Do you know the five most common signs that you need to do log home stain maintenance?
Identifying signs that it’s time to maintain your log home with a fresh coat of stain, or Cascade® Clear Coat is easy. Start by downloading this handy inspection guide to carry along with you as you perform your inspection as the very first step in your maintenance plan.
Loss of sheen
Most clear coats have a satin sheen when first applied, and while still in good shape. Over time, that clear coat or stain erodes due to weathering. Look at your home in the sun or take a flash light to it. If it looks a bit flat, it’s time for maintenance.
Color shifts in log Stain
Does your stain look darker than it did originally? Perhaps there’s some fading going on where it’s exposed to sun? Both are signs that your stain (and the UV filters in it) have worn off and need to be replenished.
Water not shedding
Break out the hose or a spray bottle. Is water still running down the logs? It should sheet off the wood, not bead up. Any areas where water isn’t “sheeting” well needs a fresh coat of stain or clear coat.
Dirt, pollen, bird poo, etc.
Over time, surface contaminants will eat away at the integrity of your stain. If you can see these contaminants, it’s time for a good wash down at least, and possibly time for more another coat of stain.
New micro checks and cracks in the wood
Have any new micro checks (the tiny cracks in the face of the logs themselves) appeared? If so, those are unprotected by stain and need to be treated! Left unprotected, they’ll allow moisture to come in that can compromise the integrity of the stain, not to mention invite rot. Make sure new micro checks are filled with stain or a your clear coat. (Important note: Make sure any crack that’s 1/4″ wide or larger on the upper curve of the log is caulked with ® or ®, not just stained.)
We have GREAT news! It’s only necessary to apply more stain and/or a clear coat where it’s needed, when it’s needed.
In some cases, the north and east sides of the home can be skipped the first time you maintain the south and west sides. They don’t get the same UV exposure and don’t tend to need care as soon. Any areas protected by an eave, overhang, or porch will likely require less maintenance over time, too. Proper planning and education will help you stay on top of your maintenance, so many times there’s no need to re-coat the whole darn house every time. (We’re all about saving the weekends for fun and relaxation, too.)
That’s it! Great job! You’ve determined what needs to be done to protect your log home come spring.
Need a little more guidance and help planning? No problem, our customer service team is always happy to help! Give us a call at 800-767-5656.
Mildew vs. Algae: Mildew growth on a log railing spindle…or is it algae? What is that black stuff growing on my house? Mildew, right? Well…maybe not.
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Want our top wood staining tips to make sure your home’s stain is applied correctly? You got it! In this month’s “Here to Help!,” enjoy tips that will have you staining like the pros!
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Living the Dream: How I Turned My Childhood Fantasy into a Beautiful Lake Log Home.
Ever since I was a young girl, I dreamed of having a place on a lake. I had fallen in love with water skiing at the age of nine when I got up on my first attempt. Before we “jumped in with two feet” and took the plunge to buy a place, we tested the waters by buying a condominium to see if we would really make use of a vacation home. After three short years in that condo, we had our answer! My childhood dream became a reality in 2007 when our family built our custom lake house.
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An adventure sparked by a childhood memories led to the purchase of a historic miner’s cabin.
The best years of my life have been in the mountains of southern California. A world away in just a couple of hours. Leaving behind the hustle and bustle of the city, you’re among the trees, animals, blue sky, and fresh air. I got this love of the outdoors from my dad. He had an old cabin right by Lake Arrowhead on the edge of the national forest.
As a teenager, my dad would let us go exploring for hours on end, bringing back the prize snake to scare mom. For my dad’s birthday (it was the last one before he passed), we took him back up to the lake. My dad was in heaven. I pictured myself in a log cabin with a Chesapeake Bay retriever, listening to country music and reading a good book.
1940 Miner’s Cabin
I cashed in every last cent of my savings and bought an 800 square foot rundown 1940 miner’s cabin which sat on a perfectly located lakefront lot. I loved that cabin for 9 years but squeezing 4 daughters and my wife into that little place wasn’t going to last long. So build we did. Throughout the building process, it gets a little crazy with all the decisions and details that crop up.
Surprisingly, choosing a stain brand and color seemed to be one of the hardest decisions. We did loads of research, really valuing the opinion of those whose business was staining log cabins. It seems we kept hearing, “Sashco is the best” but now we couldn’t decide between Transformation Stain® and Capture® and Cascade®.
The person I hired to do the staining was really pushing us hard to use Transformation Stain®. He told us that he loved the way it looked and lasted. Others told us the virtues of Capture® and Cascade®. I ‘threw a dart’ and went against the sub’s preference.
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Most people understand the importance of applying good skin care products that include sunscreen to help minimize sun damage, reduce skin discoloration, and keep skin protected and moisturized. Do you know that applying a UV-protected wood stain or maintenance coat of stain on your home does the same. Here’s an easy comparison for you to follow:
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There are extreme elements, and then there is Alaska. Nowhere do high-performance products face such harsh conditions as in Alaska. Discover why Manfred Nolywaika, owner of Northwood Enterprises in Fairbanks, calls Sashco products “Alaska-tough.”
In the Beginning
Shortly after my wife and I married in 1989, we attended a log building school in Canada (kind of a different honeymoon). Six weeks later, in the dead of winter with all our possessions in the back of a pickup truck, we arrived in Alaska and established a business constructing custom handcrafted log furniture. Towards the end of the eight year life of that business, I was installing a log handrail for a customer. He asked me if I could refinish two walls of his log house. That was 1997 and my first experience refinishing logs. It was also the birth of our log home refinishing and chinking business.
The Family Business
Here I am, 17 years later. The whole family has been involved with the family business in one way or another. Running a family-operated business has allowed me to earn a living while spending time with my family, a privilege few enjoy. In fact, my oldest son, Hans, works full time with me. Hans, like his older sister before him, started out in log restoration as a little guy, pulling plastic and tape from windows, vacuuming decks, cleaning windows, etc. Since most of our work season occurs during the summer months, our kids have helped me on the job since they were very young. (Olivia actually started out in a pack on my wife’s back during our log furniture days, and has since moved on to other things.) Hans started working with me full time when he was fifteen, finally strong enough to operate a disc grinder safely. Now barely twenty, he is fully capable of handling by himself any restoration project we might take on. At a time when good help is hard to find, it’s great to have a co-worker like Hans who has the same standard of quality as I do.
Our two oldest have been a tremendous asset to the business and we are blessed with two more, Josef and Noah, who are up and coming. I am especially thankful there are aspects of this work that our son Josef, who has Downs Syndrome, can do.
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