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LOG HOME DREAM GONE BAD
AFTER MUCH HOMEWORK AND PLANNING....WE PURCHASED A FINELY CRAFTED AND VERY TIGHT 1800 SQ FOOT "RIPPLE CRAFT" LOG HOME 10 YRS AGO.THE HOUSE ITSELF IS GORGEOUS, INSIDE ALL SOUTHWEST AND WESTERN FURNISHINGS WINCHESTERS AND NAVAJO ITEMS ABOUND. THIS OWNERSHIP HAS TURNED FROM DREAM TO NIGHTMARE. ONE POINT IS MAINTANACE. LOG HOME MAINTANACE IS A NIGHTMARE IN ITSELF, AND COSTLY TOO (HOUSE WAS ALWAYS STAINED WITH TWP A VERY GOOD PROCUCT) PROBLEM IS SOMETHING ALWAYS NEEDS STAINING.LARGE DECK SEEMS TO NEED STAIN YEARLY AS DOES THE GAZEBO ROOF (CEDAR SHAKES) SECOND POINT IS A HOUSE MADE OF WOOD WILL BE ATTACKED BY EVERY KIND OF CRITTER KNOWN THAT LOVE WOOD. BATS,(BAT DROPPINGS ARE TOXIC) CARPENTER ANTS, CARPENTER BEES (WHICH I HAVE YET TO CONTROL EVEN WITH PROFESSIONAL HELP)..COONS, POSSUMS, WOODPECKERS DRILLING FOR BUG LARVAE., WASPS, NESTING BIRDS AND SPIDERS (BROWN RECLUSE TOO) OF ALL VARIETY. MICE GALORE AND ALL THE FILTH THEY BRING REARING THIER FAMILIES.AFTER BEING BITTEN BY A BAT AND A WOLF SPIDER (BOTH SENT ME TO THE ER), I RARELY GO OUT AT DUSK. I KILL BATS WITH RAT GLUE BOARDS, BUT THEY JUST KEEP COMING AS DO ALL THESE PESTS YEAR AFTER YEAR AFTER YEAR, EVEN WITH NUMEROUS CHEMICAL TREATMENTS.... BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR, YOU MAY GET IT AND REGRET IT...... GIVE ME BRICK OR VINYL ANYDAY. I WANT OUT !
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Michael Boomgarden on -
Don, there's a chemical that will solve all these problems. It's found in Scotch whisky. Here's how you do it:
Pour yourself a wee dram. Swish it around in the glass a bit, examining the color and sheen. Take a moment or two to inhale deeply with your mouth open. Enjoy the scents. Try to discern the nuances. Now, take a sip. Hell, just down the whole thing.
Repeat this process. Again and again and again. Until you forget about the spiders and the ants and the raccoons and the possums. This is a guaranteed solution. Ironclad. One-hundred percent effective.
And, before you say anything, you're welcome.
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Permalink Reply by don sigler on -
MIKE. THANKS FOR THE ADVICE AND CHEMICAL PRESCRIPTION. I KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE THAT IT WOULD AND DOES WORK. PROBLEM IS I'VE BEEN SOBER FOR ALMOST A YEAR.......REGARDS DON
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Permalink Reply by Michael Boomgarden on
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Well, it appears I'm speaking to an expert on this course of chemical remediation. Best of luck with your continued sobriety; I know it's a challenge.
As far as the rest of it goes, I can't provide much meaningful advice, except to note that critters don't like open spaces. If you're having this many pest problems, is it possible that the vegetation around your home is overgrown? What was different about your home before these issues started?
Also, I'm not much of an expert in natural ecosystems, but you're taking out a serious insect predator by killing the bats.
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Permalink Reply by don sigler on
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MIKE, THANKS FOR YOUR REPLY...THE HOUSE ITSELF IS CLEAR OF ANY INVITING CRITTER DRAWS. MANY TREES TOO HAVE BEEN REMOVED AT NO SMALL COST. AS FOR BATS IAM AWARE OF THE BENEFITS THEY PROVIDE. BUT ONCE BITTEN THERE IS A SERIES OF TEN "MEDICAL" RELATED SHOTS THAT ARE GIVEN TO AVOID RABBIES, EVEN IF NOT BITTEN BUT BRUSHED OR TOUCHED NEAR THE FACE BATS VAPORIZE THIER SALIVA WHICH CAN BE INHALED BY HUMANS AND PASS RABBIES THAT WAY. IF I MUST KILL TO LIVE HERE...KILL I WILL BEST REGARDS DON
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Permalink Reply by Raymond Wengerd on
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The problem I see with your maintenance issue, is somebody convinced you that TWP is a very good product. If you have bats, rats or mice in your home you are probably the product of a kit company, and some well intending backyard builder did the honors. Larvae, carpenter ants, and all wood dwelling insects are easily and affordably treated.
As for the possums and the racoons and the other barrage of animals, maybe you carry a vibe that is just attractive to animals,and you just need an unnatural material seperating you from them, such as vinyl and drywall!
Like anything else. Log Home maintenence is easy, if you know how.
