Featured Log Home Handcrafter
Heartwood Log Homes Ltd.
To us, working with logs
is a very "honest" way to build. When logs are joined to form the walls
of a house, there is no way to cheat on quality. The initial selection
of trees, the peeling of the bark, the
The relationship we establish with our clients is another source of pride for us. We build for people who share our affinity for natural wood. Therefore, it is easy to work together on the design and construction of their homes. Friendships are often created along with the houses.
In a Heartwood home, only the logs themselves are visible - there is no chinking or caulking necessary. We use the "scribed-fit" technique: Each log is marked along its entire length to conform to the irregularities of the log below. The intervening wood is removed using hand-held tools.
The resulting lateral groove
and notches are sealed using Emseal, an expanding foam gasket tape placed
on a specially cut lip inside the joints. Natural sheep's wool is used
as a further sealant at window and door openings and in the notches. At
one time, it was the industry standard to use fibreglass insulation as
the only sealant between the logs. Since we started to use Emseal, we have
been confident enough to provide a three-year warranty against air and
water infiltration.
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Heartwood
has been building log homes for over 16 years. The three of us, Rick McMahon,
Roger Ellis and Michael Coyle had collaborated on previous log building
projects, and in 1984 we joined forces permanently in Heartwood Log Homes
Ltd. Since then, we have worked together on dozens of log homes, from Goose
Bay, Labrador to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. From the initial
design phase, through the fitting of the logs, to the delivery of the finished
product, all our work is completed or supervised by us: the owners of the
company.
scribing,
the cutting, and finally the cleaning and finishing of the logs; all these
things are important to the construction of a quality log home. All work
must be done with care and pride, for mistakes cannot be hidden under a
layer of gypsum board. This level of craftsmanship is a challenge that
we can't resist.
Whatever
stage you are at in the planning of your log home, now is a good time to
send us your ideas. We can give you a detailed estimate and make suggestions
as to how to best adapt your plan to log construction. We provide this
service for free. After receiving the initial estimate, you may want to
have us complete your plan before committing to a final agreement, or you
may want the cost of the plan and engineering included in the logwork price.
