Specifications & Planning
Creating a log cabin, log house, or an office or annex from logs or timber usually has three stages:



Log Building Design.

Either choose one of the standard designs, Timber Frame or Log, on the web site or we will work with you to create a design for your building that exactly suits the purpose you have in mind. We have collected many designs over the years, and any of these could become the basis for your own building. We know these designs work, so meeting your requirements is made easier.

Good foundations prevent rising damp and the roof should keep water off the walls, so our designs incorporate foundations and roofs that take both location and use of your building into consideration. You can choose just about any roofing material you like – tiles, tin, shingles, thatch or even grass – as along as it keeps out the water and is not made of asbestos.

Not all log and timber building suppliers give you the flexibility in the design of your home.

Planning Approval

Once we have the design, depending on the size and use of your building, you will need to obtain planning approval from your local authority. This can be a very involved and time-consuming process, and some “log cabin” suppliers do not help with this. We can advise you, and will work with the planning department on your behalf.

See more about planning and building regulations.

Construction.

We always take care of construction for our clients. You can find log cabins that you erect yourself, but we don’t expect you to be expert builders, or to pick your way through building regulations. The traditional building skills we use take time to perfect, and because we build to recognised standards, your log house, log cabin, granny annex or home office will be a quality building constructed to last.

 

 
The traditional way of building we use:

• enhances the beauty of each individual piece of timber, and gives the finish product a unique and aesthetic finish.
• creates buildings that are extremely solid. Unlike log cabins made of flimsier material or less robust construction our buildings will not warp, move or shift.
• produces thermally efficient buildings, so they will keep your heating bills down in the winter, and provide you with somewhere cool in the summer. You can also add insulation to floors and roofs. See more about the properties of logs.
• gives rooms an acoustic quality which enriches sound, voices and music. Day-to-day clatter is muted as it does not echo around as on plaster or thinly constructed walls, so your building will remain a tranquil place in which to live or work.
• is an economical and environmentally friendly way of creating or extending your home or work space

Planning and building regulations

Log Homes ltd provides the information below in good faith and as a guide only. We always advise checking with the individual authority, as regulations may change or differ. Information is available from www.communities.gov.uk and from your local council.

Planning

Planning permission is generally not required if a building is for the use of the occupants and classed as incidental to the enjoyment of the main dwelling. If the purpose is intended for either business or accommodation, advice should be sought. Most council’s are very helpful and we advise always checking with the local planners first. Log Homes Ltd can provide you or the planning authority with any information on the construction of our buildings to assist in the planning process.

 
“Permitted development” is the right to carry out certain limited forms of development without the need to make an application for planning permission as granted under the terms of the town and country planning (general planning development) order 1995.

This means the building may be put in your garden without planning permission as long as the following criteria are met:

• The building is not in front of the building line, or if it is, then no closer than 20m from the nearest Highway (highway will include bridleway);
• The building is at least 5m away from the dwelling or any extension of the dwelling;
• The height of the building must not exceed 4m to the ridge (sometimes this may be 3m with a flat roof);
• The dwelling is not a listed building in an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB), a conservation area, or has any other restrictions upon it;
• The total ground covered by all outbuildings must not exceed 50% of the total area of the curtilage (excluding the ground area of the original building).
  In the above cases, you need confirmation from the local authority to ensure permitted development applies.

Building regulations

If the internal floor area exceeds 30m² or any part of the building is within 1m of the boundary, then building regulations approval may not be required ( your local planning office can advise). If the building is to be temporary (not more than 28 days) then no regulations apply.

The building regulations approval is needed for the structural calculations in accordance with the department of the environment (DOE).

About Log Building

Building with natural wood is a centuries-old, traditional craft. The early North American settlers were some of the most skilled builders of log houses, log cabins, and log shelters in the world. Their skills, which originated from Scandinavia in Europe, made use of the most natural and abundant building material – trees.

This way of building has survived into the 21st century because it is environmentally friendly and provides accommodation that is soothing to most of our senses.

