Subj : vertlogs/insulation/water
To   : AUGUST ABOLINS
From : Rob Mccart
Date : Fri Feb 07 2025 01:34:00

RM> I'd never seen that before we bought here. They take round logs
RM> about 7 inches aound and split them down the middle, then offset
RM> them and nail the flats together so you have the appearance of
RM> vertical round logs on the inside and the outside.

AA>I thought the "whole" log would be vertical, as described below
  >by one builder, and not split/overlap like you just described:

No, but doing it this way you don't have to find a way to seal the
joint between every 2 logs. Even if you put a flat on one side of
a whole log you still need to caulk the joints (frequently) to
have them fairly wind and water proof.

RM> What would be better these days would be to remove the siding
RM> and have expanding foam insulation sprayed directly onto the
RM> outside logs and possibly the floors too.

AA>Not sure how sprayed foam would work on the outside. Sprayed
  >foam is best when it can go into a confined space otherwise it
  >would expand unchecked.

They spray it under a lot of buildings here and a thin layer
expands to a couple of inches of foam. They can force it between
walls as well and let it expand to fill the area but with the
unconventional way my place is built that would be difficult and
likely not work well leaving a lot of gaps.

RM> I've had mice, squirrels and raccoons rip the insulation
RM> loose under the floors to either take it away to make
RM> nests or they actually get up between the insulation and
RM> the warmer floor and make a nest there..

AA>Can you hear them there during the winter?  HOw about building
  >a rock/concrete barrier right up against the house/foundation
  >so that they can't find a way to get in?

Difficult and expensive, but I could redo the insualtion under
the place and then put up sheets of plywood totally covering the
bottom of the building. Critters getting into it wasn't on my mind
when I first did the place. I got rolled insulation, about 3 inches
of fiberglass, about 3.5 feet wide with a fairly heavy reinforced
vinyl on the bottom side that I thought would work better, and it
did work pretty well for 25 years or so so maybe I can't complain.

Some animals can surprise you. I heard a racket outside late one
night and came out to find 2 raccoons on the outside of the house
trying to pry the aluminum siding off to either try to get in
where it was warmer or they heard mice in the walls and were trying
to get in at them.

RM> Yes, it's about 250 feet from my place to where I have the
RM> 'box' on the ice where I have my water hole. [...]
RM> starting to wear on me some, which is why I shovel the
RM> paths so I'm not fighting my way through deep snow as
RM> well.

AA>And.. I presume you place some ash or other grit along the path
  >for added traction?

Not really required. Snow on bedrock isn't really slippery, the
snow sticks to the rock and the small amount of snow left after
shovelling it down to a few inches left gives your boots pretty
good traction if you don't do anything foolish. You learn to
walk differently on potentially slippery surfaces. So much of my
property is up and down hill I learned in a hurry to be careful.

RM> carrying 2 pails of water, and the hill is too steep to
RM> put the pails of water onto a sled and pull it up behind
RM> me..

AA>How about bottles/jugs onto a sled?

If I were having a lot more trouble I'd consider something, but
trying to fill bottles from a hole in the ice would be a lot
more time consuming than filling a bucket or two.

---
 * SLMR Rob  * The hand that rocks the cradle, rules the world
 * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (1:2320/105)

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