Building with laminated log cabin siding to resist earthquakes



	Chris Taberna is an advertising specialist who, with his wife Jannelle, runs TNT Productions, a small marketing and promotional business in Stevensville, Montana. Chris has a keen eye for video and photography, and has produced a wide variety of video brochures and television commercials. TNT Productions publishes a monthly building newsletter for the Missoula and Bitterroot Valley markets.

Impending doom for the entire civilized world wasn’t George Hedrick’s building motivation; ho

wever, his inspiration to build a home as strong as a ship was mostly out of necessity. “Actually, this home was put together like a ship,” exclaims George. “Its going to be here a long time.”


After a year of extensive building, George Hedrick can relax and enjoy his creation. Posed by the southwest corner of his new home, he is leaning against a false butt and pass corner application that adds a full log look to the laminated log siding.

Building in earthquake prone areas is second nature to George, who spent over twenty years in building construction for a large California utility company. George’s background and experience were paramount in the design and construction of his and wife Joan’s home just north of Yellowstone Park in a region active with earthquakes.

Getting from the upper desert of southern California to southwest Montana’s majestic Paradise Valley was a lesson in fate on its own. “We were looking for a place in Montana to retire in the mid 1980’s,” explains George. “Some friends and we flew into Jackson Hole, Wyoming and wanted to drive through the Park. We decided to go up to Bozeman, Montana to look at that area. We bought a box lunch in Jackson and headed through Yellowstone Park on Highway 89 past Mammoth Hot Springs up towards Livingston then west to Bozeman. It was about lunchtime as we passed Gardiner, Montana and we turned off at Tom Miner Creek Road and drove down about a quarter of a mile to the bridge over the Yellowstone River and stopped to eat. We enjoyed the area so much, when we returned home, we inquired about land in the Tom Miner Basin drainage about 15 miles north of the park. That is when the story gets interesting. We wanted a place in Montana - it didn’t really matter where - just so Joan felt comfortable. As we inquired about land in the area, we found that 30 acres was available right across the river from the spot where we had stopped for lunch that day. We loved the area, and in 1991 we bought the land.” With the land and location established, George spent the next 5 years researching and planning a structure that would be safe in a seismically active location and still fulfill the dream of a lifetime.

Structural integrity was of the utmost importance to George in the design of his retirement dream home. “As you know, this is a seismic zone 4 earthquake area,” says George. “It is almost impossible to build a structure strong enough out of logs. They may in fact hold up to a pretty strong quake, but on paper, you can’t make the calculations meet earthquake specifications. However, with the Glu-Lam laminated siding you can! The structure is stronger & tighter and looks just like a log home.”

Don’t let that attractive exterior fool you: this home was built to be nearly bullet proof. The skeletal structure begins with 2” x 6” studs at 16 inches on center. Filled with R-19 fiberglass insulation, the walls were sheeted with 5/8” plywood both inside and out. The bottom layer being wolminized treated lumber. An extensive vapor barrier was applied to the outside (2 layers of Tyvek) and a 6 mil plastic layer on the inside.

of Nels Carlson in Riverton, Wyoming. Nels is one of Glu-Lam-Log’s independent dealers and he put George in direct contact with Phil for more information. “They sent some samples down to me and I got very interested,” says George. “After deciding on the laminated log siding, I began to look for a design that would work.” George ended up designing the house himself and the building phase began October of 1997.

Completion of the home itself was almost exactly one year from ground breaking. “We finished it to this point (11-13-98) in about one year and one month,” says George. “It took two carpenters full time for one year, with me on site during the entire construction. In all, I used the two carpenters, a cabinet maker, floor finishers, plumbing and heating contractor, drywaller, roofing contractor and garage door people. This was a very difficult house to build. The porch and dormers were very trying at times.” With over 90 trusses in the porch alone, no wonder George had a huge project on his hands. George estimates the entire house was built 150% heavier duty than the average home construction.

The framed structure had to support two 4” x 22” x 60’ long laminated main support beams. Both set in place by a crane, one is at the roof ridge line and the other is down the center of the house supporting the second floor balcony. These beams were tied to the wall structure by a BCI joist system at a minimum of 11 3/4” in height and set 16” on center at the roof and both floor levels. The roof is rated at 100 pound snow load. “We didn’t cut any corners,” says George. “There’s approximately 600 pounds of high strength ceramic covered screws in this building. The laminated log siding has been screwed from the inside at five inch centers vertically and eight inch horizontally.”

George chose Glu-Lam siding over traditional logs to tradtional structure building, while still gaining the log home appearance. “I liked the idea of being able to seal a building, and with natural logs it is almost impossible,” explains George. “As long as the house isn’t so tight it rains on you, the tighter the better. This house is very tight but it still breathes. We love it! It was a whole lot better than logs, and I just love the log look. If a person didn’t know any better, you would swear it was log!”

George also found working with the Glu-Lam staff to be rewarding. “I enjoyed working with Phil and Elaine,” says George. “As a company, I didn’t have any problems at all - they were easy to work with. I gave them plenty of notice and received the material when I asked for it. As a matter of fact, it came before I needed it. We weren’t able to put it up for almost 4 months because of delays. If I could give anyone a tip, it would be to make sure you plan your order for installation within six weeks of its milling. That way installation should be a breeze.” Installation of the interior and exterior Glu-Lam siding only took a couple of months considering there were over 5000 linear feet to install. “We are very happy with the siding, both inside and out,” reports George.

George’s belief in the strength and durability of laminated wood products is very evident in the amount of these products he used in his dream home. All of the window and door trim is 3 1/8” x 6” laminated beams cut on a 45 degree angle at the corners and lag screwed into the support structure. The porch has over 20 of the same size laminated beams as upright supports for its roof system. Inside, in addition to the laminated main support beams, there are five 1 1/4” x 12” laminated beams on edge to support the staircase. “This staircase literally feels like you are walking up a concrete staircase,” says George. “All of the beam hangers in the house were custom built by Simpson. Everything structural was bolted together!” And of course the entire exterior is Glu-Lam-Log’s laminated log cabin siding.

One of the best things about building your own home is being able to design it just the way you want. “I extended the house six feet just to fit this tub in,” says George. “I’ve had my eye on this bath tub for a long time.” The tub he is referring to is a beautiful Kohler, freestanding tub with solid oak base and hand rails, large enough for two. It was set up in the master bathroom with 360 degree access and is accompanied by a built-in steam shower enclosure. “I’ve always wanted to build a building like this,” concludes George. “I believe this will be the last home I will build, and I am glad to have had the opportunity to make it my best.”

George Hedrick combines laminated siding with traditional frame construction to build an earthquake-resistant home.