Log Siding

Log Siding Prices

Full log look for Quarter log price!

 

Quarter Log Cabin Siding is the perfect fit for your cabin or country home. 2x8" Quarter Log siding allows you to integrate the rustic charm of a log home with conventional frame construction. It looks exactly like log but requires 75% less wood. Our Log Siding is customer milled and finished to your project specifications. Our log cabin siding is quoted and delivered mill direct to your door!

Factory Stained Log Siding
Protect your investment and do the job RIGHT!

The value of factory finished log siding vs. the risk and cost of problems in the field after installation. The worst thing you can possibly do is to slap your log siding up and then just stain the face after installation. This is an invitation to water and rot problems down the road even with cedar.
 
The risk is not worth the savings! ROT IS INSIDIOUS. If water gets behind your log siding and causes rot the problems can be epic. It can go both ways rotting your house wrap and getting into the studs behind the walls causing entire wall sections that need to be cut out and replaced. All of this occurs out of sight- you will have no way of knowing there is a rot problem until it is too late. Everyone who has ever called us with problems in the field has realized that their wood was not properly sealed on the backside.
 
The answer is to seal your log siding on all 6 sides prior to installation (front, back, side, side, end, end). This is where the real value of the FACTORY FINISH PROCESS comes in. Our machines can seal the face, back and side edges leaving only the butt ends to the installer on the jobsite for a fully sealed board.

2x8" QTR Log Siding

Rustic Log Cabin Siding- Delivered Mill Direct To You!

Here's your opportunity to create an Authentic Log Cabin Look at a fraction of the price of actual log homes. The economy has forced many would be log home lovers to contemplate other means of achieving their dreams on a budget they can afford. with Custom corners, trim, railings and paneling create the “feel” of traditional log homes inside and out.

 

Cedar Log Siding Grades and Seasoning

MILL SELECT : STK (Select Tight Knot) cedar log siding has been visually inspected at the mill for an appearance grade that allows proportional distribution of knots, burls and naturally occurring markings which add to the decorative character of the piece. Sound, live, small to medium tight knots (approx size of a quarter) permitted every 6 - 8 inches. MILL SELECT is usually SEASONED - KILN Dried (KD) or AIR Dried (AD) - to 14% moisture content.
 
SEASONING referes to how lumber has been dried to reduce moisture content before it is milled to pattern. Some grades of cedar are milled green (unseasoned), some are air-dried or kiln-dried to meet specifications when required. Kiln drying speeds up wood seasoning in closed chambers by heating and controlling air circulation. Kiln Dried log siding has 14% maximum moisture content.

Partially Air Dried (PAD) means the siding has been air dried on stickers for a short period after being milled. PAD cedar is still considered green and moisture content is 20% or higher.
 
The fact is that all wood no matter how it is dried (seasoned) will expand and contract during the year due to moisture changes in the air. The thing about PAD green woods is that they are prone to changes of greater degree than fully air dried or kiln dried lumber. This means you must use patterns like shiplap, channel rustic or QTR Log Siding that allow more room for wood expansion and contraction in their design - patterns that allow movement without compromising the overall appearance.
 
During the milling of green logs there will be some blown knots but our mills are saying less than 10% board loss. Milled Green PAD (partially air dried) is a cedar grade that is designed to ease the high cost of cedar. Get out your saw and cut around that knot hole and save a buck or two. If you can afford a flaw or two to save a buck or two this is the grade for you.

Buffalo Lumber U-Grade: Buffalo Lumber's Ugrade means YOU - not the mill - visually selects out flaws. The cedar quarter log is milled from a lower grade lumber which will have more wood flaws and mill defects when it is run to pattern. You will see holes up to the size of a dollar piece. There will be holes allowed in every board. There will be some splitting. But most with saw work can be used for trim. U grade is usually priced at 50% of the market. We say to factor at least 20% safety margin on a U grade project. Net savings 30% over retail market prices.
 
Layman terms - if we were talking about a 2x8 U grade would allow a knot every 4 inches- some larger than a silver dollar. It will allow some peck and rot and a few other things. Every board will need to be trimmed.
 
