1. TRADITIONAL LOG CARVING AND LOG CONSTRUCTION Text and pictures: Esa Eloranta and Pirita Yliaho

2. WHAT IS A LOG? Building material for walls Strong (solid wood) At least 70 mm thick 2 Picture: Pirita Yliaho

3. IN FINLAND LOGS ARE A TRADITIONAL CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL 3 Picture: Esa Eloranta

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7. 7 WHY ARE LOGS A GOOD CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL? Wood is a renewable natural material Recyclable Good quality lumber is available all over Finland Working with lumber does not consumer much energy Wood has good advantages as a construction material: -Good insulation properties, warm  small requirement for heating energy -Good humidity controller -Durable -Easy to work with - Esthetical -Traditional -Characteristic -Breathable  good indoor air  suitable for those with allergies -Does not contain static electricity  prevents the formation of dust  suitable for those with allergies

8. WOOD QUALITY Handicraft  good trees –The work part is large –The proportion of the raw material costs from the final cost is small –Good quality raw material speeds up work  Price is not so crucial Characteristics of good quality raw materials: –Conicalness under 1 cm/m –Some of the logs must be large! –There can be some slightly crooked logs –The bad logs are handled first and cut –No branches are an advantage –Easy to carve –Generally larger –Easy to work with (notch and groove) –In Finland from a dryish forest or even sparser land –Tree size 1.Symmetry appearance 2.Process ability 3.Walls are constructed quicker from strong logs 4.Price (it is worth paying for good quality) 8

9. 9 SPECIES OF TREES FOR LOG CARVING IN FINLAND Pine Spruce Dry wood (pine) Aspen Larch Pictures: Esa Eloranta

10. 10 DRY WOOD (PINE) Pictures: Esa Eloranta

11. 11 ASPEN Pictures: Esa Eloranta

12. WOOD PROCUREMENT Take notice of during timber harvesting: Harvest time –Not during growth season –October - March - April –Temperature permantely under 5 degrees While felling the most suitable logs are chosen from all the trees  best way Felling is man’s work, not by machine (moto) During felling and transportation avoid: –Surface damage –Stones –Other trees –Cracks –Getting the logs dirty As tall trunks as possible or cut to the exact length according to the architect’s plan  no waste bits 12

13. 13 LOG TYPES Pictures: Esa Eloranta

14. 14 SHAPE Round log Rectangular log ( = sawn log ) Oval log Pictures: Esa Eloranta

15. 15 PRODUCTION METHOD “Hand” carved Machine produced Pictures: Esa Eloranta

16. 16 MATERIAL / STRUCTURE Pictures: Esa Eloranta “Solid wood”Glue-laminated structure ( = engineered logs )

17. 17 SURFACE QUALITY / TREATMENT “Unworked” (dry wood) Carved (round log) Sawn (rectangular) Planed (planed log) Axed (rectangular) By hatchet Machined Pictures: Esa Eloranta

18. 18 TYPES OF NOTCHES Straight corner Examples: Short corner Example : Pictures: Esa Eloranta

19. 19 TYPES OF NOTCHES Interlocking saddle notch Cross corner Dovetail corner Feather corner Lock corner Viking corner Tooth edge corner Etc… Pictures: Esa Eloranta

20. 20 Log (building material made from at least 70mm thick trunk) Notch (corner joints between logs) Groove, scribe (the remaining seam between logs on top of each other) Seal, caulking, oakum (insulation used between the logs’ seam e.g. Linen) Dowelling, pegging (prevention of the logs in the log wall from moving sideways by joining the logs resting on top of each with dowels.) Spline (construction element attached to a door, window or firewall. A spline allows the movement of structures relative to each other that occurs through log wall sinking. The spline keeps the end of the log wall straight Cracking (wood’s natural characteristics lead to dry shrinkage. As the log dries, cracks are created along the length of the beam. Cracking can be controlled by working the log by, the so called crack groove.) Droop (the dry shrinkage and weight load of the wood and insulation of the seams lead to the walls sinking.) Hatchetting, hatchet (the treatment of a log wall by a heavy hatchet or by machine. Hatchetting straightens and closes the surface of the wood and prolongs the age of the log.) TERMS

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22. 22 Picture: Esa Eloranta LOG CARVING TOOLS

23. 23 Dowling holes are made by a long drill bit  logs are kept in place by dowels Hatchet Pictures: Pirita Yliaho

24. 24 THE BARK IS STRIPPED by draw knife or by curved based planer Pictures: Pirita Yliaho

25. 25 WORKING THE NOTCHES AND GROOVES Pictures: Pirita Yliaho

26. 26 Picture: Esa Eloranta

27. 27 RIDGE BEAM INSTALLATION Picture: Pirita Yliaho

28. 28 SPLINES ARE ATTACHED TO WINDOWS AND DOORS Picture: Esa Eloranta

29. 29 THE LOGS ARE LABELED BEFORE BEING MOVED Picture: Esa Eloranta

30. 30 FENCE Picture: Esa Eloranta

31. 31 SIGNPOST MADE FROM LOGS Picture: Esa Eloranta

32. 32 INFORMATION BOARD MADE FROM LOGS Picture: Esa Eloranta

33. 33 MAKING DUCKBOARDS Picture: Esa Eloranta

34. 34 DUCKBOARDS Picture: Esa Eloranta

35. 35 PATH Picture: Esa Eloranta

36. 36 BRIDGE Picture: Esa Eloranta

37. 37 PICNIC TABLE AND BENCHES Picture: Esa Eloranta

38. 38 RESTING PLACE Picture: Esa Eloranta

39. 39 LEAN-TO Picture: Pirita Yliaho

40. 40 As you probably have noticed, logs are an ecological and versatile building material Picture: Esa Eloranta