Protection From The Start
We have advocated for many years that the protection of your log home starts with a smart design. For example, many modern log home builders use large overhangs and wide porches to help shield the home's walls from dangerous radiation from the sun. Let your roof help protect your walls. Planting trees that can help shade your home not only reduces energy consumption, but also helps to prolong your finish system.
Protect From Insects and Ultraviolet Damage
Protecting your home from wood-destroying insects is something we have also incorporated into our "fort" design. Bare wood logs or siding can be treated with any one of our safe, borate-based wood preservatives such as Shell Guard™, Shell Guard RTU™, and Armor Guard™. These products are designed to provide a protective shell of defense for log homes. If a wood-ingesting insect such as a termite or Powder-Post beetle passes through this protective barrier, they are in for quite a nasty surprise. The borates work to interrupt the insect's natural digestive cycle, making it difficult - if not impossible - for the organism to process food. These products, while destructive to wood-ingesting insects, pose little danger to humans.
Perma-Chink offers a full line of stains with numerous color choices and benefits. For example, our stains such as Lifeline Ultra 7™, Ultra 2™, and Exterior™ have ingredients designed to protect the wood surface from algae and fungi (mold). In addition, we also have ingredients that work to shield the lignin in your wood from photooxidation. Lignin provides structure and support for the cell walls in wood. If it is destroyed by harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, then your coating could delaminate from the wall more easily. Furthermore, our stains also contain UV absorbers designed to filter out harmful radiation. Our colorants also add another level of protection for your finish system. In general, darker stains provide a higher level of protection than lighter, honey-tone colors. Choosing a slightly darker tone will act as a shield to help protect your wood more completely and provide more longevity and less color shift.
Protect With Industry-Leading Sealants
Our business was founded forty years ago with a great solution to existing chinking. Back at that time, many folks used concrete between the logs to fill in the gaps. When the logs changed dimensionally this created cracks and open places for water to get in and damage wood structures. Perma-Chink™ seals between the logs and moves with your log home keeping a tight seal that keeps water and insects out. For smaller joints of less than one inch, we also sell Energy Seal™ and Woodsman™ which are great products for sealing around windows and doors.
Protect With The Finishing Touch
The next defensive layer in our "fort" is the topcoat. Our Lifeline Advance Satin™ or Gloss™ has several purposes. First, it provides a hard surface making it more difficult for dirt and debris to collect on the wood and sealant surfaces. Secondly, it contains both UV absorbers and UV stabilizers. Often when UV light strikes a system it produces harmful free radicals that can be destructive to a coating system. The UV stabilizers are designed to terminate free radicals so they cannot continue their destruction. The UV absorbers act as a shield keeping the dangerous UV light from penetrating deeper into the system. Finally, it works to keep your coating system sealed. If water remains on the surface for long periods of time, it can allow microorganisms to grow and multiply. Water will sheet and evaporate relatively quickly with the topcoat present.
Finally, regular cleaning of your home will help keep your home looking beautiful well into the future. The buildup of dirt and debris can provide a foothold for fungi and algae to grow, decreasing the longevity of your finish system. To aid in this annual cleaning, Perma-Chink provides a safe cleaner called Log Wash™ which does a fantastic job removing these unwanted contaminates from your log home.
Protect By Moving Forward
As you can see, we have many layers of defense built into our fortress. The forces of nature are powerful and unforgiving at times. Over the years, we at Perma-Chink have gained tremendous respect for what nature can do to damage your home. We have learned a great deal over these last forty years and have adjusted tactics where needed to counter our foe. Let us put our experience building forts to work for you. Please visit our DIY section to learn more about our products and how they can help you protect your home.