless,
we were successful in accumulating quite a bit of information, lots of
floor plans, and we became quite familiar with the confusing world of log
home packages. We learned about the various kinds of logs, too, air dried
and standing dead. We learned about settling and constructing the log homes
to allow for it. We learned about larvae and bugs in the logs and about
the pitch or sap that was in them. None of those features appealed to us.
Because we were focusing more on companies in the western region we did
not research eastern companies. We felt the cost of shipping would be prohibitive.
Not surprisingly, we became discouraged.
We started exploring other
alternatives and had plans drawn up for a stick built home. After
getting back the figures on the cost of the lumber and doing an estimate
on the siding, insulation, plastic wrap, drywall, etc., it seemed to us
we could build a log home for nearly the same amount of money, maybe a
little more, but we would have what we wanted. We went back to our original
plan, to build a log home.
We started searching again - on the Internet and we included eastern companies.
That is when we found Kuhns Bros. and came across the term 'kiln dried
logs'. We could not believe there was a way for a company to kiln dry all
the logs that are needed to build several log homes, all at one time. That
takes big buildings, sophisticated equipment, and a lot of real estate.
Lumber companies have kiln dried boards for construction for years but
logs? We learned we wouldn't have to allow for shrinkage or settling (the
logs are kiln dried to an average of 15%), the larvae and bugs are killed
in the process and the pitch/sap is set or crystallizes, which means it
doesn't seep out of the logs. And they had a 'No-Shop' package. For the
first time we were able to see what was NOT included. We were sold.
We studied the Kuhns Bros. catalog; found the exterior we had always wanted
and placed our floor plans inside. If the company would help us we figured
it would work. We contacted a representative, and visited their model home.
We loved what we saw. Our representative sent our sketch and the Estimate/Quote
form to Kuhns Bros. We waited nervously for the results. A few days later
we had our estimate. It looked great. (And, it included shipping.) We signed
up for our preliminary plans. In a short while we received them for review
and made some changes. One of our changes wouldn't work. They got back
to our representative right away. They explained the problem and even suggested
some options. Of course, we went with one of the options. They were wonderful.
We are so pleased with the
experience we have had with Kuhns Bros. and the quality of their log homes
that we made the decision to be Kuhns Bros., Incorporated sales representatives.
They took us into their family, gave us extensive training and assured
us they are available for anything we may need. They have been true to
their word. Kuhns Bros is a wonderful company.
We
love the outdoors - we hunt, fish, horseback ride, enjoy campfires, gathering
pinon nuts, sledding in the winter and the list goes on. The area we most
frequently drove to for recreation was barely an hour from our home in
the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We finally decided it was time to look for
some property up there. We found a five-acre parcel that we liked and bought
it with the dream of someday constructing a log home. The property is on
the Kern Plateau at 6300-ft elevation. It is walking distance to the South
Fork Kern River and there are many trails to ride our horses on. In fact,
we have immediate access to the well known and recently completed Pacific
Crest Trail which begins in Mexico and ends in Canada.
After buying our mountain property we knew it would be awhile before we
could build a log home so we proceeded to make the property comfortable.
Then we started our search for a log home company. Getting information
on log homes a few years ago wasn't as easy as it is today. Nevertheless,
we were successful in accumulating quite a bit of information, lots of
floor plans, and we became quite familiar with the confusing world of log
home packages. We learned about the various kinds of logs, too, air dried
and standing dead. We learned about settling and constructing the log homes
to allow for it. We learned about larvae and bugs in the logs and about
the pitch or sap that was in them. None of those features appealed to us.
Because we were focusing more on companies in the western region we did
not research eastern companies. We felt the cost of shipping would be prohibitive.
Not surprisingly, we became discouraged.
We started searching again - on the Internet and we included eastern companies.
That is when we found Kuhns Bros. and came across the term 'kiln dried
logs'. We could not believe there was a way for a company to kiln dry all
the logs that are needed to build several log homes, all at one time. That
takes big buildings, sophisticated equipment, and a lot of real estate.
Lumber companies have kiln dried boards for construction for years but
logs? We learned we wouldn't have to allow for shrinkage or settling (the
logs are kiln dried to an average of 15%), the larvae and bugs are killed
in the process and the pitch/sap is set or crystallizes, which means it
doesn't seep out of the logs. And they had a 'No-Shop' package. For the
first time we were able to see what was NOT included. We were sold.
We studied the Kuhns Bros. catalog; found the exterior we had always wanted
and placed our floor plans inside. If the company would help us we figured
it would work. We contacted a representative, and visited their model home.
We loved what we saw. Our representative sent our sketch and the Estimate/Quote
form to Kuhns Bros. We waited nervously for the results. A few days later
we had our estimate. It looked great. (And, it included shipping.) We signed
up for our preliminary plans. In a short while we received them for review
and made some changes. One of our changes wouldn't work. They got back
to our representative right away. They explained the problem and even suggested
some options. Of course, we went with one of the options. They were wonderful.