Hi everyone, just starting out....

[Thelognoob]

hi everyone

Happy to have found this site !! I work in the oil patch here in Canada and ended up staying at a beautiful wood cabin during my hitch.

It got me thinking how beautiful log homes are, I've never been inside one. That being said, I am a beginner hobby type woodworker, but have access to great tools.

I'd loooove to learn how to build and am looking for someone to point out where to start. Can you save alot of money compared to typical houses of today by building yourself?

Looking fwd to being a part of this site!!

Thelognoob

[mlr1968]

Attended Class March 25th/26th of 2006.
Yes, you can save a lot of money by doing it yourself, but your milage may vary. If you get the most expensive wood delivered from the most far flung locations, and have the most expensive roof and windows and doors, cupboards and widget, then it can get pretty expensive. In other words what do you want and what do you really need? Yes wood in general is the best looking building material. If you want to build a log home, and if you like the chinked look rather then chinkless then you have come to the right place. Remember. this site is all about do-it-yourself and spending very little coin as possible. I would read every thing on the home page and if you still think this is what you want then take the class, was worth every penny I spent. Even if you don't won't to build a b&p style log home, you still have made a good choice. Whatever you decide welcome aboard.
Oh, and above all else it is about FREEDOM!

[jarhead]

i live in New Mexico and have had some logs that we stripped years back. that have just been out in the weather. i know it wouldn't be a good thing to use them for a home. but are they at least usable for a barn. i don't even know where to begin. i have always wanted to attend a class but never could. short summers here i might be yet late again this year. but i would at least like to get a feel for the process and a barn might be a good place to start? any suggestions.

[Thelognoob]

there is soo much info on this site, but i do have a few questions...

with none of these classes slated for the future, where should one begin to look for knowledge abou building B&P style home? I am really excited at the possibility of building for alot cheaper, and learning a ton of stuff.

also, how much experience with general building/construction should one have before taking on a mammoth project such as this? I'd love to be able to build a wide open 2000 sq ft home, and save a ton of cash.

[StressMan79]

Noob,

classes will come before you know it, I suspect before the end of the year or early next. You need not be an "experienced" builder, but it would help if you are handy and mechanically inclined. You can do it even if you aren't, but you'll have to hire the plumbing, electrical, septic, and may not feel good to do the roofing or even log stacking. The less you do, the more $$ you'll have to come up with. I don't know where you are located now, but you may want to seek out a memeber who is building and help them out for a while. You'll learn a ton, and they'll get a set of extra hands. It's a win-win!

another thing you can do is get to know your real estate market. things vary widely. For instance, I got a lead from someone on this site on a place to look. it is REMOTE, but cheap and beautiful. I could not afford property close to home (the property is ~7 hrs away). for my 7 hrs I got 20 acres for less than 2k/acre with a well and trees. You'd be hard pressed to get that for less than $1M within 3 hrs from home. You should know the market and keep up to know when you come acrost a good deal.

Anyway, patience is a virtue.

-Peter