Extending a log home

[weasy]

We have seen a log home that we may offer on but we would want to extend it. How easy are log homes to extend? We would want to extend down the whole length of the house and go out by about 2 metres.

Cheers
Weasy :D

[rreidnauer]

Unfortunately, that depends a lot on what you are calling a log home. Is it milled lumber like a kithome? Or hand scribed logs perhaps? Then there is butt and pass, as taught here at LHBA. Each being different. Are you talking about the addition being conventional construction, or a continuance of the log home? Butt and pass is pretty easy to add on to, if you are talking about adding logs. Though, it's hard to start directly from a corner. Scribed logs will have it's own set of problems. I'm not sure how you could scribe and notch in logs to an extisting structure, without some real serious work. Milled timber (note, we don't call them logs anymore) kithomes could be one of the hardest to add onto, if you want to integrate more timbers. The problem will be matching up milled timbers which have shrunk down over the years, with new timbers of slightly different dimension. It doesn't sound like a 1/16" or an 1/8" off would be a problem, until you get 16 courses up, trimming each timber to fit into the old wall, and now find you are a full inch or two off. Then later down the road, the new timbers shrink and cause gaps. The other option is to just stick them in, and you end up with gaps (in the old wall) right away, but they might shrink down to fit nicely, but maybe not.

Conventional construction can be tied into an existing kithome or loghome pretty easy. The roof can be one of the hardest obstacles, depending on the situation. If you are just extending the existing roof line, no problem. If you are starting a new roofline from the existing log wall, it takes some thinking, but is still fairly easy as long as it's pitched away from the logs. Placing a roof as if the existing log wall is to become the gable end can be a real problem, as it's almost impossible to properly flash the roof to the logs. I don't envy anyone trying to attempt this.

If you supply more details of what you have, and what you wish to do, you should get some more specific answers.

[msjones]

Depending on the situation, I guess you could build a second log structure close to the existing one, say within 6-8 feet, and then connect them by a framed breezway. That way both structures could have their own roof. The breezway then could act as your entranceway and you would have one "wing" for living and the other "wing" for sleeping.

[Kola]

I like msjones's idea. 8)

[weasy]

I love that idea too but, as it's a terraced/sloping block there would not be enough room...

The agent was telling us that the house had been designed so that it could be extended as the roof extends out by about 2 metres on either side of the house and is supported by poles at the externallimit of the roof. She reckoned it would be easy but she's an agent not a builder and I don't necessarily believe her. I think we'll try and find out a little more about the construction and post more about it.

Thanks for your replies so far.

Weasy

[weasy]

Here's a link to the property details if anyone can make anything of the pictures.

http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin/rsearch?a=o&id=103810250&f=10&p=10&t=res&ty=&fmt=&header=&c=63566103&s=sa&tm=1173056545

Weasy

[msjones]

As rreidnauer suggested, more information is needed. Perhaps exterior pictures? Where does the block slope, etc?

[rreidnauer]

Nice place. Looks like you do got yourself some terrain issues there! :D

By the looks of this picture (http://www.realestate.com.au/objects/props/0250/103810250cl1171867321.jpg) it appears to be of kithome type construction. (it almost appears to be modular) And the right portion of this picture (http://www.realestate.com.au/objects/props/0250/103810250kl1171867329.jpg) I assume is where you wish to extend the home into.

Whomever built that place was wise to have those large overhangs. Had there not been the additional overhang, I would be talking you out of your notion. Keep in mind, that the wall appears to me, to be weight bearing, so just moving it out won't be possible. With a lot of work, girders could be set, which could allow most of the wall to be moved/removed. I'm still not sure if you'd want to replicate the existing building method, or add on with a more conventional or different construction style, but I was thinking that if you were to continue with stacked timbers, that a vertical transition post between the old and the new may alleviate some of the matching up issues.

[weasy]

Thanks Rod

Yeah, forgot to say that we'd want to extend with the existing building style and that is where we'd want to extend. The agent reckoned it was built with the overhang so that it could be extended at some point. Sounds a lot of work as yes, I guess the existing wall is load bearing. I would have guessed (not knowing lots about log homes) that it is kit home - having now looked into other methods of real log home construction.

It's a lovely place alright but if kit home construction isn't great and extending will be very costly then I'm not sure it will be right for us. We're not so worried about the sloping block as that's pretty regular around here in Adelaide.

I'll show my hubby your replies and see if we think it's worth taking more external shots and maybe getting a builder or someone to take a look.

Thanks for your help so far :)

weasy