With winter behind us, the time has come for one of the most loathed traditions – spring cleaning. While it is great to clean the inside of the house, spring is also a good time to perform maintenance on your home’s exterior as well. In contrast to common misperceptions, maintenance on a log home is very similar to maintenance on any other home. There are some unique maintenance items, just as a wooden shingle roof has different maintenance from an asphalt roof or a stainless-steel countertop requires different maintenance than a marble one. In order to help you complete all of your maintenance items, it is best to keep a checklist of items to complete. Here are some maintenance items to keep in mind this time of year.
Protect Your Log Home’s Exterior
Spring is a good time to make sure that your log walls will look and function great for years to come. If you have any checks that have developed in the logs, then filling them with caulk (the kind made specifically for log walls) will help ensure your home will stay sealed against the elements. Also, spring is a great time to reapply stain. If you have a semitransparent stain you will need to reapply stain every three years or so, while transparent stains may need to be reapplied every year. In either case, wait until the nighttime temperature is consistently above 40 degrees to ensure there is no frost on the walls when you refinish them.
Trim Plants Away From the Home
Keeping plants away from the home enables the ground around the foundation to remain dry. This practice also decreases the amount of water that splashes on the logs and helps protect the finish. Trim shrubs and plants at least three feet from the walls.
Adjust Settlement Jacks
As we discussed previously, settling will be an issue that is most apparent in the first few years after construction. Spring is a great time to adjust your jacks to ensure that your house remains square and true. You can read the whole post on Managing Settling in the Log Home here.
Check Your Roof and Gutters
Depending on your location and winter, a great deal of debris can accumulate on your roof. Now is the best time to inspect the condition of your roof and remove any debris like pine needles and branches that may have fallen in the winter. If your shingles need repair or replacement, then you can schedule a fix now before roofing contractors become busy. Flushing out your gutters is recommended to make sure that they will not back up and cause water damage.
Switch over HVAC system for summer
Once the heating season is over, you should prepare your HVAC system for the summer. Replace your furnace filters and reverse your ceiling fans for summer operation. If your air conditioner seemed weak last year, it may be a good idea to check the coolant charge to see if more coolant is needed before the hot months of summer arrive.
The final step of course is to sit back and relax in the comfort of your well-maintained log home. Taking care of maintenance now means you’ll be ready to enjoy the sunny days of summer barbecues when the hot weather comes (and it can’t get here soon enough given this winter!). If you have any questions about log home maintenance or are interested in building a new log home, please call Real Log Homes today or fill out the form below for more information.