If you are a customer who "loves" to work with wood you can get up to 95% use from this stuff (I know we did- just not always the intended use if you know what I mean). U grade is for rustic wood lovers who want to work around flaws (and include some) to save money on natural wood appearance products. Not for the timid. Warm up your saw arm. The possible job site waste on the Ugrade should be factored higher at 30% or more and then the goal is to use it all.
 
Read the story of how our customer in Missouri SAVED OVER $15,000 on his U-GRADE QTR LOG Cedar Order! And a few tips on how he used every bit of his Discount Cedar Log Siding!

U-GRADE 2x8 QTR Log Siding - BEST Price Deal for Your Money !

A more detailed write-up of Cedar Grades and Seasoning can be found on our Western Red Cedar Siding page STK, STD&BTR NPS Cedar Grades and KD and Partially Air Dried (PAD) Cedar.
 
Have you considered Cedar DUTCH LAP Siding as an alternative to Log Siding? Dutch Lap siding (also called Cove Lap and German Lap) is a 1x Cedar siding pattern with a rustic look - similar to 2x cedar log siding - for a better price !

In the Field or In the Factory?

The VALUE of Factory Finish

The first thing that wood experts like the Western Red Cedar Lumber Association will tell you is that all wood siding - even cedar log siding - needs to be sealed on all six sides prior to installation and then re coated as needed on the face for the lifetime of the wood.
 
FINISH SIDING PRIOR TO INSTALLATION
"Before installation (job site), applying a finish to all surfaces (including ends) is recommended. Factory applied finishes are best. They ensure the best performance of the finish. The type of coating will be determined by final finish and look selected. The finish protects the wood from moisture absorption and UV degradation, helps prevent staining caused by mildew and extractives and will increase the service life of top coats." from WRCLA How to Install Western Red Cedar Siding
 
We interviewed Brandon Stendal- owner of Stone Valley Painting, LLC. and a customer of ours and asked-
 
"What is the value of factory finish?"

"Usually we are only finishing the face of the building. For us- a commercial painter- to prime coat 6 sides in the field takes about twice as long as coating the face alone after installation. We charge $50hour commercially so the price immediately doubles.
 
We primed all 4 sides of about 833 sqft of your wood siding and it took 2 guys about 8 hours to do this job. It took 5 gallons of primer to coat it (between $25 and $30 per gallon) and we had to rack it at our own warehouse and then transport to the jobsite.
 
I would actually prefer my customers to get a factory finished primer coat and then have me do the final coat in the field- that is the best wood siding performance option.
 
That may not sound like it is good for business but long term, happy customers are my business!"

We agree completely.

Factory finishing coats 4 of six sides - You get the face, the back and both side edges, the butt ends need to be sealed when installed on the jobsite. If you are going to do the job right- you can't do it better (or cheaper) than the machines.
 
If you are planning to stain instead of paint- the number of gallons needed per square foot virtually doubles. You do not have to apply a final coat to the face after installation but you had better have a large, well ventilated area with racks for the wood siding to dry - usually 3-7 days depending on humidity and finish choice.
 
The fact is that sealing the wood on all six sides prior to installation is the single most important thing you can do to ensure the long term performance of your wood siding- factory finishing saves the headache factor (literally) and is the first step to doing the job right.
 
The truth may not be what you "want" to hear- But remember if it's worthwhile to do-
 
     It costs 3 times as much and takes 3 times as long as you originally thought it would.
 
     It costs 10 times as much to fix a screw up as to do things right in the first place.

The Question Is - Can You afford Not to Factory Finish?

Pine Log Cabin Siding

Log siding is a great way to achieve the look of harmony with nature you want and save thousands of dollars in the process. Log siding on a stick built (traditional framing) home will cost you 30 to 50% less than actual log construction.
 
