A dog house with my son (log) wip

Eric Black

Member
Messages
76
Location
Hinton Alberta
I have never fitted saddles with log so this may be an embarrassing work in progress. It will be slow updates with all the schedules of summer but we will do our best. Our material came from dead standing timber so the price was right and if all fails I will have a head start on the wood pile for this winter. Here goes nothing:crossed:
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all logs are peeled and the base is done. Definitely finding the small size difficult to scribe but pushing forward slowly. Have to set aside for a while as other commitments are waiting.
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Looks like you're getting a pretty decent fit anyway :thumb: should be a plenty stout dog house.

Are you pegging the corners or just relying on the weight to hold the together?
 
I am pegging the corners Ryan, I messed up a log because something moved so using large deck screws to keep it in place. managed a couple more back to the day job tomorrow. thinking six high right now but will have to see how it looks.
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This is awesome. I've been looking for ways to get my boy working outside and off the dang Xbox. Looks like I need to buy a draw knife. I can't wait to see the finished product. :)
 
Wow, how did it get so heavy lol. Trimmed up the ends, proportionally I think I will go with 6 high. Couple more pieces and hope to cut the door and then continue up the gable ends. Daydreaming about framing the roof, and with what. We have a couple ideas , would like to stay away from dimensional lumber if possible although it would be a great deal quicker.
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Looking good!

There are a couple of no dimensional lumber roofs I'm familiar with.

First is the pole and sod roof, basically its a ridge beam roof with split poles laid down from the peak to the eaves and then covered in plastic (black 6 mil or thicker) or tar paper (not recommended) or traditionally birch bark layered like shingles and then a nice layer of sod. Works pretty well in medium moisture climates (wet enough to keep the sod healthy, not so wet that it saturates the poles from the underside). We used this on a couple of cabins we had up in the mountains on the cattle range and they generally needed to be re-roofed every 15-20 years or so. My dads new log chicken coop (not sure a grizzly bear could bust that thing open) has this kind of roof as well and 5 years in the poles underneath look almost new. You would generally run a pole along the eve and edges to keep the sod from sliding off or eroding (and kind of push the sod over that). I see some folks talking about putting down a cementous layer under the plastic but I don't ever remember us doing that. If you can get it a layer of clay under the sod isn't a bad idea though. Wikipedia has a surprisingly good explanation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sod_roof

The other option would be a traditional shake roof which can be installed over a series of split poles (split side up) with the poles running crosswise and spaced at the shake nailing interval. I have somewhat less experience with shake, as most folks around here avoid it - because it tends to go up with a woof at the smallest spark in this climate (you're not that far off in that regard either I suppose).

There is also thatch, but that gets complicated (and might be a challenge material wise) and I'm not sure how well it would work for that small of a structure.

For my money I'd go with the sod roof - the R value is exceptional in comparison, its pretty easy to do and, you can make it not super steep and it goes well with the rustic cabin look.
 
Thanks Ryan, your insight and knowledge is much appreciated. A sod roof sounds like a good idea, I was going to try moss but I can’t find a shady enough spot. If I can’t keep grass from growing in my drive a roof should be no problem. One lesson I am learning the hard way is not to trim anything until you have too or are finished. I had to replace the eve logs because I never accounted for the overhang on the back. Two saddles left then the roof should start to look like one next post. I left the door for now so I can judge its shape and size once everything is done. I used a scrap 1 ½ maple as a guide to trim the gables with the chain saw which will be hidden when all is done hopefully. If nothing else this project is a good learning experience for me and my son. :thumb:
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Eric thats very cool i would like a whole house like that but Chuck the pirate put me off that idea. On the roof i would think about hinging it on one side so that if you ever need to for whatever reason you can lift it and get access to the interior. Easier than having to try get through to the inside via a dog size door in the side. Never know reason for needing access. Bigger version would make a nice playhouse for kids. Great project for involving your son.:thumb:
 
This must be a special dog to have such a fine house. Like Rob, I've always wanted a log house, but don't think they fit in out here in the desert. There is one a few miles from me. Beautiful place IMHO but they have tried to sell it a couple times and no takers. Just not the right home for this area.
 
Cheated a bit, for time sake we cut up dimensional lumber for the rafters. Door is cut out and ready for an insert. Going to try ply wood with a log fitted on its perimeter then line with plastic and try growing some grass. We omitted a log to lower the pitch, starting to look like a dog house finally. For a cabin I think log would be nice but I would not want the maintenance of a log home, something else to cut into shop time. There sure are some nice ones out there. Our dog came from the pound with a few quirks but she has learned to trust and has become irreplaceable as most pooches do.
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Nice, I like the porch like overhang a lot. Dimensionally the rood "timbers" look quite nice imho and man you could park an ox on top of that without it going anywhere! :thumb:

Paul - you could make your pup a faux adobe with a papercrete shell :D
 
Log houses have expensive maintenance issues. I looked into one several years ago. Bad amateurish repairs over the years introduced water issues and then of course dry rot. It's not easy to take out one or two bottom logs because of dry rot. There are people who can do it but it ain't cheap.

There were two log homes in my neighborhood in Strawberry. Those guys were sealing every two years. Hard to sell when people learn how expensive they are to maintain.
 
gorgeous project. Also think the roof overhang looks great. The door looks kind of big to me, but I can't really judge the size of your pooch from the photo. Oh wait, you mentioned an insert for the door. never mind! :thumb:
 
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