Wood is considered a traditional material for building houses. The modern market offers wood for the construction of two varieties: log and timber. The choice of material depends solely on the developer.
Often, country cottages, rest houses, summer cottages and hotel complexes are built from wood.
A house made of wood (timber, logs) has a minimal load on the foundation, which allows saving money already at the first stage of construction.
Another plus of such construction is that the construction of buildings can be carried out at almost any time of the year and in any weather.
Which is better: a house made of timber or logs? To answer this question, you need to consider the features of each of the materials.
Timber houses
To understand what is better - a house made of timber or logs - it is necessary to identify the advantages and disadvantages of each of them individually. For example, the beam currently used has regular and accurate shapes in the form of a rectangular or square section. All sides of the timber are perfectly even and smooth. Thanks to these parameters, the interior decoration in the house can be omitted.
The positive sides of the beam
The bar has a number of advantages. The main ones are:
- aesthetic appeal;
- naturalness and, accordingly, high rates of environmental safety;
- using this material, a house can be built in short periods of time;
- high thermal conductivity and sound insulation;
- the structure has high strength and reliability;
- the possibility of building at any time of the year;
- savings in the construction of the foundation - there is no need to make the facade too reinforced due to heavy walls, this material is lightweight and at the same time durable;
- savings on materials for interior decoration due to the aesthetic attractiveness of natural material;
- wooden walls favorably affect the human body.
Cons of using timber in building a house
When considering which is better - a house made of timber or logs - it is important to know the negative aspects of these competing building elements. Cons of timber:
- This material must be treated with special protective agents, as it does not have any repellent properties. The beam is not able to protect against factors such as humidity, precipitation and insects, which can cause significant harm to such a building.
- After some time intervals, rot may appear on the wood, cracks will appear on the outer layer. In order to avoid these problems, the wood must be carefully treated with protective solutions several times a year.
- The fire hazard of this material is very high, this increases the risk of a possible fire at home from the timber.
- It is necessary to use heat-insulating and moisture-proof gaskets.
- This material gives a slight shrinkage, however, the first six months it is necessary to control this process in order to avoid cracking the walls.
An important point is that during construction, the beam must be allowed to dry well. If it was not sufficiently dried up at the factory, it must be left intact after construction for at least six months, and only then try to lay insulation and moisture-repellent materials.
Another nuance is that with poorly dried timber in the workplace after shrinkage of the house and drying of the material itself, cracks can appear on the walls.
How to build
To make a qualitative comparison of houses made of timber or logs, you need to know how they are built. The construction of timber has a number of features. Before starting work, special grooves are cut in it, which will be connecting. Further in these grooves it is necessary to insert the corresponding details. Grooves need to be sawn in a sawn and glued beam, the profiled beam already has all the necessary connecting elements.
If there is no required strength or part of the timber is larger, it is cleaned to the desired size and inserted into the grooves. This type of work should be carried out by a team of professionals, which will ensure the implementation of the set goal efficiently and on time.
The most expensive of all types of these works is the connection of water, light, sewage, as well as the preparation of all connectors for pipes - they need to be cut with special tools. The shrinkage of the house finally ends in 6-12 months, it all depends on the quality of drying the timber in production.
After the construction is completed, it must be sanded, treated with insect repellent, impregnated with a flame-reducing agent, and preventive measures against the appearance of fungi.
Next, the surface must be painted, treated with impregnation and protective agents. This type of house is treated once a year, they need to be painted once every 5 years.
Features of living in houses from timber
To understand which house is warmer - from timber or logs, you need to know the features of living in each of them. The house from a bar is very cozy, stylish, if the interior is completely left natural. The room is spacious, always fresh air - all this due to the fact that the wood has the ability to "breathe".
The main rule is to monitor the level of humidity and treat all the walls outside and inside with antifungal agents, as well as be sure to apply impregnation from fires. You need to be able to handle fire properly, monitor the gas boiler, be careful when cooking and when turning on the fireplace.
It is also worth noting that if the house is not insulated, then in the cold season it will not be possible to carry out normal life activities in it, since the currently produced timber has low thermal conductivity.
To understand what is the best choice - a house made of timber or logs, you need to know the features of buildings from logs as well.
Log houses
In the question of which is better - a house made of timber or logs - a significant role is played by the identification of all the nuances and subtleties of the building made from these materials. For example, a log has long been used in Russia, and even now it has not become less popular. Thanks to modern fashion trends, elite country houses, mansions and houses for vacationers in the lap of nature are being built from logs. Thanks to the use of this material, you can achieve maximum unity with nature, as well as comprehend the happiness of comfort and coziness in your home.
When using logs for the construction of any building, ventilation will immediately be ensured, as the tree ideally passes oxygen through its thickness. Due to the structure of wood, the house will have natural ways to evaporate excess moisture. In addition, the logs provide reliability and durability of the whole structure, which will stand for a sufficiently long period of time without tilting, destruction, significant distortion of the foundation.
Aesthetic attractiveness and naturalness delight not only the inhabitants of the house, but also all guests and passers-by, because houses from a log house are always beautiful, aesthetic and relevant. These buildings, so to speak, symbolize the Russian spirit and Russia as a whole.
Houses built from a log house warm up very quickly, but it is worth noting that when the heater is turned off, they cool down just as quickly. Due to the constant availability of logs on sale, their purchase and delivery will not cause unnecessary trouble.
Negative characteristics
What are the disadvantages of logs?
- All wood does not tolerate moisture well, fungi and, correspondingly, rot may appear on it.
- This material has a high risk of fire.
- Logs have a large shrinkage, which takes long periods of time.
- To protect against water and maintain heat, it is necessary to use special means.
The modern market has available logs that are produced mechanically in woodworking plants. Rounded logs have a smooth surface, so no finishing is required. Their price is low, they look very original and aesthetically pleasing.
Logs for logging are considered even more durable due to their manual processing, however, their cost is much higher than the price of logs.
The nuances of building from logs
To find out what is best for the house - a beam or a log, you also need to know some features of the logs.
- When using rounded logs, it is not necessary to cut the connecting recesses for the parts of this design.
- If it is decided to use chopped logs for construction, then in order to connect them together, it is necessary to cut special notches, and this work can only be done by a specialist in this field. If these connecting holes are cut out incorrectly, the house will not have the required degree of reliability and many cracks may appear during shrinkage.
- The cost of one cubic meter of machined logs can be up to 9 thousand rubles. Chopped logs have a higher cost. Therefore, this type of construction is available to true connoisseurs of natural houses made of log cabins and having a high level of income.
Accommodation in a house made of timber
Negative qualities of such buildings are a high fire hazard. In order to reduce it, it is necessary to treat the walls once a year with special solutions and various means. Another minus - under the influence of the sun, wind and precipitation, the logs can be deformed. To prevent this, all the cracks must be constantly covered up and the condition of all walls and coatings should be monitored.
But not everything is as bad as it seems at first glance. Logs also have a number of certain advantages in terms of development. These include:
- external attractiveness both outside and inside the house;
- a feeling of natural coating;
- pleasant aroma and purity of air in the house itself.
Many owners of such houses spend much less money on the purchase of heating devices and air conditioners, since in summer such a building maintains the desired coolness, and in winter saves heat.
Accordingly, less costs are allocated to heaters, sound insulation, since a log house perfectly saves its residents from unnecessary noise. In addition, a beautiful, noble and solid appearance brings joy not only to its inhabitants, but also to everyone around.
So, which house to choose: from timber or logs? We examined the difference in these materials. The choice is yours!