Log Cabin Leaks

Log Cabin Leaks

A log cabin that leaks is no good at all. A leaky cabin will deteriorate much faster than one that sheds the water effectively.

Fortunately, most leaks can be designed out of a log cabin. Sufficient overhang on the eves all around the cabin will afford greater protection to the cabin walls. An adequate slope on the roof and well-fitted guttering and drainage will take the rainwater where you want it – away from the cabin.

However well you plan your log cabin design though, water has a knack of finding its way in somewhere!

One obvious potential weakpoint are the window and door frames. Most log cabin kits come with the window and doors supplied as complete units with the glazing pre-sealed in the frames. All that remains is for the assembler to treat them with wood preserver and slot them in position. What can possibly go wrong with that?

Log Cabin Window

Leaking Log Cabin Window

Well within one season the lower sash of one of the window frames failed on this reviewer’s Lugarde log cabin. Rainwater, particularly when driven under the eaves by the wind, penetrated the exterior seal at the bottom of the window frame, finally finding its way through the window frame and announcing itself as a steady drip onto the pine boards of the cabin floor.

What appears to have failed is the rubber sealing strip between the glass and the timber sash. The window in question is south facing so it may be that the sun has played a part in making the rubber strip or timber sash, or both, contract sufficiently to break the window seal and allow rainwater to penetrate.

Lugarde do offer a 5 year guarantee “on manufacture and construction errors” on all their log cabins. Although whether this particular log cabin leak is covered by the guarantee or results from “poor maintenance and/or wrong maintenance materials” which the manufacturer states invalidates the guarantee is open to question.

Assuming the leaking window would be covered under the guarantee, the owner would then have the hassle of replacing the window with a replacement one. The new window would not match the old one and would require treatment with wood preserver and primer, paint or wood stain as appropriate.

Faced with the cost in time and materials of replacing the leaky window, it may be better to simply repair it. Find a sealant to match the colour of the log cabin window frame, apply it with a sealant gun, and the job is done. No more leaking log cabin, till the next time…