Log cabins really are an authentic slice of Americana. Whether you’re in a cozy little house tucked into the woods in Murphy, NC, or in a soaring log home in high mountain terrain, log cabins can evoke images of our country’s hardy settlers’ abodes. And log cabins certainly offer a rustic, earthy type of charm while often containing space for a vegetable or flower garden. As an added bonus, these distinctive houses offer five extra advantages that make them worth a serious look when you’re buying a home.
Warmth During the Colder Months
During the colder fall and winter months, you’d like your log cabin in the mountains of Murphy, NC to be toasty warm inside. If the interior walls are warm to the touch, that’s even better. Fortunately, wood’s “thermal mass” enables your log home’s walls to gather and store valuable energy, releasing it back into your home and making chilly walls a thing of the past. The bottom line: your family will stay more comfortable when it counts the most.
Highly Energy Efficient
“Home energy efficiency” has become a much-discussed topic among homebuilders nationwide. In its simplest form, “home energy efficiency” means decreasing unnecessary energy use and lowering the demand for non-renewable resources. Besides providing measurable cost savings over buildings with conventional energy usage, energy-efficient homes ideally provide residents with a healthier living environment.
Not surprisingly, properly built log homes can be highly energy efficient. To achieve this optimum outcome, the wooden home must be properly sealed between the foundation and the first course of logs. Log-to-log connections, and the junction between the roof system and log wall, must also be completely sealed.
So, just how energy efficient is a correctly built log home? Some log and timber homebuilders construct homes that meet the United States Department of Energy’s desirable “Energy Star” standards. In other words, an Energy Star home will be 30 percent more energy efficient than mandated building code requirements. If that’s your log home in Murphy, NC, you’ll reap considerable cost savings over time, giving you more cash to enjoy life with your family.
Desirable Renewable Resource
Many log and timber homebuilders rigorously follow sustainable harvesting practices. Some companies consistently cut standing dead trees already decimated by insects, while other builders buy logs from certified sustainable forests. “Green” building standards have also become popular in the log home industry. Collectively, these harvesting and construction practices help to ensure that wood will remain a viable building product for the future.
Streamlined Framing Process
Log homebuilders typically use one of two construction methods. With the “kit” approach, the builder opts to buy and transport a large package of pre-cut and pre-drilled logs to the home site. The construction crew carefully assembles the kit home using a pre-determined sequence of steps. In contrast to a kit home, other builders take the opposite approach, completely constructing the quality handcrafted log home onsite.
Either way, the log home’s construction crew can frame the wooden home’s shell faster than a similar conventionally built house. In fact, for an average-sized home, and using an experienced crew and efficient building system, the home’s shell can become weather-tight in as little as two weeks.
Because of this decreased weather exposure, your unfinished Murphy, NC log cabin is less likely to experience rain, wind, or storm damage during the build. Mold and mildew risks are also reduced. In contrast, a conventionally built home takes longer to complete, resulting in more exposure to the elements during the build. This raises the risk of mold growth in the frame, which can lie hidden for years after the home’s completion.
Easier Maintenance Issue Identification
Let’s face it: home maintenance issues do surface from time to time. If you live in a warm and humid climate, for example, your home could be negatively impacted by mold and mildew growth. Inadequate interior ventilation can make the problem worse, especially if you buy a seasonal home that doesn’t benefit from year-round use. Or, a variety of industrious insects can take up residence inside your home, burrowing and feasting while they cause a whole host of problems.
Clearly, identifying the problem is the first step toward solving it. In a wood log home, it’s easy to spot the culprit(s): just give the logs a thorough inspection. Mold and/or mildew should stand out against the logs’ rich natural color or attractive rustic stain. Or, confirm an insect infestation by looking for telltale signs of entry or materials consumption. Because you found the problem before it escalated out of control, you should be able to resolve it at a lower price.
In comparison, a conventionally framed house typically contains numerous sealed wall cavities, usually behind drywall or other solid material. The spaces’ lack of ventilation provides an ideal environment for mold and/or mildew growth. In addition, insect colonies frequently set up shop in these protected spaces. The bottom line: regardless of the pest(s) that invades your conventionally built home, you probably won’t find the damage for years, which can greatly increase the price and time required to repair it.
With these five great advantages to log home construction, and a good selection of log cabins and chalets for sale around Murphy, NC, it’s a great time to be buying your ideal log home in a beautiful mountain setting, far away from city life. You might even start planning your vegetable or flower garden. Fortunately, The Poltrock Team is well equipped to help you – just give them a call today!
The Poltrock Team – REMAX Mountain Properties – Murphy NC – www.ILoveMurphy.com – Call us Toll Free at 1-866-Murphy-NC or 1-866-687-7496 – Murphy’s #1 Real Estate Team