Ray Wengerd
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Permalink Reply by don sigler on
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RAY.......DO YOU HAPPEN TO BE ITH LOG HOME BUSINESS...I'M NEW HERE, SO I DON'T KNOW MANY FOLKS AND MY KNOWLEDGE ON LOG HOMES IS LIMITED. I'D HATE TO THINK "RIPPLE CRAFT" GREASED ME...THEY ARE NOT A HUGE COMPANY BUT SEEM TO MAKE A DESCENT HOME AS FAR AS I SHOPPED AROUND.....REGARDS DON
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Permalink Reply by Jackie Pinkston on -
I'm going to agree in unison with Raymond Wengerd regarding your stain. There may be some log homes out there somewhere that were stained with TWP and do not have any problems. . .but I haven't seen them yet. I don't agree with the problem being "a kit company". The homes I've done restoration on that were kit homes were very tight. Most are milled very efficiently alleviating problems. I'm not familiar with ripple craft so I don't know what moisture content was still in the logs when your home was built, but if it was high and settling & shrinkage occurred during the last years, you would have problems. Have you contacted ripple craft and talked to them about your concerns? Jackie Pinkston
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Permalink Reply by don sigler on
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RAY. TWP OR "TOTAL WOOD PROTECTION " HAS PERFORMED WELL ON OUR "RIPPLE CRAFT" HOME. ADDITIONALLY THE YEARLY NUMBER OF PROTECTION ON THE FIRST RESTAIN WAS 9YRS. ALSO THE HOME WAS NOT BUILT BY "SOME BACKYARD BUILDER" AS YOU PUT IT BUT TO THE CONTRARY "RIPPLE CRAFT" SUPPLIED THIER OWN CREW FOR THE CONSTRUCTION. PERHAPS YOUR NOT FAMILIAR WITH THESE FOLKS. ITS MY UNDERSTANDING RIPPLE CRAFT AND GASTINAU LOG HOMES AMONG OTHERS RECCOMEND TWP.................................. THANKS DON
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Permalink Reply by Rachelle and Peter Talbot on -
Hi Don
Hopefully, I can be of some help to your dilemma. We live in the middle of 5 acres of beautiful forest, in a 1450 sq.ft. 8" round log home and of course we have deer, racoons, wild turkey and many species of beauitful birds. One "bird" that became an issue for us were bats. As you know, they are essential as they eat over 1,000 insects an hour, a lot more than I could get rid of, so we researched how we could share the 5 acres and all of us live peacefully doing what we were created for. We bought bat houses and placed them at the right height on trees away from the house and they eventually found these homes, and were quite content to leave our home alone.
We have lived in all types of homes in our lifetime and they all need maintenance. Vinyl ones need washing twice a year to remove black residue that comes from the roof shingles, eaves troughs, downspouts, and free radical deposits, not to mention the color fading on different sides of the house, stone and brick needed re-pointing when mortar started drying up and talk about places for spiders to build homes. The roughness of mortar is a perfect element for spiders to cling to. Our log homes need tender loving care as well. I used to get bent out of shape with maintenance until I realized that if I was exposed day and night to all the elements our homes get exposed to, I would need a major overhaul.
We have been successful at keeping both our log homes looking beautiful and fresh since the year 2000 and 2004 (vacation rental VRBO.com/355406) respectively. The key is to nip it in the bud before it gets to be a huge issue, kind of like maintaining your car. We walk around our house and deal with issues as we discover them and it hasn't been a big task. We have an 8" round and a 12" hand hewn and both were sprayed with Woodguard from the very first coat. Inside the 5 gallon pail of Woodguard we mixed NBS 30 which is a natural insecticide and Stay-Clean I/E™Mildewcide Paint Additive. We have had no issue with boring bees and the one attack we had from a woodpecker was because one spot had been missed on one window trim and we touched it up - problem solved. The important part to remember as well, is to make sure you know what you have as far as finish on an existing log home you might buy. When products are combined that don't marry well, your are wasting your money, and you will not get the protection you need. At one point in our log home experience, the Woodguard factory had a fire and until their plant was rebuilt, we had to find another product that we could apply over the Woodguard that would work. We researched and found another penetrating oil product called Sansin and that product is very good as well.
The penetrating oil will soak into the log until point of refusal and it can be sprayed on until it spits back at you, then a stroke of the brush to wipe off the excess along with your NBS 30 and mildewcide has kept our homes looking beautiful. We also found that the areas protected by covered porches did not need retouching as often as walls on the southern side and those fully exposed to the elements. The nice part about a penetrating product, as you go through the years and it is absorbed the wood you tend to need less at future applications.
As for all the other critters you mention above, it sounds like you could charge admission. We have an old pallet in the middle of the woods and we covered it with a left over piece of Advantech and placed shelled corn on there, and hung our bird feeders away from the house as well. We can enjoy watching the deer and the coons and the birds eat from afar and they eventually make that area their limit. They don't come any closer to the house anymore.
As for mice, the Co-Op store has a great product HAVOC. Our home is on a crawl space and we throw bags under the house, and if one escapes we have the wall plugs that work quite well for us.
I hope this information is useful for you, and my desire for you is that you will get some relief from your ordeals real soon, whatever solution you choose.
Rachelle
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Rachelle
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Permalink Reply by don sigler on
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RACHELLE, I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR YOUR INSIGHT AND ALL THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDED. HOWEVER IN VIEW OF MY WIFE'S BREAST CANCER AND ME GETTING UP IN AGE WE HAVE DECIDED TO TRY TO SELL .......BEST REGARDS DON
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Permalink Reply by Greg Beck on -
No doubt log homes are a maintenance nitemare, if you ever need to kill a coon or opossum ( where is spell check when ya need it ) try my secret recipe, golden brand fly bait crystals ( available at your local farm stores ) used to mass murder pig stall flies, add some grape jelly and soda to the mix, they love the sweet toxic mix, gets them every time, dont let the dog taste it, lol. Good luck on the sale
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Permalink Reply by Rachelle and Peter Talbot on
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Hi Don
I am so sorry to hear that your wife is battling breast cancer. We designed and built a home for a customer to moved to our area, and shortly after she retired and got settled in, she also battled breast cancer. She was placed in my life so we could go through this together, and I am pleased to say that through almost one year of treatments, she has been cancer free for the past two years. I will keep you both in our prayers, and look froward to the day when you will e-mail back saying that your house has sold and that your wife has had victory over her battle with cancer. Take care of each other.
Rachelle
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