Forest Home

Wood - is the oldest building material given to us by nature. Its main advantage is environmental cleanliness (environmental). Wood breathes, the humidity inside the house are always at an optimum level.  From the wooden walls and blowing housewifely calm, they protect from frost in winter and in summer from the heat.  Of wood in Russia, built all the temples, castles, princes and knights of mansions, residential houses, peasant houses and farm buildings. 

Because of limited carpentry tools wherever possible, using logs and timbers and boards are made with an ax and wedges used only where they can not be replaced.  The walls are composed of horizontally stacked one on another log, united among themselves by means of grooves, is taken out of the surface of each timber and connected by the corners with logs of other walls vrubkami, usually with a remainder.  Vrubka without a trace, "in the leg," was known, but rarely used.  Roofing made from planks or plowshares - boards who have had similar roofing tesu cut-ends - the triangular, rounded or "crenate".

Until the twentieth century, the construction was only chopped wood, not sawn, but saw in Russia was known in antiquity. It is, however, has not received wide distribution, for a long time noticed that the sawn timber and board easier to absorb moisture, swell and rot faster.. A log-log axes of strokes at the ends become clogged, as it were.. Masters saw to it that aides hammered the ax in the log: it could shorten the life of the structure of the future. Particular attention is Russian builders gave seasonal date and time logging.

Lumber harvested in the winter, including a spring in March, which completes the climatic conditions of winter. Auspiciousness of this period due to the cessation of sap flow in the tree and its greatest dryness. A large role in harsh environments while maintaining the heat in the house served as a heater. Наибольшее распространение получил мох. The most popular moss. Moss harvested by hand, rakes, pitchforks.. Dry moss crumble and not usable.

Solidly built wooden house - not only a prestigious acquisition, which will serve you for decades, but also an ideal place for business and leisure.  
. Log houses of good quality and durability of superior panel and frame houses. In the whole logs preserved the most important - the outer layer, the older and thicker stems, from which the crowns are made log home, the longer they do not rot. For the manufacture of log cabins, using only high quality wood that is harvested in the winter season, which is an important factor. Winter forest land summer. In winter, the wood a little water, resulting in a wood handle and easier to dry faster and less prone to shrinkage, warping and decay.

Forest Home

To begin construction of logging. Everyone who has decided to build a house, I want him to long standing and well served. Hardly anyone wants every year to build a new house: the time a lot of trouble a lot of money too much. There is no peace. Traditional material for walls of low buildings is a tree. Wood as a material has many important advantages.. It is easily worked and susceptible to finish.

In terms of the ratio of the density and strength of wood can be compared with metals. The walls of the house should be durable, have good sound-proofing qualities, have, perhaps, less weight, provide a constant indoor temperature required for the building. Its disadvantages are the only sedimentary deformation in the first 1.5-2 years and a low fire. Currently, however, with both deficiencies can be overcome. To improve the fire resistance using special equipment, which is impregnated wood. This allows a greater fire resistance to such an extent that even at high temperatures, the tree will smolder, not burn.

Most comfortable for the sanitary-hygienic requirements (including having low thermal conductivity) are cobbled and chopped walls of coniferous trees. Coniferous trees are more suitable than hardwood for the reason that they have a more regular shape of the trunk and less prone to decay. The main parameters that determine the longevity of the tree are: strength, density, resistance to cracking, rot resistance, wear resistance, low knotty, low hardness, high twit and ease.

 
The strength of wood is determined by the species of wood, density, moisture content, presence of defects. Humidity is the free and bound. Feature of the free moisture is that it evaporates from the wood very easily. To test this, it suffices to recall that in the rain soaked wood dries fairly quickly, within a few hours. Associated moisture, on the contrary, evaporates slowly, and in order to dry the wood, without resorting to the help of special technology, can take several years. As the number of bound moisture resistance timber becomes smaller. When moisture enters the limit of water absorption (30%), moisture ceases to have effect on the strength of wood.

