hi

i'm sorta sitting on the fence trying to decide whether to build my own home with logs or timberframe. would someone be nice enough to give me the pros/cons of each method?

thanks,
graham

not really but thanks anyway. :-) i was thinking more on the line of insulation differences between the 2. most log home owners tend to talk about thermal mass whereas timberframe homes seem to stick
with the R value.

If you want thermal mass then I would recommend Insulated Concrete Forms to inclose a Timberframe. IFC's have the thermal mass and the R-value, Best of both worlds. Tom

I like the idea of strawbale but the humidity here in the mid-west worrys me. Sorry, Derek, no debate here. I'm a firm belever in protecting wood from the elements if you want it to last. Tom

The thermal mass or R-value issue aside for a moment.
I think the first decision to make is: Do I want to see a lot of logs stacked on top of each other and live in a wooden "box" ( walls, ceiling, floor furniture) or do I prefer less wood and admire the joinery? Sure wood is a beautiful/interesting material to look at but if there is too much of it at once it will be overwhelming.
Are you thinking high or low maintenance house?
Logs should be sealed to last longer. American TFs are enclosed and therefore protected from the elements thus last longer. A log house can "show off" because of the way it is build in and outside. An American TF cannot unless you get to see the inside of the house.
Thermal mass is a great thing and so is a good R-value and an air tight house. Then there is sound control. I would assume that SIPS, though they might be a good insulator, are not necessarily a great sound deadener. Where insulated concrete certainly is. So, lots of choices and decisions to make here.

One consideration depending on your location is financing. The banks around here won't finance a log home.

lots of good information, i appreciate it. when i was a kid we lived for about 6 years in a log home my dad built(see pic). i'm sort of impartial to them for that reason but i love the look of the TF house and the fact you can make them airtight which is a big plus due to high heating costs. this house i eventually build will also be going off-grid. the house we were living in had a lot of air/water/snow infiltration issues.

The logs on log homes nowadays are usually double tongue and groove with gaskets between each layer. So the infiltration issue you mentioned should not occure. I am just talking in theory here since I have never lived in a log home or known anyone who ownes one.
I could imagine the house you and your father built years ago was very drafty just looking at the gaps between the logs.

If you like the look of a log home you could veneer half logs to the exterior walls (like siding) this way you can frame your house conventionally and then apply the logs just for looks. And if they fail (rot) just replace them like you would with siding. Of course you would not get the cabin look you might want inside the house. But on the outside you would never be able to tell.
Or build a TF with SIPs or whatever you feel comfortable with as enclosure and instead of siding you apply the logs. So you get a TF home where you can admire the joinery and the cabin look on the outside. Best of both worlds .

In my area log homes that have survived have been sided mostly with so-called "German siding" a coved 1 x 6 shiplap type nailed to vertical furring, the technique forms a weather screen that keeps the logs dry and preserves the chink. The recent trend is to strip the siding and expose the logs.

One huge difference between green log walls and timber framed walls is shrinkage in height of the wall. With green logs you must plan for and adjust the building as it dries.

Roger,

how does this work with the corner details typically seen on log homes? Do they just leave them flush with the exterior side of the walls? Otherwise you would have to build out the furring a lot.

By the way, why isn't siding in general installed on furring strips? It would minimize paint peeling and rot seen on a lot of homes here in this area since the water trapped between siding and house wrap can actually run off.