How to take care of your log cabin
Whether you have a brand-new summer shed, summer house, or log cabin, with this year’s summer garden parties on the horizon, there’s no better time to take a minute or two out of your day and learn about how you can keep your new purchase in tip-top shape.
From cabin exteriors right through to dealing with insects and other pesky creatures, have a read through some of our top tips.
Don’t forget about your drainage
Although the blue skies of summer, are indeed on their way, like in any walk of life, it’s important to plan ahead.
Long before the autumn leaves start falling, inspect the ground surrounding the foundation of your structure. Ensure that the soil slopes down and away from the cabin.
By doing so, you’ll ensure that when the rain drains, it does so in the opposite direction of your shed, house, or cabin.
Sometimes soil can compact near your cabin after construction has taken place and the structure has settled, so ensure to correct this with fresh topsoil.
Cover the gutters
Even in the heights of summer, it’s easy to find sticks, leaves, and other debris in your gutters.
By applying a simple mesh covering while the weather is good, you will be protecting your gutters from moisture backing up when times are less pleasant.
Overflowing and backed up materials are often the cause of replacement gutters, so ensure to inspect them every few months.
Inspect for insects
Although some people don’t mind spiders in their sheds or cabins, they aren’t pets everyone likes to keep. Quite simply, the best way to eliminate spiders is to minimise the conditions in which their prey can thrive.
Ensure to keep standing water to a minimum, including near your summerhouse (think bird baths and puddles).
Furthermore, bugs are attracted to lights, so ensure to only use outdoor lighting around your cabin or summer house when you need it.
Keep moisture under control
Although easier said than done, moisture can be a real killer for summerhouses and cabins, so work to minimise damp conditions.
If your woodwork is close to trees, shrubs, or other foliage, to the point where they are making contact, ensure to cut them back to a safe distance.
When winter does finally arrive, if you experience heavy snowfall, brush away snow from the roof of the summerhouse. Leaving it to melt is exposing the structure to prolonged moisture, which could lead to long-term damage.
As is commonly the case with summer houses and cabins during rainy periods, if you find condensation within the windows of the structure, ensure to ventilate it regularly during drier periods.
Watch out for mould
Mould and mildew can be a real killer for summer houses and cabins, and what’s more, their presence can be bad for human health.
If you spot mould or mildew in your shed, ensure to get rid of it as soon as possible. You’ll likely spot it in the form of black or green spots or film.
You can buy specialised sprays for dealing with mould on wood surfaces, so be sure to look out for them the next time you are at the garden centre.