In addition, the practical value of the difference between free and bound moisture is that the evaporation first changing only the severity of the tree, and second the evaporation volume changes, ie, shrinkage occurs. Reducing the amount of wood in it dries differently in different directions. At a thickness greater than the length. When drying wood moisture evaporates evenly. First, moisture evaporates from the outer layers, and then from the interior.This is not a uniform evaporation of moisture causes the wood that occurs internal tension, pulling her to the surface and compressing the inside, resulting in a tree may appear cracked. With the density and moisture content of wood is closely linked its ability to hold a metal mount. The greater the density of wood, the higher the resistance pulling a nail or screw. Humidity makes driving nails into wood.

 Malousyhayuschie - spruce, fir, cedar, white poplar, pine, etc.  
Sredneusyhayuschie - oak, elm, beech, aspen, ash, black poplar, small-leaved lime, etc.  
Silnousyhayuschie - Tara maple, hornbeam, larch and birch.  
Hardness - the ability of wood to resist the penetration of solids. According to the degree of hardness timbers can be divided into 3 groups:  
Soft - pine, fir, cedar, fir, aspen, linden, alder, and poplar.  
Solid - beech, birch, elm, larch, ash, elm, elm, maple, apple.  
It is very hard - hornbeam, dogwood, boxwood, locust, birch.  
The wear resistance of wood - is its ability to resist destruction in the process of friction. Here there is a pattern: the greater hardness and density of wood, the less wear.  
Decay is the result of activity of different fungi that destroy wood, and in most cases make it unfit for work.  
Knotty - there was a case of branches (knots) alive or dead during growth. Knotty structure violates the uniformity of the wood, reducing its strength, difficulties in processing.  
Lightness - the property of the wood, which is advantageous in the construction in combination with other qualities.

The basis of home

Foundation - is one of the most important elements of the house.. Construction of any building always starts with him. Depending on the soil properties, the values ​​of loads on the foundation of the structure and sensitivity to changes in the base, and is determined by the type of foundation.. There are several types of foundation: small-band deep foundations, ribbon deep foundation and pier foundation.

Tape small-deep foundations - the best option for log cabins and houses of timber. Depth of the basement 50 - 70 cm This type of foundation you can use to wooden structures, and small stone houses, provided that the foundation is laid for a weakly heaving soils, or surface layer provides insulation of soil around the foundation, in order to reduce the depth of freezing.

Tape deep foundation - mainly used for strip foundations of houses with heavy walls, ceilings or heavy, and when you plan an underground room. Depth of laying the foundation to 20-30 cm below the freezing depth of soil.

This type of foundation is the most expensive because of the substantial costs of the material. Pier foundation - the most economical type of foundation. Pier foundation erected mainly by the lungs and wood frame buildings, verandas or as supports for the porch. The pillars are laid at a depth of soil freezing in all corners, intersections of walls and other places loaded. Step columns 1.5 - 2 m. The prerequisite for producing columnar base, are measures to protect the pillars of the extrusion forces of lateral grip.

The main defect of the foundations - the uneven subsidence. Externally this is expressed in the manifestation of cracks of various shapes and in different directions as to the very foundation and the walls of the house, various distortions of the house.Depending on the design of the house and type of foundation, the causes of defects may be: wrong chosen depth of the foundation. Correct this defect is very difficult and sometimes impossible to do. If the sagging slightly, you can make podsypku soil around the perimeter of the foundation, thereby increasing the depth of burial. This defect is typical for buildings with heavy walls (brick, concrete).

 
Another defect - the rise of groundwater. It is difficult to predict, but can be corrected by arranging a drainage system or to plant these varieties of plants that effectively remove moisture from the soil. Also - the uneven load on the foundation of the structure. For example, when the main house is much heavier than the verandah. If the house is already built, to avoid further deformation, it is necessary to divide the foundations of the veranda and the house. To do this, the foundations should be routed between two layers of roofing felt or boards impregnated with bitumen. Lack of strength of materials for the foundation, or loss of strength over time - is another kind of defect.In this case requires a major overhaul, replacement of the foundation of a new one. To achieve this we need to unload old foundations by moving the entire foundation of the temporary supports.  

Walls

The log walls are composed of rows of logs stacked horizontally. One row of logs along the perimeter is called the crown, and all together form a frame. Each timber has a slot through which tight coupling of the log. For thermal insulation in the slots of logs lay insulated material. Originally framework does not collect on the foundation and without tabs insulating materials. In this state, he should stand for about 6 months to fully dry and precipitation. Then the frame dismantled, pre-numbered log, and finally set on the foundation. The walls are cut two ways - by cutting with the remainder ("the cup") and cutting without a trace ("in the paw").

