Our timber frame cordwood cabin near Harrisville was a family project. The only outside help was from some friends at work to help set the timber frame and roof rafters. This took about a week. It is a saltbox design using long cedar cordwood. Building is a labour intensive process requiring about one man hour per square foot of wall. Construction costs for the building were about $10 per sq. ft. in the mid 90s. We are entirely off the grid with a small photovoltaic system that allows us lights, sewing machine, small appliances and some power tools.

We purchased 13 acres of land in January 1993 in Northern New York. We decided to build a cordwood cabin because it looked doable, we thought we could pay as we built, and it looked very good.

White pine was used for the timber frame while Eastern white cedar (30 cords of 17inch wood) was used for the cordwood. About half of the infill was given to us and we purchased the other half. The cabin is 900 sq. ft. The ground floor is 20ft X 30ft, with an open area that has a cooking area, an eating area and a living area. The second floor is 10 ft. X 30 ft. and has a bed at each end and a sewing area in the middle. We use an outhouse as we do not have water or a well. Snow is melted in the winter for wash and shower water. Drinking water comes from a nearby spring. Electricity is supplied by a 120 watt, 12V photovoltaic panel, and 2- 6V golf car batteries. Some loads are 12VDC (LED lights and CD/radio) and an inverter supplies 110VAC for CFL lights, bread machine, small appliances. The cabin is heated by an airtight wood stove.

Cordwood is labour intensive, taking 1 man hour to produce a square foot of wall. The timber frame (8 inch X 8 inch), roof rafters (4 inch X 6 inch), and floor boards (1 inch X 10 inches), cost about half ($4566 US) of the total cost. The other half was cement & lime ($1160 US), metal roofing ($900 US), insulation of roof and floor ($1000 US), 11 used windows and 4 new ones ($615 US), cedar logs ($400 US), and miscellaneous (sand, hardware, cement blocks) ($700 US). The cost is based on prices from 1993-1997. Costs have increased for metal roofing, cement, and insulation. Presently it is 2007. It took three seasons to enclose the building and another three to finish the inside because our cabin is about 180 Miles (300 KM) away from home.

Cordwood is not hard to build but is labour intensive. It is very durable, attractive, natural, and is relatively inexpensive compared to stick frame methods. I'm happy to answer questions. You can contact me at lschuth@eznet.net