O/T: Mortar question

This is waaaay off topic, but there seems to be quite a few people here who are knowledgeable about construction type things.

In the 1910's my house was built into an existing 1860´s log cabin. Two of existing walls are stone (5ft high), with the logs on top. I've been tuck pointing the walls with regular mortar which seems to be going well, but the mortar that binds the logs together seems to need repair too. Does anyone know what type of mortar is used to bind wood? Is it a grout instead? The existing stuff almost has a yellow tint to it and is a very fine texture.

Are they chinked with mortar or is it plaster?

I have a house that also has part of log home (Cabin) incorporated into it. I estimate my log part was built in 1836. I have rehabbed it, just as you are talking about. I have a link here you can read. I used "Mix C" in their document.

Use white portland cement, which will keep your daubing fairly white. Also, I used metal plaster lathing in between the logs. You use roofing nails to tack it on both the top and bottom. Then you smear the Daubing in by hand. Use heavy dishwashing gloves. As it starts to dry, smooth it out. Then once dry take an angle grinder, with a wire brush to buff off the logs. Dont use the twisted wire brush-- its too coarse, but a normal wire brush for the grinder won"t hurt the logs (if they are hardwood like oak, walnet). Just keep it moving, if you stay in one place it might gouge it. Here is the link.

http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief26.htm

I would be happy to discuss with you. It is a fairly involved project. It took me and a guy two weekends to put the metal lathing in a two story log home. Then about two weekends to put the daubing in. But it will stay when you do it this way. There is a book out that I got some ideas also, I dont" have the name in mind now though....
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It's definitely a mortar and not plaster. I'm guessing they re-mortared back in 1910's when they covered up the log wall with a plaster-board studwall on the inside and wooden siding on the outside. The mortar/grout on the logs is in exceptional shape for as old as it is, there are just a few spots where it has fallen out, unlike the stone wall where the mortar had mostly disintegrated.

Great, thanks for the details. I don't think I'll have to do anything so involved as you have since most of the mortar on these logs is still solid. It helps that they have been sealed between siding and an interior wall. I just want to do some patch work before I cover it up again with a new stud wall.

I was hoping there was a pre-mix for doing this (one less thing for me to screw up). I guess that Mix C isn't too complicated though. Thanks again.

Just realize what you have is a treasure. It took some poor souls quite a while to build these log homes, and with no power tools

The reason for using these special mixes is that they are designed to not be too hard. As the logs go through freeze/thaw cycles, regular concrete will not expand the same as logs overtime and eventually fall out.

Yeah, no doubt it took them quite a lot of work to build it. My dad and I were marveling at the sheer size of the old growth White Oak that it was built with. The logs are 18inx18in by 30ft long and hewn square as a brick. It's hard to imagine how they were able to get them lifted and placed so evenly.

I guess all the lime those mixes call for explains why the mortar is yellow. Around here the only available source of lime is yellow lime shale.

You may even notice hair-like or horse hair, other animal hair incorporated into it for strength.

Keeping shelter on it is the best thing to preserve these homes. You may want to shoot a little termiticide around anywhere you can. If you have a rock foundation, its hard to just do the application on the outside. You really need to get into the crawl space and apply from the inside as well, and if you ever take off some of the siding down low to where you can see the sill beam, apply that liberally with termiticide/insecticide.