I love your videos! Much appreciated. I'm a bricklayer of 33 years, and have constructed a stone fireplace for a client and have now been asked to handle the chinking. Everything I've seen you do is exactly how I had imagined I'd start. From the diamond mesh to the mortar mix. We call that joint a weather joint and that is absolutely the best joint for this situation ❤

Is this man still alive? Nothing has been posted for 8 months

It needs to be stressed that a chimney on the INSIDE will draw / draft much, much better than one on the outside. Also, creosote is much less for reasons I can't explain quickly here. ALL chimneys AFTER the year 1900 should be inside the home and not even close to an outside wall. What do we see today... "new home construction" with them on the outside. I understand what he is saying about aesthetics, but how many home builders are building historic looking things like that with real stone?

Why leave a space between the logs? And what do you fill the spaces with?

A lot of sensationalism, you would be shocked reading about how many chemicals there's on stain, varnish and paints....

Thank you for sharing this knowledge and keeping up the traditions of the log cabin building!👍

You do such a beautiful job! Thank you for keeping this traditional skill going and through teaching it!

There is nothing wrong with butt and pass.. If you are building by yourself or don't have 5 years to build then butt and pass is for you

Great information! I prefer natural materials wherever possible. I have a very small gap application (1/2 to 5/8”). What is your experience and or thoughts on cement in very small gaps? Thanks!

Beautiful. So talented.

I do have a question that you've likely addressed. I have enough straight poplar with minimal knots to build with. I also have enough white oak, but with many small knots to build with. Other than the knots being difficult to work with, are there any other issues? I'm 51, figure to live out here.

Noah, is this a crazy idea: I live in Kentucky and within an hour any direction from my home there are many roadside stones the size of a football, basketball, some bigger some smaller. I'm not planning to build the home for 3 or 4 years. I'm wondering that as long as it's not beside the highway and unsafe; if on a early Sunday morning I take a country drive in my pickup truck and just make it a easy relaxing gathering of stone. I'm not talking about on private property and I'm thinking 6:30 or 7:00 Sunday morning casual drive as I have so much time before building. Otherwise, I'm just watching for some new construction where they're clearing the land. I'm thinking because a contractor has to get rid of them anyway. - Thoughts?

Although I'm planning 3-4 years before building, does it make sense to gather materials? For example, finding old windows at a yardsale that in my convenience I can de-&-re construct to be good windows (I really like the wavy old glass), or a Facebook marketplace 50+ year old porcelain barn sink at a good price. - I feel like I'm being a pack rat

MY HOME WAS BUILT IN 1932 AND RAIL ROAD TIES ARE THE WALLS, HOME : SO FAR ITS WORKED GREAT: IM NOT AFRAID OF FALL OUT, OR HIGH HEAT BY NUKES: WERE ROCKING IN WYOMING: TOXIC PERHAPS: BUT THE MAN WHO BEGAN THIS PROJECT OF OUR HOMESTEAD DID NOT DIE OF CANCER, NOR DI HE DIE YOU HE WAS 90, AND WE DID A NEW WELL ITS A BIT SODA, BUT IT CLEAN AND IM GONNA DO REVERSE OSMOSSA IN THE MAIN LINE ... 30 MILES FROM TOWN AND WELL DEFENDABLE. " I THINK WERE FINE"

@user-po7cq6cl2z I don't understand why a homeowner would go with any kind of fake stone instead of real stone. When we were building our home we wanted to do a stone facing on our fireplace (inside) which was an area of 6 feet wide and 18 feet tall. When we went to the place selling stone, you walked into a showroom with about 3 dozen brands of fake stone. I told the guy we wanted real stone and he walked us outside to 3 large piles of different kinds of rocks. I asked him why he had dozens of kinds of fake stones and only 3 kinds of real stone. He said - let me tell you a secret - we are in the business of selling the stone but not installing it. No matter how fancy, fake stone is just colored cement. Its very cheap to make and the markup on the material is very high and, compared to real stone, its relatively easy and cheaper to install. Real stone is relatively inexpensive as its mostly in its raw state but its very labor intensive and the labor has to be highly skilled. So there was no incentive to push the real stuff, just the fake stuff. Whereas, because the stone is so cheap, masons can charge more and be fairly compensated for their work. Also builders use the fake stuff simply because they are building a lot of houses and the labor to build with real stone is expensive and hard to find. So re cost, it always seemed like a wash to us. But everyone pushes the fake stuff because the stores and manufactures make money and builders can find more folks with the skill level (which is still not low) to them install it. But, manufactured by God, nothing beats the look of real stone. You can spot the difference from a mile away.

the one you have.

I built a log cabin from a kit. Lot of work, very rewarding experience. Always keep in mind that they are HIGH maintenance if you want to keep it nice.

do or don't use permchink??

