• Design involvement, input and assistance – We will be glad to work with your architectural design team or you may choose to work with an architectural design team we have experience with, some of whom we have been working with for over 35 years.
• Logs and Species we have personally selected, entirely hand peeled – I, Lloyd Beckedorf savor the time spent going out and picking every single log we craft into our homes, I closely check the growing characteristics, measure size and calculate the degree of spiral grain and the taper rate in the logs. Today, after almost three decades of cooperation with major timber companies, we have developed the very best long term access of any log home company and are consistently able to get beautiful incredibly big 16″-18″ average diameter at mid-length Lodgepole Pine (normally 19″ – 24″ at the butt end above the flare) or, possibly even more massive 16″ – 20″ average mid-length diameter Cedar (normally up to 24″ at the butt end above the flare). Our White Spruce (which, according to recent testing has, in important ways better structural values than second growth Fir) is our choice for the roof support beams, second floor systems and posts all can be up to 48″ diameter at the butt, depending on owner preference and structural requirements. Perhaps you’ll remember, Spruce was by far the best choice of any wood to build airplanes from because of its incredible strength to weight ratio. We feel that the logs we use in our homes are the most dramatic and best looking logs anywhere. Recently, the average height per round after joinery is 14″-16″ for Lodgepole Pine and up to 18″ for Western Red Cedar. Please check out our Photo Gallery to see how our logs look when crafted into our log homes.
• Air and weather-tight joinery guarantee – Handcrafted in our patented & guaranteed air and weather-tight joinery with a written warranty as part of our contract. Since 1985 we have been using our Double Scribe Lateral Groove system of joinery and we have not had our first air or weather leak. To be truthful we doubt we ever will have our first air or weather leak. It simply is absolutely impossible for the Scandinavian/Swedish cope or any other variation of fully scribed joinery to consistently remain as tight as the double scribe system of full scribe joinery. We know it is impossible to make “apples to apples” comparisons without using a comparison of air and weather-tight warranties as one of the most important deciding factors. Every log home company speaks of their quality but few if any others are willing to put in their contract a meaningful warranty to back their quality claims. We think it critical that you use this as a guide in determining whether any company you are talking to is equally geared as Moose Mountain is, towards building you a work of art founded on service, precision craftsmanship and premium log selection by their willingness to prove it in writing. We know if you search any and every full scribe builder for air and weather-tight guarantees or inspect homes built after settling is complete (normally 3-5 years), you will be certain beyond any doubt there is no substitute for the precision the double scribe system brings to the chinkless log home construction methods. It goes without saying that all of our construction methods, including joinery and log selection meets or exceeds the International Log Builders’ Association’s most recent version of the Log Building standards.
• All the openings/exposed log ends cut and finished – beveling, arching and other visible log end details sanded or planed as conditions dictate, including keyway splines (angle iron) and log end to buck board gasket (ready for door and window installation).
• Structural Logs – All required structural log components as indicated in plans are usually supplied in White Spruce. Specially prepared grooves to accept one of the supplied styles of log home gaskets we use, such as “P Gasket” or soft foam rod are located at all log trusses, posts, beams, joists, rafters or purlins where they pass from inside to outside insuring an extremely vital air and weather tight seal.
• Interior frame partition wall allowances – Dado slots for partition walls and around beams are prepared by our log craftsmen.
• Full log stairs – Main floor to loft and/or main floor to basement as indicated in plans. Our log stairs are crafted from natural round logs, Douglas Fir 1/2 log treads and log stringers.
• Log railings – Our railing and spindles are mortised and tenoned together from hand peeled small diameter logs (rails). Inside and outside railings as specified on plans.
• Electrical drilling, mortising and flats – All log drilling, mortising, and necessary flats for covers and fixtures, with pull wires routed for electrical, phone, stereo, or security as per plans (we install pull wires for the electricians benefit during final assembly).
• Through-bolts, screw jacks and required steel for structural log work connections- We supply and properly install through-bolts, settling adjustable screw jacks for log posts and the structurally required steel for log work (all with necessary plates and washers). Our intent is to make sure these are kept out of sight as much as is absolutely possible.
• Joinery gasket, log wall insulation and sill gasket – The log joinery gasket and insulation are never visible with our style of construction. Sill gasket is put in-between the sub-floor and first round of logs.
• A private web page could be set-up to allow you, friends and relatives to follow the construction progress. You can also supply additional photos to be included, such as site work, materials that you might want referenced etc.

The next four categories have resulted from our approach to our warranty but, according to our home owners, have become some of the most beneficial reasons besides our precise and artistic craftsmanship, log selection and warranty, for choosing Moose Mountain and has allowed us to uniquely offer some of the best and most important value available anywhere in log construction.

• Delivery costs – It is Moose Mountain Log Homes Inc.’s directed trucks and trailers that are delivering your log home, if we need to take extra time because of site conditions, we do. We have found that regular commercial trucks often do not want to go onto private sites because of the difficulties they may encounter and if they do go onto your site normally, significant standby times are charged. To deal with this often builders will hastily unload your home requiring huge areas to possibly be cleared around your home causing unnecessary handling and likely damage to your logs. Another very important benefit to having Moose Mountain do the shipping is that we include an insurance (up to a value of $250,000.00 Canadian per load). I can assure you that likely almost every other company you talk to relies on only a partial value of the load being transported and probably only to the standard extent of $2.00 per pound covering only logs that are individually damaged. Since with other companies you are normally being asked to cover shipping as a separate expense you may unknowingly be holding the liability of your significant investment, your home, with perhaps insurance coverage that may only pay out 5% of the damages that could occur.
• Full log re-assembly labor – Because we warranty our homes, we want to be the only ones that re-assemble all of our log components from the first round to the out side railings.
• Crew expenses – An average of four to six (depending on the size of your home) Moose Mountain Log Homes Inc. log crafters (with all of our out of town meals and lodging already in our price) will be on your site for an average of ten days to two or more weeks working normally 10-12 hour days, 7 days a week properly re-assembling your home. This is the same crew that has already crafted your home in our construction yard. Obviously, no one can assemble the log portion of your home as precisely or as quickly as the log crafters that built the home in the first place. Using a similar comparison, would you expect that the quality of your automobile would be the same if a few “helpers” assembled it with little or no understanding of how it should be properly built? Other companies may boast that you only will need 1-2 days to re-assemble your home but the end results are totally different, you only need to ask about their joinery warranty to get an indication how different. We have heard many times of log homes, where after two days the log company supervisor had already left and months later the logs were still being assembled or completed by inexperienced individuals.
• Crane costs – Depending on the project scope, we may position our own crane on your site in Western Canada, this allows us to take our time when we are putting your home together. Most builders have to rush because they and you are stuck paying a crane, from $150.00 to $300.00 per hour or easily $1,500 to $3,000.00 per day.
• Staining is an option because we need the proper weather conditions to apply the stain, it can be put into the contract as a separate priced component.
• Cleaning of logs – In every case prior to shipping we clean and if conditions dictate sterilize the logs. Very importantly, we do not sand the longitudinal natural surfaces of the logs, which later when a finish would be applied would show every scratch of the sanding. Instead, we use an electric powered nylon bristled brush which will only remove loose particles from the logs leaving the all important character of the logs and hand peeling untouched, while providing the logs with a satin smooth finish, free of splinters. During shipping we protect the logs from road spray or salt, exhaust and dirt by tarping each load as conditions dictate.