There seems to be a misconception that log home finishing can not or should not be preformed during the winter months. That is true only to the extent that the same thing is true for the summer months.

Like a lot of things….

Moderation is the key.

Most people think during the spring and summer months seems to be the ideal time to apply stains and sealers. Thats fine. However….most manufactures require that the product not be applied to any surface usually above 90 degrees. (This number may change depending on the company.)

  The key word is surface.

The ambient temperature can be 75 to 85 degrees or even cooler, but the surface of the logs in direct sunlight can be substantially higher. Far above the manufacture’s requirments. The extreme heat can cause the stain to evaporate quickly causing improper penetration into the wood. Also, the direct sunlight can cause “flashing.” This occurs when the carrier of the oils and pigment dry too fast leaving a film or coating on top of the wood instead of soaking into the wood.  So on the hotter summer days, care must be taken when appling the finish. You may have to work on the shady side of the log home, or in the “cool” of the day to avoid the these problems. This holds true with latex (water based) stains as well.

On the other hand….

Most stain/sealer manufactures require the product be applied on average between 45 and 85 degrees. This number also varies depending on the manufacture. As with the extreme heat…extreme cold has its problems. The most obvious being freezing. This will definatly affect latex (water based) stains. Oil stains will not freeze (at least in the southeast) but they will thicken up. Also, in very cold weather it takes longer for the stain to absorb. This can be looked at in two ways. The cold will take the finish longer to dry making it more susceptible to rain . On the other hand, slower dry times will allow the oils to penetrate more deeply.. So it’s a trade off. The best time to apply any finish is when some common sense is applied first. For more information click here.

This Log Home Restoration required media  blasting  removal of a fairly new coat of solid latex paint. The “hot pink” had to go!  Being a fresh coat, it was harder to remove than a finish several years old.  Crushed glass was used to “cut ” the thick coat.

After a chlorine wash to kill any mold and mildew, a coarse sanding will smooth the rough profile caused by the media blasting. Only a light sanding with coarse paper is required. Sanding too smooth will prevent a penetrating stain from absorbing properly.

Log Home Restoration often requires repairing failing caulk. As seen in this picture, the caulking has separated. Usually this is caused by not using “backer rod” in the joint before applying the caulk. Backer rod acts as a filler to keep from filling the entire check (or crack) with caulking. But it’s main purpose is to keep the caulking from adhering to the back of the check.

The caulking needs only to adhere to the top and bottom of the check. In this way it has the ability to streach in two directions, up and down. If the caulk is adhered to the top, bottom and the back of the check, the elongation is greatly demished causing the caulk to tear loose and fail.                                                                                                  

In this picture, the backer rod has been installed, the caulking applied and properly tooled into the check joint. Neat and clean joints make it easy to stain and blend the caulk into the wood. This properly applied caulking will last for several years to come. But…log homes require constant inspections to keep up with new checks as well as older checks that may need to be recaulked. If inspections are preformed bi-anually and caulking issuses addressed early on, the maintenance can be kept at a manageable level. If you wait too long, maintenance issuses can become overwhelming making your log home a burden rather than an exciting log home experence.     

 Make a maintenance “checklist” and and use it. Make notes of anything unusual and keep an eye on it. The next time you do your inspection go back and check to see if anything has changed or gotten worse. Make repairs as needed and don’t put it off. It don’t take long for insects or wood rot to do major damage. It is much eaiser to make repairs early on than to wait until a log has to be replaced.

On our You Tube channel are two new media blasting videos of  the interior of a newly constructed log home. The logs were left unprotected  for two years before they were finally erected. Weathered wood, clay and mildew had to be removed so we did a light media blast to remove a minute layer of wood from the logs. We then sanded with #40 grit sand paper to smooth the profile. Finally, two interior finish coats were applied by brush. Check them out at: www.youtube.com/taskmasters3