Sitting in my apartment with too many issues considering retreating into nature and building a stone castle in the woods. I have no masonry experience, just a dream. 😌

Corners absolutely affect insulation, corners are tough to insulate, and the complex truss segments end up to be more expensive and time consuming to to properly insulate. Drywall is more, as there is more cuts, more corner bead, and more finish time on those corners. Siding, there is more labor and material for corner trims, more cuts for siding material. Trusses are more complex, so they cost more, same with soffit/fascia, and gutters, even roof sheeting and shingles, because you end up with more valleys and ridges with more corners. you are WAY OFF Base on this.

Regarding concrete. I looked back at the invoices and quotes from 3 poured foundation contractors over the last 2 build, and they each have a separate line item for corners. There is additional labor and parts for the Form-A-Drain around the footings, there is more labor and different form sets for corners. The cost increases from footing to the last shingle is $10-15K per corner.

I live in the lesser Himalayas. And I want to alter my existing concrete home according to the advice of this channel. ❤

I am a certified Virginia stone mason who lives in Tucson Az now...I like your video

Cool

I'm looking for a video to answer are your logs square (or taller rectangle) and the exterior chinking is angled for rain run-off to not cause rot or are the logs also cut with, for example, 1/4" top recess so water runs down the log to a drip edge so that water doesn't settle or run-in to the chinking or top of the log beneath it? Thank you for your work and your teaching

Life in a cave. That is what a stone home is.

Can I please get a follow up video on how well your custom mix wood sealer held up outdoors?

Black Spruce in my opinion. Nova Scotia.

My dad was into the buckskin mountain man circuit. The old fort in Fort Wayne IN got rebuilt back in the 80s. First thing dad said after he saw how the changing was done is that they done it wrong. Instead of it going from the underside of the top log to going over the top of the bottom one the hollow between the logs was filled then it went on the outside of both. Like dad said when it rains the water will get trapped between the chinking and the log when it runs down the side. Dad said in roughly 20 years it would need rebuild again. Dad was a history buff was in the living history reenactments he knew what he was talking about in most history subjects. When the contractors that was hired to rebuild the fort was informed about their mistake, I even heard them say, they stated that they were the experts and knew what they were doing. Part of the structure has been removed since then because of ro and not rebuilt due to cost. The experts didn't care they got paid and it made it between 15-20 years before needing re-done again

Cheer~~a narrow opening or crack, typically one that admits light.😊

Interesting perspective… Irish stone cottages do have really thick walls, but they also have really small windows. ICF homes can take advantage of modern glazing and be very light-filled and very warm. Again Irish homes are only warm because of the big fire in the middle!!

Whats cinking ?

M

Like a log cabin, wouldnt it make sence to build a solid thick enough 1 wall that acts as both in and outside so you wont get moisture spots? Log cabins tend to be pretty mold proof because of the solid wall structrure rather than layered.

As a log home building professional, you ruined those cabins with the shiplap😢

What do you think of stone on the exterior and hempcrete on the interior?

Where can I get the plans?

Fantastic job....

the creasote is tox but for the post is ok

As a Canadian, I want to say how much I wish we only had to go down 18” for foundations. OMG that would be nice. We even have to do 4’ for fence posts and decks, so that the frost can’t make them heave.

No I won't buy wood at a store when there is perfectly good free wood waiting to be used.

This is the dream!

Upshot way more than prefab. Location, permits, materials, labor, utilities, inspections...but wouldnt be 'builders' if didnt enjoy the process.

Very true ! You hit the nail on the head. To have heavy equipment. You NEED to be a mechanic or have instant access to a mechanic. Not at all related to building houses !!

I have a lot of aspen in my area in Interior Alaska. Ive thought about building a hand hewn home. Wondered how it would last

If you saw yellow (Tulip) poplar for siding undercut the bottom of the board atleast a 22.5° or more of an angle. The long side being to the outside to shed rain water. I found this on all the old barns in TN where I lived as a teenager.

Shut up and it 😅

Great video. Please don't give local Governments an out for usurping our money, freedoms and power. I'm as old as you and you are spot on correct to challenge the expansion of Government over our individual freedoms like home building. I'm a self employed contractor for Govt agencies. When you mentioned covering their costs to generate your permits, it reminded me of listening to county employees complaining about their time in a freedom of information request. Exclaiming they should pay for their time. My thoughts, we need a reality check. Our taxes already pay their salaries, great benefits and pensions. This concept of paying for their time is absurd and dependent on us gullible enough to accept this additional expense (Just another tax) as something we haven't paid for already.

Good points. Thankyou! Snakes & possible mildew. 😆 Good to know! Andthanks for sharing the way around that.

He's so biased.