We have had many customers opt for stick built structures and use pine log siding and pine paneling to achieve the rustic look and save some dough. One guy even used metal framing and saved a bunch. He has 7,412 SQFT Heated + 4592 SQFT Covered Porch = 12,004 SQFT under roof. He did the whole building for a total cost of $267,744. His story is here Home Owner - PINE LOG SIDING
 
Log siding offers many other advantages over real log besides just price. Ease of installation is one. Many of our Log customers install the siding themselves saving the cost of custom professional installation. As I tell all my DIY customers “if you do this for a couple hours you will be an expert”.
 
The ability to pre-finish the log siding is another huge advantage. All wood needs to be protected from the elements in order to perform and continue to look beautiful. The nice thing about log siding is that we can factory finish it before you get it. This saves even more time and money on jobsite especially for the Do it yourself owner.

 

HEWN Log Cabin Siding

 

3x10" and 2x8" HEWN LOG Siding ROUND - Profile pattern - side by side

 

 

 

2x10" or 2x12" HEWN LOG Siding - SQUARE Profile

 

HEWN Log Siding - customer home Upper NY - Factory PRE finished

 

FACTORY FINISH = PEACE OF MIND

HEWN Log Siding PRE Finished and Ready to Install!

Recently we had a customer who ordered some Hewn Pine Log Siding from us finished at the factory. Those of you who are familiar with our "peace of mind pine" interior products know that the peace of mind comes from the dedication of the finisher himself, Rick Wood of Woodco Prefinishing.
 
Rick is quite simply the best finisher on the planet in our opinion. All he does is finish wood and nothing goes out of that shop without his stamp of approval. Rick is the only finisher we use that has a 100% happy customer record.
 
When we sent our hewn log to Rick for this customer we ordered a 1 coat exterior application of Cabot's Translucent Acrylic to be applied prior to shipping. Rick was not happy with the 1 coat result so he added an extra coat (free of charge) on that one order. The result is a beautiful product that will be protected for years to come.
 
He then called us to explain that hewn log because of the uneven surface should always have 2 coats applied in order to look right and perform the way it should. He did the extra coat free of charge on the first job but would have to charge on all subsequent jobs.

You see long term beauty and performance is an investment of time and money and we are firm believers in investing into peace of mind up front rather than investing in Murphy's Law later on.
 
Allow me to explain. We get customers all the time who say "we can get that down the road for ½ the price of what you are charging for finished hewn pine". What they are not factoring is the COST and TIME of finishing the job in the field or more aptly put - the cost of field finishing your log siding THE RIGHT WAY!
 
The RIGHT WAY is to apply finish to all 6 sides of the wood prior to installation in order to protect it from moisture damage. As you can imagine applying stain to 6 sides of a stick of wood in the field is a time consuming (and money consuming) process. It is usually done by the installers (who are not trained finishers) and it is a big job.
 
Imagine you are an installer at a job site with 2000sq feet of hewn log siding that has not been finished and you have to finish all 6 sides before installation.
 
Rough estimates of 2x8 or 3x8 log siding require about 3600 lineal feet to cover 2000 square feet of space. To put this into perspective in order to stain both sides you are going to be finishing 1.4 miles of wood. You will need a place to store 1.4 miles of wood and you will need to dry 1.4 miles of wood without dirt or bugs or anything getting into the finish during this process.
 
Chances are you are not going to have the proper equipment (or space) to do the job right and if you try the expenses are going to mount up. So you have a meeting with the homeowner and decide the best way to handle this is to install the wood with no finish and then finish the face after installation in order to save money.
 
Many homeowners feel that risk is worth the savings however we disagree. The risk is that water will get trapped behind the wood at some point during the home's lifespan. When this happens the pine WILL ROT. There are no exceptions to this rule- if water stands on pine it will rot. The reason every piece of literature on the subject says to finish all six sides prior to installation is that pine is extremely susceptible to rot.
 
If rot begins to occur on the back side of your siding you will have no way of knowing until it is too late. Too late being when the rot shows up on the face of the wood. Rot is contagious- if it shows up on the face of the wood chances are it has gone the other way as well.

 

We have documented cases of pine siding that has begun to rot and has taken out the walls behind it as well as the siding in front. In those cases the entire wall has to be replaced not just the siding itself. The cost of fixing such problems in the field run into the tens of thousands of dollars.
 
