Looking for help finding a Log Home Kit provider

[AviatorDuck]

I am in the market to build a log home on a dream lakefront location in Deep East Texas. I am having trouble though finding vendors who make log homes out of Eastern Red Cedar. I have been looking at vendors like Southland and Katahdin, but neither offer Eastern Red Cedar as an option. Any leads on vendors like Southland or Katahdin that use Eastern Red Cedar would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers,
Jim

[donjuedo]

Welcome, Jim. As you learn more about log homes, you'll find several different approaches to building. Kit homes are generally made of logs milled into timber, losing a very large amount of thermal mass, and they are built with lots of shrinkage expected as the wood dries over the years. Accomodation has to be made in kit homes to allow extra space over doors and windows, and jacks have to be installed and adjusted periodically as shrinkage progresses. Experienced realtors can tell you log homes (from kits) turn into a great deal of maintenance, too.

This forum is centered on different design techniques, addressing the issues I just mentioned and many more. If you are interested in this style, take a look through the student gallery photos, and if you want real logs but without building it yourself, there is a forum member here (Ronnie RockClimber) who does these for a living. The rest of us have built, are building, or will build the home(s) ourselves (DIY).

[allen84]

You won't find any kit home builders here... But you've arrived at the right place to start your journey. I have a buddy that built a lake view home in Texas recently (not log, modern look). Which lake you planning to build on?

[lynncherl]

https://www.facebook.com/FeboSpiral/photos/a.487474134624335/3512340148804370/

[rckclmbr428]

I've built and worked on literally hundreds of log homes. The only eastern red cedar homes you'll find are all vertical logs, as eastern red cedar is a weak wood, and doesnt grow large enough to reliably make homes out of. Western red cedar yes, eastern no. But be prepared to open your wallet up for western cedar

[DoubleJRanch]

I've built and worked on literally hundreds of log homes. The only eastern red cedar homes you'll find are all vertical logs, as eastern red cedar is a weak wood, and doesnt grow large enough to reliably make homes out of. Western red cedar yes, eastern no. But be prepared to open your wallet up for western cedar

Make sure the wallet opens real wide and is well stocked.

The red cedar over here has lots of taper, large butt swells, but a nice center piece as a girder support log

[mudflap]

You won't find any kit home builders here... But you've arrived at the right place to start your journey. I have a buddy that built a lake view home in Texas recently (not log, modern look). Which lake you planning to build on?

On a Facebook log cabin group I'm on (not LHBA), I just saw a post about how much did people spend to finish their kit home "beyond the price of the kit", and most folks were saying "3 times". So if the kit was $80k, the finished home was $240k.

Compared to the $1k LHBA class, I guess the LHBA method is costing me 60 times the cost of the class!

I'm actually pretty happy about that, lol.

[thoner7]

Just build an ICF house instead.

[loghousenut]

The Kit House experience can be devastating. Google Kit house problem or Kit House Forum.

The problems are rampant and it is usually the owner that gets stomped.

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[thoner7]

Trying to get to page 2

[rckclmbr428]

Trying to get to page 2

Page 2 you say?

[allen84]

Page 2 you say?

Here we are!

[loghousenut]

This is page 2?

I've heard about it for years.

My Mother used to talk about it all the time.



Is that all there is?

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