Filling The Log Voids

Once the clean-out was complete and the underlying surfaces borated it was time for the space between the logs to be filled, which was itself a two-step process.  In the first step the voids were filled with spray foam insulation to seal the spaces from air infiltration.  This step alone should make a huge difference in the coming winter.  It is my ardent desire that the new chinking, along with the insulating and sealing of the crawlspace will reduce the need for firewood substantially.

Once the spray foam insulation had firmed up it was trimmed and the chinking lath applied over it.  This was tedious and time consuming work as the stainless steel mesh had to be cut to fit the opening precisely, then nailed in place every couple inches or so.

With the lath done all that was left was to apply the cement-based chinking itself with careful troweling to finish the task.  I had gone back and forth between wanting traditional cement based chinking and newer silicone based synthetics, but Tim the contractor has been using the cement based system for about forty years with great success, so that is the path we took.

In the end we thought the job looked terrific and would perform excellently as all the steps leading up to completion were conscientiously and skillfully executed.  I am especially pleased to get chinking with a fitted undercut so it does not act like a rain gutter on the side of the house as had been the case with the previous chinking.

It is nice to be here long enough to finally connect with the network of craftsmen here.  In such an insular community it is a slow process, but we are getting there.  And for this project all we had to do was find the right crew and sign the check (which was more than the cost of my first house!).

We are hoping that the big project for next summer will be the replacing of all the windows to install new high efficiency ones.  But for now, the cabin has never looked better and was never more weather-tight.

There’s just one little area of repair to complete this week, but overall we are mighty pleased.