Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
The Blue Valley Ranch is three rustic cabin buildings, each of which are remotely sited, and spread out across a vastly sized working ranch. The ranch is located in Northern Colorado at an elevation of approximately 8,000 feet. The building materials used for these rustic log cabin builds include logs that were salvaged from an 1820's Ohio cabin building, Timmerhus windows and antique doors. Timmerhus provided the timber frame design and cabin building construction.
Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
Timmerhus are a full-service architectural design firm who draw upon their experience in handcrafted cabin building, site planning, historical preservation, and state-of-the-art environmental detailing to produce some of the most beautiful cabin designs that begin with a structural sensibility. They pride themselves on their twenty-five-year history of utilizing reclaimed wood as a building material to help build structures that are both ecologically sound and incorporate the charm and history inherent in old reclaimed wood. They built their first passive solar home design back in 1986, and they have kept on top of the latest technological advances. Some of their recent work includes SIPs, solar electric, geothermal, solar hot water, off-grid power systems, and passive solar.
Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
The beauty of these rustic cabin building designs is in that they look as though they have stepped out of a page in history. They are rustic and full of authentic charm in thanks to the use of reclaimed building materials, and the craftsmanship of the architectural design team who have experience in historical preservation and handcrafted building. Using reclaimed wood in your rustic cabin buildings offers an environmental benefit. Most people know how deforestation has left fewer trees available in the forests, woods, and jungles, so it's important to preserve what trees are left.
Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
Building materials made from reclaimed wood do just that because they are recycling old wood, which prevents the need for further trees to be cut down. Another benefit of using reclaimed wood is something that often gets forgotten about, and that's the benefit to the woodland animals in the forests. Many creatures rely on the trees to both live in and to feed on. Birds nest in the leaves of trees while insects feed on the bark and squirrels eat the acorns.
Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
If too many trees are felled, these creatures could disappear from the woodlands and parks forever. Reclaimed wood is wider than newer wood. If you compare old wood flooring that was built at the turn of the century such as floors in Victorian and Edwardian homes with modern wood flooring you'll notice that the wooden planks in the newer floors are much more narrow. That's because the trees haven't been allowed to grow and reach their full size, and as a result, the wooden planks in newer flooring aren't as wide as those in reclaimed wood flooring.
Blue Valley Ranch - Three Rustic Log Cabins in Northern Colorado
Age gives the reclaimed timber more durability and strength. The reason reclaimed wooden flooring is much stronger and last longer than new timber flooring is because the older wooden flooring is less likely to split. The reason less splitting is that the wood has been exposed to both hot and cold temperatures for so long that it's already done with all the expanding and contracting that it's ever going to do. The reclaimed wood is already dried out and won't dry out any further.