In our modern age of building regulations, and with ‘green issues’ becoming more and more important, our log houses (with origins that precede most other types of building) tick more ‘green’ boxes than councils are asking for at present. Log Homes Limited houses offer arguably the best modern alternative available because of their many excellent characteristics – aesthetics, thermal insulation, exceptionally low embodied energy, environmental friendliness and naturally renewable.

Most asked questions
Q - How much do your Timber Frame and Log buildings cost?
A – We can provide you with kit prices for the standard models to give you a guide line. It is impossible to say without the full customer specifications, each project is considered on its own merit, a final complete price. As a rough guide, a log building usually costs between £700 and £800 m2 and a Timber Frame between £600 and £700 m2 complete and ready for you to move into. (These estimates do not include the cost of the building plot).
Q - Will I need planning permission?
A - Log and Timber Frame houses are subject to the same planning laws as a bricks & block house, if you submit an appropriate design and the site is suitable for a dwelling of this type and is within the permitted area for building, you have every chance of success. If you require assistance with your application for planning we will be only too please to offer assistance. All our buildings meet the full building and planning regulations for the UK.
Q  - Can I get a mortgage or loan on a Timber Frame or Log House? 
A  -Timber Frame houses are fully recognized as being suitable for mortgages and loans, There are companies who have specialists departments that will offer mortgages and loans on log houses also. We can put you in touch with companies who are specialists in these projects.
Q - Can I get insurance?
A –The same applies as with mortgages . We can put you in touch with insurance companies who offer insurance on both Timber Frame and Log Houses.
Q - How long will my house last?
A – Timber was probably the one of the first building materials to be used by man after we moved out of the caves. There are log buildings throughout the world that are over three hundred years old and Sweden’s oldest surviving log building was built in 1285 and log buildings in Finland that are over 150 years old and are still in daily use. There are other timber buildings throughout the world that are over three hundred years old. If you build and look after a good quality log cabin you can expect it to last for many generations to come. Timber Frame has been in use in various forms for 100’s years and for the last 100 years been accepted as the norm in the building industry.
 
Q – What is the fire risk on aTimber Frame or Log Cabin home? 
A – UK fire regulations specify the exact standards required for building materials in respect to fire safety. The Finnish Technical Research Centre have shown that, a log wall can withstand a fire with a temperature of up to 1100°C for 113 minutes – this is far in excess of UK legal requirements. We treat the internal walls of our log houses with a transparent application of class 'O' spread of flame retardant. Timber Frame houses are built with either 30 min's or 60 min's fire resistance as standard.
Q -What maintenance is required?
A – Log Cabins and Homes are like all timber buildings, requiring periodic maintenance to ensure they stay in the best condition. LogHomes Ltd recommend treating the external walls with three coats of  a good quality, environmentally friendly timber preservative, these will not need retreating for two years, when it is recommended applying another two top coats, after which you can leave it from 3/5 years before any further treatment will be necessary.
Q - How long will it take?
A - From you applying for planning permission to completion approx. 9 months.
Q - Do you offer to help with planning etc?
A - Yes, we can offer a package to suit, which can include full planning application and building control, please ask for a quotation.
Q - What is self build?
A - Self build means you have direct involvement in design, construction and all the other things to do with the self build of your new home. You do not have to be a builder to self build.
Q - Do you offer to build the complete project?
A - We can arrange to have your new home, office, factory etc. built for you if required.
Q - Do we have to accept your set designs or can we design our own home?
A - We can offer you set designs if required, but would prefer you designed your new home yourself with our assistance and advice.
Q - How much will I save with self building my own home?
A - You can save up to 25%, this will depend on many things, you are more likely to save in excess of 25% the more work you do yourself, on the other hand if you employ trades people to do it for you, you may have to be content in the knowledge that you will end up with a much better, more environmentally friendlier, warmer and more economical home with a much higher specification and one that will appreciate and hold it’s value.
Q - Do you supply to builders and the commercial sector?
A - Yes, we can supply for any Timber Frame project whatever the size, shape and design, we specializes in bespoke projects.
Both Timber Frame and Log buildings are used for Village Halls, Golf Clubs, Offices etc. these can be supplied in virtually any shape or size.