There are some log home maintenance chores you can do yourself, like caulking cracks in your logs. For other tasks, we recommend you leave them to the experts. That is where we come in. But there are also things that the homeowners can do to ensure that their logs stay “healthy”.
Logs naturally do develop some cracks or checks. As wood dries, differences in surface tension and moisture gradients between the inner and outer parts of the logs cause checks. This is part of the charm of the log home.
These cracks can face up or down, depending on where they are on a log. Logs with cracks that face upward can be susceptible to rot because they allow the water to travel deep into the logs, where rot starts. The exterior areas of logs usually dry out after a rain because of wind and sun, but the interior areas can remain wet longer. When this happens, they can reach the right moisture level for rot fungi to grow.
Here are the three criteria we generally use when determining if it is necessary to caulk checks on log homes:
If all these criteria are met, then the check needs to be filled.
Proper log home maintenance is your best insurance against needing more costly repairs down the road.
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