Subject: Rotting Logs
Date: Mon, 07 Jun 1999

We are looking at buying a pre-existing log home. It is approximately 15 years old and is everything we want, can you hear the but coming here? Due to a lack of eaves on the gable ends coupled with a lack of gutters there are quite a few places where there are rotting logs. We are willing to do repairs ourselves to some degree (my husband has built houses for 20 years) but feel a little out of our element when addressing log construction. This house does have a traditional stick built wall inside the log construction but we have been told the logs carry most of the load. We have extra logs on site as there is a workshop that must come down. Do you have any suggestions? One of the places where there is rot is in a corner where you can see the rain ran down and that is a spot where I will call in a contractor as I am afraid it will require jacking up the corner. We are getting a real "deal" on the house but want to be sure it can be fixed before we go ahead. A "deal"! is no good if it does you in!

Thanks for any help,

Pam D.

Well, Pam. about the only good thing about rot is that it's a slow process. Repair by using epoxy products is something you can do section by section, year after year. It's not cheap, but a whole lot cheaper than replacing logs. You can order what you need as you go.

In each log you will need to determine what kind of repair is needed. Is there enough left inside the log so that an infusion of CPES (Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer) will solve the problem, or is the inside so hollow that you need to cut away the face and replace the interior with new CPES-saturated wood? Drilling into the log is the easiest way to determine this. The actual process, either way, is laid out on our website.

The logs you have available might well be useful. They can be cut to use as fillers, or short sections cut out for replacement.

It's a tedious process, but one that can be done slowly and in good weather. Logs that have been repaired with our products are rot-proof after the repair is finished.

If you get into the repairs, you can contact us at any time for help. You can send pictures if you wish. We'll follow you through the whole process and give you all the help and recommendations that we can.

Doc