Some of you will be thinking "well that is a worst case scenario" and you would be right however think about it for a minute. In your lifetime how many people have actually taken the time to do a job exactly right? If you have the same experience as we do you will realize that most people (including installers) take shortcuts. Shortcuts cause worst case scenarios to occur.
 
Sitting in my chair I have spoken to people directly who have had improper installation techniques cost 10 times more to fix than if they had used proper methods in the first place. The number one cause of problems in the field? Water damage- the number one cause of water damage in the field? Improper field finishing and installation.
 
If you think I am trying to scare the living daylights out of you, you are exactly right. I am trying to scare you into making sure things are done exactly right.
 
Back to Rick. Rick Wood has been finishing wood products for many years and he knows how to do the job right. He has machines and racks set up to dry miles and miles of wood and he has taken it upon himself that his good name goes out with every order. If Rick says you need 2 coats of finish on hewn log you better believe him.
 
It is not just your peace of mind we are talking about but ours as well. The last thing in the world we need is a problem in the field which is why we do not offer the hewn pine unfinished at all. We feel the risk is too great for our customers.
 
If we are more expensive than the guys down the road it is because doing a job exactly right usually costs more up front than the cheapest option. Rick Wood does the job exactly right every time!
 
The rule to remember is that fixing something done wrong costs 10 times more than doing it right in the first place.
 
The choice is where and when you invest into the value of long term happiness and performance. At the end of the day how much is your peace of mind really worth?
 
CB
 
Chris Buffalo of Buffalo Lumber Company has consulted on over 20,000 wood projects, bid over 10,000, sold over 2,000 and visited over 200 jobsites nationwide. His credentials are "Been there done that thousands of times".
 
It's not Bull it's Buffalo ;-)

 

2x, 3x, QTR Log Sample Finish Display - ROUND, SQUARE, HEWN!

 

 

 

 

2x8" QTR LOG CABIN Siding - NO Reveal (Chinkless)

 

2x8" QTR LOG Siding with Reveal (with Chink)

 

Common Sense Siding Installation Tips

The fact is that all wood no matter how it is dried (seasoned) will expand and contract during the year due to moisture changes in the air.

Allow your wood to acclimate before installation. This is the most common installation mistake and the most costly. When the wood arrives it will begin to change sizes to adjust to its new climate. The worst thing you can do is install siding during this phase. This is true of ALL seasoning grades. Allow 1 - 2 weeks for your wood to acclimate. The last thing you want to do is install it DURING the change.

Ideally you would unband the wood and sticker it for proper air flow. But if you do not have that option then leave it banded for a longer period of time. After this acclimation period size changes will be seasonal and minimal. This simple step is the single most important thing to remember when installing any wood siding product especially PAD board.

Avoid moving lumber when it is raining and it should always be covered with a lumber wrap that allows air to circulate moisture out. Always keep lumber on pilings so air can circulate under the pile. Never store lumber in a room with fresh concrete or drywall. Do not store the exterior project wood anyplace where it might be artificially heated or cooled. It must adjust to the natural conditions where it will reside.

Most wood expansion and contraction is across the width of the board. Selection of a Lap pattern minimizes the affect of that movement. Movement length wise is minimal. But to minimize gaps take the time to miter (angle) cut and treat the ends as you install and the results will last for years.

 

Help Us Answer Your Questions

Because we are committed to answering every request, our phones ring off the hook. In order to make sure you get the attention you deserve, we ask that you help us help you.

When you call our toll free line you will be asked a few questions to confirm if we can truly help with your project. If it looks like we can we will set up project consultation with a sales expert. This a 15 minute free consultation. If our products and services are a good project match, we will also give you a verbal "ball park" price and total cost estimate to help you plan your project costs.
 
BEFORE we can give you a Ball Park Price we will need to know the approximate square feet required and the ship to location (city, state, zip). This information is used to make sure everyone who makes an appointment receives the advice and customer service we have promised. Your information will not be shared or sold.

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