Cutting "the cup" is used only during the construction of round logs, this method is less efficient, since the edge of the cup before the end of the beam leaving about 30 cm, two of the remainder is lost about half a meter. Felling "in the paw" is more economical, because timber at the corner does not come out. Corner joints are more durable. This method can be used for cutting of any timber - protesannogo or not. The walls of the timber are collected in the same way as the log. The thickness of the timber depends on the functions of the house. Summer cottages sufficient width of 10-15 cm for the home, which will be used for permanent residency is required timber thickness of more than 20 cm between the beams and insulation material is laid. And in general, raise the walls of the boards a little easier than from logs. You can perform the cladding of the walls, but it should be done only after complete precipitation at home. For skin use only dry lumber (boards), they connect as closely as possible with each other, so as not to wind blew, did not get moisture and retain heat better. Boards are placed horizontally, vertically or at an angle so as to obtain a picture.

It is recommended to erect frame parts, each of which has a height of a man. This method is called the wheel-house, followed by relaying. It lies in the fact that parts of a log house on the ground after making disassembled and passed on to the main frame. Relocation of all allow you to work with an ax to produce standing on the ground, and the outer timber is not needed.In this case, the relocation of two, since this is the best option for the novice builder. Do not be confused by the additional time required for disassembly and assembly of rims. They more than offset by the convenience and safety of work for a well-equipped and comfortable workplace - guarantee of high productivity.

Adjacent to the root of the tree trunk is called the butt. Starting chop house, you should know that there are not perfectly smooth logs. Any timber has sbezhestostyu, ie, decreases in diameter from the butt to the top. Therefore, when laying the logs on each other to rotate the butt end and top.

When you build a log house, in order to crown a tightly adjoined to another, along the timber is selected slot. Another commonly produced in the processing operation is the production of timber edging. End of the log, stesanny with two parallel sides, called a "moron", formed by this plane - cheeks, and untreated, a convex surface - wane. The main structural elements of the carcass, officials locking connection logs, are the "foot" and "dovetail." For additional fastening logs in using the connection dowel crowns - pocket, and the pillars and rafters securely set with thorns.

 Roof

There are several options how to make the roof of the house - lean-to, gable, hip, hip. Gable roofs are most often used in the construction of individual houses. It is easy to manufacture and reliable. You can make a roof, if you plan to use the attic as living space. Any roof includes the following elements: the rafters (support structure), sheathing, roofing. Rafters can be tilted and hanging. Sloping rafters without additional support to cover the flight of 6-6.5 m. The rafters rest on the upper crown of the walls or support beams. If you want to block a large span without intermediate supports, use the hanging rafters. After installing the trusses go to laying flooring and paneling Extrusion gable overhang. Next to the supporting structure, attach sheathing of planks and beams. What will the crate (continuous or not) depends on what kind of roofing material you choose for the roof.

Tile lasts a long time, but it's very heavy stuff. It should be chosen to house their permanent residence, rather than summer cottages. For it requires strong rafters and sheathing. Slate roof weighs less, but the life she had no more than 20 years. When laying the inlet size of one sheet of slate on the other must be equal to the value of one "wave". There are 2 types of installation: 1 - when the longitudinal edges do not match, 2 - overlapping longitudinal edges by a straight line.

You can make a deck of steel sheet - it's the easiest of roofing materials. But the steel sheets can be laid with a continuous layer, as unventilated interior side of the sheet will rust. Usually laid more than one sheet, and two or three, interconnected. Go to the crate, they are fastened by means of special steel bars - capping, which are placed at a distance of 130-150 cm and located in the middle of the sheet and places will close.

To water during rain or snow melt did not flow down the walls, make cornices, gutters and downspouts.   

Winter log

Not known to many that the best log cabins - cabins, made in winter, ie, of the winter forest. This is due to the state of the wood felled in the winter.  
Frame made out of the winter forest has several advantages, in particular, the log due to slow drying is less susceptible to fracture, and given the current trend to a lack of finishing inside the log - this is essential. Frame to put a time in winter, as the logs almost turn blue, but also reduces the possibility of contamination of wood decaying fungi. By the way, for the prevention of blue, the logs are treated with antiseptics. If you really want to buy a winter timber harvesting, the experts recommend to place the order to build a house in February.

