Joint Gaps

Joint gaps in the horizontal and butt joints are two areas that need to be repaired as soon as possible. Checking for these types of gaps is a major part of doing a log home inspection. These gaps are common to every style of log home on the market today.

The fact that the logs are going through what can be a twenty year drying process is why the gaps will form. As the logs are drying they are at the same time shrinking in both length and circumference.

These gaps can be a source of air and water infiltration into your home and also serve as an entry point for insects.

If you have a gap in a butt joint the main concern is this is a common area where LOG ROT can get started and spread rapidly. Unfortunately in most of the cases I have seen where there is log rot in a butt joint both of the logs have log rot not just one.

When you have a gap in a horizontal joint the main concern is that there will be air or water infiltration. This could be an area that would cause cold drafts in your home during the winter.

Before any type of a joint gap is repaired by either a log home owner or a log home maintenance contractor they need to make sure the product is compatible with the stain on the logs. If the product used isn't compatible it will eventually pull away from the logs over time and start leaking again.

We recommend using a caulking product that is specially designed for use on log homes for sealing any gaps. The everyday caulking you can buy at the local store isn't made to work on log homes. It won't hold up to all of the movement a log home goes through everyday.

There are many different caulking products on the market to choose from, but as I mentioned above there is always a compatibility issue to deal with. An oil based stain is compatible with a different type of caulking then a water based stain is.

ALWAYS USE THE PROPER CAULKING!!!

Log Home Repair Supplies carries a wide variety of caulking products to ensure you get the proper product to use for sealing any type of gap problems that might develop. It doesn't matter if you have oil based or a water based stain on your home we have a caulking that will work for you.

The main thing to remember is that if your home has developed some horizontal joint gaps or butt joint gaps they need to be sealed as soon as possible.

If you have any questions about gaps or the products to use for sealing them please fill out the contact form below.