Featured Log Builder: Expedition Log and Timber Homes

Choosing the Right Log Builder

Chances are if you love log houses, you've probably also dreamed of having one of your own one day. Choosing a log builder is a huge part of that process, so it's great to have a look around and see what each company offers. With thousands of log builders all around the world, it pays to do your research and find the log builder that not only aligns with your vision for the log home design but also your values. Expedition Log and Timber Homes is a beautiful company that aims to please their customers while remaining as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible in both their designs and their building and manufacturing processes. They will assist customers in finding a plan that is the closest to their design concept, or they can create an entirely new floor plan from scratch. Expedition Log and Timber Homes uses kiln dried logs in all of their log home building packages. Logs that are adequately dried will be far more resistant to mould and insects which will keep them intact for years to come reducing the number of repairs that need to be done. The company uses hand scribing methods for all of the logs in their homes which gives them that classic and traditional log house appearance. Plus, all of their materials come from sustainable tree farms that have the earth in mind.

Founders and Craftsmanship

The log builders offer half logs as another option which give the appearance of fully rounded logs but come at a lower price than the full logs, but would still have similar benefits to full round logs. Expedition Log and Timber Homes was founded in 2000 by McCabe Garcia, Jan Koepsell and Greg Grimes who all share a passion for log and timber homes. All three of them were seasoned log home builders when they created their business and they all still work full time at the company alongside their professional and talented team. They are adamant in creating the most beautiful handcrafted log homes and timber frame homes doing all of the work themselves by hand. Using traditional tools like a drawknife, they are able to shape logs the same way that people did in the past which creates that timeless tradition look. People can even visit the workshop where the log homes are created and see the craftspeople at work. Each of the log builders at Expedition has ongoing training and are all Certified Log Graders which ensures the quality of these homes.

Custom Log Home Plans

The log builders have a bunch of great log home plans on their website, including plans for the homes you see here. So if you like any of these homes, you can find the matching plan on their website. Besides choosing the log home plan you want for your own home, you can also choose the type of corner joint. It might not seem like a big deal, but the corner joint style can really change the look of a home. So it's the details that will make your home one of a kind. The log builders at Expedition offer a range of corner joint styles including Full Round Butt & Pass Corner which is their most popular style having the full round log ends. The Traditional Butt & Pass Corner creates that "cabin in the woods" look with the flat tops on the logs and rounded sides. The Handcrafted Saddlenotch creates a more tightly connected corner which looks really solid and creates stability. The Timber Dovetail is for a more squared log look, and the D-Log Dovetail incorporates the best of the rounded log and square log. There is also the Square Vertical, Square Timber Corner, Hand-Scribed Saddlenotch, Round Vertical Post and Swedish Cope Saddlenotch Corners so it all just depends on the style of the log home and what will fit best.