The calculation is simple - from November to February from the stores selected summer and spring harvesting, therefore, starting in February, the market has been going on a winter forest. Another controversial question is what framework to choose - or hand-cutting of logs? The unequivocal answer no one can. Of course, hand-cutting - is a long tradition, this gentle treatment of wood, a beautiful home that will not lose their appearance for many decades. It's all true, but! —- Provided that all work performed by highly skilled craftsmen. A lot of you will find these now? That's done at home workaholic who often work together and drink. And in order to control them, so it's very necessary to know the intricacies of technology, especially the tree, that's just not realistic.

 Otsilindrovannoy timber

This bar gets all the benefits of the material from which made: wood - a natural eco-friendly living material with unique properties to reproduce and maintain the microclimate. After special processing frame of logs is more durable and strong. The cost of a log house made of logs lower compared to the cost of a brick house, and less time installing and building log homes. Round logs less deformed in the process of aging and usually do not require finishing. Buildings constructed of wood and organic are more attractive in an outdoor setting. It is also possible to build a house according to individual needs.  
 

The modern technology of drying timber can significantly reduce the period of shrinkage log of logs. Proven technology for manufacturing and processing of logs accelerates the assembly of houses and reduce construction costs. Opportunity over time to change the layout of the house with minimal effort.

But remember: felling of logs should be protected from fire, discoloration, mold, mildew and drevotochtsev, not to mention the fact that a log is important to keep in transit. The quality and "health" of the wood affect the wood moisture content and humidity of the ambient air.

Failure to comply with the conditions of storage, transportation and operation leads to damage of both raw and finished material, to a deterioration in its appearance, the lower the grade and reduced service life of wooden structures. In addition to the temperature conditions in the state log of logs affected by fungi, parasites. Among the fungi occur as a relatively harmless species of stains, do not cause damage to the material, but changing its color, and dangerous activity that causes structural changes in the wood, making it unfit for use. Favorable conditions for development of fungi are certain moisture content (20-55%), air temperature over five and air humidity 80-95%. By reducing the humidity of fungi gradually die off.

Insects and their larvae - also harmful logs. For many insects, wood is both a home and food. Typically, damage to timber by insects should it be defeated by fungi, mold and rot. In accordance with the damage inflicted wood, emit several types of wormholes (superficial, deep, penetrating, and so on). Of all the developmental stages of the insect larva is very dangerous because it is the eater of wood. Particularly dangerous pests are beetles, wood drevogryzy, beetles and termites drevotochtsy.

The problem of protecting blockhouse of logs from fungi and insects need to be addressed in conjunction with measures of protection against moisture and adverse temperature conditions. There is expert advice to follow that can greatly extend the life of a log house made of logs:

Since the wood needs to access the air, preferably once a month in dry weather, ventilate the house and its foundation. Necessary to ensure the withdrawal of snow and water from the roof (installation of gutters and downpipes.) When designing a log house made of logs, be sure to leave space around the house for the blind area of ​​concrete width of at least 1 meter. In the underground house to make concrete preparations.

Use to protect the log of logs special preparations. Treatment with antiseptic (a drug designed to protect homes from mold, mildew and insects) in general is an excellent prevention of decay (especially true for parts of the house, not made of dry wood). After construction of the wall of the house to process water-and fire retardant chemicals. All support related to the main structure shall be fitted with devices allowing squander support together with the basic framework.

Houses of glued timber  
Houses of glued timber for consumer properties significantly superior to other wooden houses. Glued laminated timber is made by sticking flat layers of dried wood.Due to this house from glued beams acquire a number of unique properties: due to a combination of tree species in the layers, laminated board combines the properties of excellent thermal insulation, resistance to environmental, fire protection properties, due to the special profile of timber, glued beam houses do not require additional insulation , does not require interior home as laminated veneer lumber looks great, period of construction of houses from glued beams is much less than other types of wooden houses, as the technology of laminated veneer lumber involves using only dry wood, so do not wait for the shrinkage of the house.. Price of a house of laminated veneer lumber exceeds the price of other types of wooden houses, but quality always finds a buyer.

The editors would like to thank the company "chopped Mighty House" for the materials used.