BENEFITS OF DRY WOOD

We use wood that Has 15% moisture content or less - guaranteed! No exceptions!

We use only dry wood for our homes. As can be seen in the graph above, unseasoned sapwood starts out at 120% - 173% moisture content. It does not begin shrinking until it hits 30% moisture content range. At 15% moisture content, it has shrunk to 1/2 of its theoretical maximum shrinkage. If your logs reach a final moisture content of 8% - 9% during the heating season, then minimal shrinkage will occur.

We use air-dried wood. The term “air drying” does not refer to leaving wood to dry in the air for a while. Air-dried means that the wood has been dried to a moisture content that is in equilibrium with its environment. In order to determine the moisture content of the wood, we use moisture meters. These are electrical instruments for determining the moisture content (MC) of wood.

Dry wood results in a very air-tight log home, free from air infiltration between logs. No caulking is required on the exterior or interior logs after the home is built. Dry wood is also lighter and most of our homes fit on one tractor-trailer without being over the legal limit. We ship dry wood. Keep it dry and you will have an air-tight home. Remember, we do not allow for shrinkage due to our use of dry wood. There is no need for thru-bolts or screw-jack systems to adjust for the shrinkage of logs over time.

Dry wood is stable wood, which means that the logs will not shrink or warp. The above pie chart shows heat loss from a typical building. Thirty-five percent of heat is lost from the walls. Due to log homes being so air-tight, they retain heat in the winter and stay cooler in the summer, resulting in a reduction in energy consumption and a smaller electric bill.