new to site but avid reader of the mag. saw a picture some time ago of an appalachian style log house built with 8×12 timbers. anybody have some experience with this style and/or techniques of building. we have property in northern alberta and have plenty of big aspen trees on my farm and they are just everywhere. most people want them removed for nothing and just wondering how one goes about using this type or species of tree. also a fair amount of tamarack available but they don’t get that big to cut that size of timber. i feel we need at least 8″ of wall as about 2 weeks ago we dipped down to -44 and -46 on two days and that makes one wonder why would i build a house here in the first place. any info would be great and thanks in advance.
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Aspen's not a particularly good building wood for what you want to do. It may get squirrely as it dries and has very little decay resistance.
Tamarack, on the other hand, is a superb building material and I've seen a lot of log houses built with it. You might want to inquire around your locale for others who have experience with these types of wood used in a cold climate. A log building will not have the insulating value of the heavier squared wall you are considering, yet they are common in cold climates.
What I'm getting at is that a smaller dimension sawed tamarack beam may be more efficient than a tamarack log home when constructed with good sealant between the courses.
Dittoes, Notchman. I wouldn't waste my time building with poplar.
Somebody might say they would because blah blah but the better poplar is the southern grown, not what would be found up north there. That stuff is a weed tree. It has gallons of water in it and takes a couple years to dry, in which time it is punky or rotting. not even much value as firewood because you have an eight month window between dry and rotten and even then, it has so much ash that you are carrying out one bucket of ash for every two armfulls of wood carried in.
People are always trying to give it away to the unsuspecting - almost like summer zuchinis.
Excellence is its own reward!