The Oak Leaf - January 2017 By Lynn Gastineau President of Gastineau Log Homes, Inc. Welcome to the January 2017 issue of The Oak Leaf! For new rea

 
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The Oak Leaf - January 2017

By Lynn Gastineau
President of Gastineau Log Homes, Inc.

Welcome to the January 2017 issue of The Oak Leaf! For new readers, this is a monthly newsletter that is sent by e-mail to those that have expressed an interest in Gastineau Log Homes. We use this as a way of communicating technical, design and industry information. For more information, check out our web site at www.oakloghome.com.

Please "Like" Gastineau Log Homes on Facebook! There are LOTS of photographs of our homes in the Photo section!

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Welcome Home....

This Month: Why Choose Gastineau Log Homes? As stated above, The Oak Leaf is an informational newsletter to help you in the design, construction, decorating and maintenance of a log or timber frame home. This month, however, we are going to take the opportunity to describe why you may want to choose Gastineau as the design and material supplier for your new home. This is not a commercial, but an explanation of why we do things the way that we do. Want more details? Click here.

Trivia Question: Which of these people is responsible for developing the charcoal briquette?: Henry Ford, Thomas Edison or Edward Kingsford?" (See the answer at the end of the newsletter.)

LogWall.Ext

This is a Gastineau eastern white pine log home currently under construction outside of Colorado Springs, CO.

We are more than just Oak logs...: The #1 reason we hear people say they chose us for their home is because we offer Oak logs. Although we are the worlds leading producer of Oak, we do offer Eastern White Pine, Cypress and Cedar. We know the pros and cons of all the wood species. We can provide an unbiased conversation on why one may be better for you vs the other. It does not matter to us which species you buy so you know you are getting an honest answer.

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Here is the first meeting of the North American Log Builders Association. Later known as the Log Home Council. This was 1980 and I am the 6th one in the front row.

Reputation and 39 Years in Business: We are extremely proud of the reputation we have achieved since we began business in 1977. We have shipped homes to all 50 states and 12 different countries. We have been an active participant in the development and research that has been done by the Log Home Council since 1980. This research has led to log grading, energy testing, code compliance and financing acceptance so that log construction can remain as a viable option in the US marketplace.

Log Stack 2

The Smart Log profile is one part of the wall system. The window bucks, door bucks and corners are also critical to the engineered wall system.

Our Smart Log Wall System We know the best way to build a log home. We have designed and engineered a wall system that gets tighter over time and provides a life time warranty against caulk failure. We have a totally comprehensive design from the sill plate to the roof. In 1993, we began a Research and Development program to fully understand and improve log wall construction. The result was our Smart Log profile which has been proven to be a success after 22 years of performance. Click here for more details.

Muff.SmallCabin

This was a "Man Cave" designed to accomodate a bar, sauna, bath and TV area. Their log home is about 150 yards up the hill...

Full Design Services: You can start with a custom plan and modify it. If we don't have anything in our standard catalog that fits your needs, simply send us your design. It can be on a piece of paper, a napkin or just tell us what you are thinking. Maybe we have something in our archives of 39 years of drawing plans that will work for you! Our designers have great ideas to help you achieve just the "look and feel" that works for you and your family. Our goal is to provide you with the perfect design, which is engineered properly to provide centuries of safety and structural integrity while meeting the financial limits that you want to invest in the project.

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This is approximately the stage of construction when the Quality Assurance Visit is completed.

Quality Assurance Visit You are probably familiar with the concept of third party inspections. For example, all the building materials that go into your home must be graded. This means there is an independent third party that is "grading" the material to ensure it meets the required standards. Gastineau Log Homes provides this same type of third party inspection of the construction of your home! This inspection is completed by one of the experienced GLH construction experts from our office. This is a win/win/win for everyone: you know your home is built according to the GLH Construction Manual, the builder is assured that he has built the home properly, and we know that the home will perform as it was designed.

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This detail shows how the logs are bolted directly to the foundation.

Our logs go around your subfloor and are bolted to your foundation: Most log home companies (and stick frame builders) stack the exterior walls on top of the subfloor. GLH provides extra rows of logs to go around your subfloor. GLH is the only company to provide this structural improvement. We feel it is extremely important as it allows you to bolt the log wall to the concrete foundation, it is much more energy efficient as it provides an insulated wall around your subfloor, it provides higher seismic and high wind ratings, and it even looks better!

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An example of our desire to prevent issues that could develop over time.

Exclusive GLH Wall Guides: Typically, a log home is constructed with log exterior walls with 2 X 4 and 2 X 6 frame walls that partition or divide up the interior living space into rooms. We call those frame walls the “partition” walls. It is very important that these partition walls be attached to the log walls in a manner that allows the logs to naturally dry and settle. The GLH wall guides provide a very secure attachment of the frame walls to the log walls but allows for any log settlement. An added advantage to the wall guides is that they provide a very strong and stable vertical surface. This minimizes the chances of a log wall bowing over the years.

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Proper door and window bucks are critical for eliminating air infiltration.

Pre-cut and Splined Window and Door Frames/Bucks: Installing the proper size door and window frames has never been this easy! All the door and window frames for the log walls come from GLH ready to nail together in the sizes specified on your blueprints. You don’t have to read the plans to get the rough opening dimensions and then cut the frames to fit. Each set of frames is cut to length and individually wrapped and identified by name. You simply nail the pieces together and place at the proper location in the log wall. The two side pieces of the frame are splined to fit the groove notches cut in the end of the logs. This spline holds the window in place while allowing the logs to settle down the buck. A special sealer is also used at the spline which will provide an air and water seal but not interfere with the settlement process. Also included with all GLH kits is the gasket that goes above the frame in the settlement space plus the special profile gasket for each side of the doors and windows. The profile gasket seals off the gaps created by placing a flat exterior trim on the round log exterior.

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Our 10,000 square foot office building houses our sales, design, shipping and administrative staff. Located near New Bloomfield, MO.

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Our national model home center on I 70 east of Columbia MO at Exit 144.

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Our manufacturing and drying facilities. On 40 acres west of New Bloomfield.

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Our lumber yard and Log Cabin 2 Go manufacturing facility located across from our offices near New Bloomfield, MO.

And last but not least, our facilities and our people... We have the facilities and people to manufacture and provide you with the product that will meet your construction schedule. Inside our office, we have over 143 years of experience and knowledge on hand to advise you through the process!

Construction Seminar Schedule for 2017:

Watch for the 2017 schedule to be released next month!

Click herefor information on our one day construction seminars.

Open Houses:

Remember that the GLH Model Home Center on I 70 in central MO is open 7 days a week until Thanksgiving! We have three houses there that you can tour! We will be closed on Sundays from Thanksgiving until March 1st.

Answer to Trivia Question: Actually it is all three! Henry Ford needed a source of timber for his cars. He bought land in MI through a realtor, Edward Kingsford. (Whose wife just happened to be Fords cousin.) The production of the wood for the automobiles produced a lot of waste and Ford suggested it be processed into charcoal. Thomas Edison designed the briquette factory next to the sawmill and Kingsford ran it. Originally the briquettes were only sold through Ford dealerships. In the mid-1930's, Ford was marketing "Picnic Kits" containing charcoal and portable grills directly from Ford dealerships. In 1951 Ford Charcoal was bought by an investment group and renamed Kingsford Charcoal in honor of Edward Kingsford. In 1973 the plant was aquired by Clorox. Today more than one million TONS of wood scraps are converted into charcoal briquettes.

Quote of the Month: "As you train and as you develop your talents, you do get better... hopefully... or you get out of the business." —Debbie Reynolds

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