Many people have the mistaken belief that log homes are environmentally unfriendly.  While that might be true for the commercial kit builders, our members build log homes which shatter that stereotype. 

Our students are building their own traditional log homes from scratch, and as owner-builders they can build absolutely as eco friendly as they want to.   In fact, our students are building some of the most eco-friendly log homes on the planet.  One of our members just won the 2009 Built Green Washington environmental award for his log home. 

Below is a quick look at just a few of the tips on eco-friendly log home building that we cover at our class:

• Instead of cutting down green living trees you can use standing dead timber.  Trees killed by forests fires, or bark beetles, can work great for building log homes.  Using such timber can actually help reduce future forest fire risks, and is very environmentally sensitive.
• Many log homes use foam or fiberglass insulation between the logs.  Both products have environmental drawbacks, be it the petrochemical ingredients or a polluting manufacturing process.  A much greener alternative is to use sheep's wool.  It is a natural product and goes through minimal processing.
• Most log homes have chinking to fill the gap between logs.  The kit industry normally uses petrochemical based synthetic chinking, which is not very environmentally conscious. Using mortar for chinking, in the traditional manner, is much more eco-friendly.
• Most new construction uses brand new building materials.  As an owner-builder of your own log home it is very easy to use recycled and reclaimed building materials.  We have had members recycle windows, doors, lumber, electrical fixtures, plumbing fixtures, structural beams, et cetera.
• Through proper design is it possible to maximize your usable square footage while minimizing the building materials you use.  It is also possible to maximize your log homes heating efficiency through design.  Making intelligent, informed design choices is the first step to building a true eco-friendly log home.

Our 2 day log home class not only shows you everything you need to know in order to build a log home from scratch, it will cover the above tips in detail.  It will also include a lot more information about how to build an environmentally friendly log home.