The Owner-Built Log House: Living in Harmony With Your Environment

Log houses inspire fascination across most of North America. They evoke a simpler time - a tradition of independence and self-sufficiency missing in today's high-tech world. But a log house does not have to be a fantasy. Ownership is within the means of almost anyone reasonably handy with tools.

Allan Mackie believes - and demonstrates - that attitude is at least as important as carpentry skills. Given a will to learn and a desire to make something of one's own, the average person is more than capable of building a log house that will serve an individual, a couple or a family for years to come.

In this profusely illustrated book, the author takes the reader step-by-step through the building process - the selection of land, the purchase and preparation of the logs, the sharpening of tools and the cutting, lifting and fitting of logs, and all the other steps involved. With hundreds of photographs and detailed diagrams and drawings, The Owner-Built Log House is much more than a how-to guide. It is nothing less than a testament to the belief that where there is a will for self-reliance, there is the possibility of achieving it.

As a unique feature of the book, the author takes us through his current building project on a 100-acre wilderness site. The reader experiences the entire process - from buying land right up to moving in and spending that first winter.

Chapters include:

• Purpose in Building a Log House
• The Building Tree
• Making a Set of Plans
• How Long Will It Take and How Much Will It Cost
• Good Site, Good Tools, Good Work
• Log Walls
• Notches of All Kinds
• A Roof Over Your Head
• Windows, Doors and Stairs
• Interior and Finishing Touches.

Allan Mackie, the author of many books on log building, is recognized around the world as one of the foremost builders of log houses. The founder of the B. Allan Mackie School of Log Building, he teaches log building not only throughout North America but also in Europe and Asia.