The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

"A Family Tradition for 126 Years" PORT PERRY STAR - Wednesday, August, 5, 1992 - 27 By Marnie Luke Port Perry Star Yet another North American trend has hit Japan. But unlike Coca-Cola and blue jeans, this one took nearly 300 years to catch on. It seems the Japanese are pining for what was once con- sidered a "poor man's home" -- log houses. Dating back as early as the late 1600s, the demand for log homes has only recently re- surfaced here in the west. Frank VanVeghel, owner of the Greenbank-based company House of Log, has been building such homes since 1979. Over the past 13 years, he's seen a steady increase in the North American market for log houses. He has always found plenty of work building locally, and throughout other parts of Onta- rio. But it wasn't until recently that he found the trend had branched out to consumers a little farther away. "For a while, I was getting at least one fax a week from Ja- pan, from people wanting me to build log houses for them," he said. But Mr. VanVeghel isn't jumping at any of the tempting and potentially lucrative offers. He said although he'd never completely rule out the idea, it's simply too far to travel for a job he can do just as easily here at home. But if the Japanese can't lure Mr. VanVeghel overseas, it's unlikely they'll have a hard time tracking down other inter- ested builders. With growing popularity, log home companies are popping up all over the country, with at least four in the Scugog area alone. Mr. VanVeghel said he has built more than 85 houses, only to see the market flourish in re- cent years. "People are moving towards a back to nature' trend. They want to get away from the hus- tle and bustle," he saad. But a traditional home doesn't necessanly mean tradi: tional prices. Mr. VanVeghel said the average price for a log home starts at approximately $85 per square foot. He said he tries to keep the cost of building down by being the salesman, contractor, and builder all in one. Doing all work on the build- ing site, he and three to four other workers often live out of a trailer until they complete a house. This can vary from one to two-and-a-half months, de- pending on the size of the par- ticular home being built. Mr. VanVeghel normally 54 NE LS SORE 5° ik a at Log homes have made a big come back in recent years, keep- ing builders such as Frank VanVeghel (above) very busy. See story for details. builds year-round, but prefers to work on a cottage during the winter months. He said if a person is trying to cut back on costs, the house usually takes longer to build, as the builder must revise the plans to accommodate small changes. Most homes by House of Log are constructed of square, dove- tailed, white pine logs. Mr. VanVeghel uses this type of wood because it is readily available in Ontario, and easy to work with. But builders are not limited to this wood type or shape alone. Round logs are often used, as are poplar or cedar logs from British Columbia. Dispelling the myth of a "poor 'man's home", today's log houses are by no means poorly con- structed, nor are they chinked with moss and mud. Great detail goes into the building, in areas such as log spacing and insulation. But as with any home, there are always problems. Some cus- tomers have complained that the pine logs often split as the wood dries. But Mr. VanVeghel said such cracks in the wood are inevita- ble, and happen in most log homes. Another common problem is that of leakage, with water of- ten seeping between the logs or through the roof. Mr. VanVeghel said they take extra care when laying the top log before the roof, sealing it with rubber caulking, and a layer of half-inch plywood, and by stapling a sheet of plastic to the rafters. One misconception carried over from earlier years of small- er log homes, 1s that they are Log homes making a big comeback draughty and hard to heat. Mr. VanVeghel said there has been much debate over this issue in past years, as not all log homes meet the heating re- quirements listed in the build- ing code. But because the logs are ex- cellent retainers of heat gener- ated in a home, there have been few recent complaints or fail- ures to meet requirements. Regular coats of Wood protec- "tor are recommended every three to four years, but other than this, there is very little maintainance involved with a log home. Mr. VanVeghel said this cost- saving factor is one which en- courages so many people to build. Although this is a key selling feature, Mr. VanVeghel said people build for reasons other than wishing to save money. His customers range from young people to retired couples, building anything from a small, country-style cottage, to an elaborate 4,400 square foot house. The VanVeghel's own log home in Greenbank often at- tracts much attention from pas- sersby, who often stop in to ad- mire the house, or inquire about having one built them- selves. Mr. VanVeghel said he often takes the time speak with peo- ple wishing to build their own home, giving them advice, or helping them to decide on log shapes and wood types. "It was always my dream to build a beautiful country log house like the ones I'd see in magazines. Now that I've done that for myself, I enjoy doing for other people who want the same thing," he said. Classic Car Show on Aug. 9 Hey there all you guys and gals jump into that fiery red hot-rod and come join us for a groovy time at the Classic Car Show. On Sunday, Aug. 9 between 10 am. and 4 p.m., the Bow: manville Optimist Club will host the fifth annual "Show and Shine" car exhibit at the Enmis- killen Conservation Area. Vintage automobiles of every kind will be on display. Refresh- ments will be available. The Enniskillen Conserva- tion Area is located north of Bowmanville. Take Regional Road 57 north from Bowman- ville to the 7th Concession, then go west to Holt Road and north tothe area. Car buffs will love this event. Entrance fees charged. No church service for next two Sundays ('ongratulations to Denzil and Tallya Moore who recently celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary Tallya and Denzil along with son Todd enjoyed a great week 1n Barbados where they celebrated their Silver An- niversary On hand to greet them and to add their best wash es on their return were Mary. Garth and Gregg .JJonah of Can ata along with Dorothy and .Jim McHargof Port Perry Fair board members are re minded that the next meeting will be Thursday. Aug 13 This Thursday will be another paint ing bee at the Rec. Centre when helps asked for sign painting On Sunday, Ralph and Peggy [.armer and Harvey and .Joan Graham enjoyed attending the annual Guernsey Association Picnic held at the Gord Wilson Farm near Garden Hill The 4-H Club members are planning to attend the Blue Jay game on Aug 27 when the .Jays will be playing the Milwaukee Brewers For further informa tion regarding the availabilty of extra tickets call Manlyn (;reen at 96-4736 as soon as possible There were 15 tables at the Tuesday evening euchre party with the following winners: Ann Tavlor, Erla Hill. Grant Bnght. Fran (hbson, Pat Pornll, Ber nice lLoudfoot and Dorothy Beech The lucky draws were won by Russell Brown, Charhe Campbell. Mary Poots, Rub; Cochrane. Dons Redman and Alice Beech Harold and Eileen McLaugh lin accompanied Ted and Mary McLaughlin of Fenelon Falls to visit Paul and Jean MclLaugh- lin. Rachael and Sarah in the Taraarearecently One evening last week their North Blackstock neighbors surprised Jean ana Harold Kyte with a going away party The Kytes have sold their home and will be visiting their daugh ter Landa and Gord Kaiser and family in Kenora before they re- establish a new residence. Jean and Harold will certain] be missed in this area 4-H News AWalk On The Wild Side By Amanda Bradburn At 7.30 p.m. Aug. 1 our par- ents dropped us off at Heather Goulding' s home. At this meet- ing we would be learning how to set up tents and going in her back fields to zee where we could camp out We picked a nice spot by a stream We visualized where we would be putting up our tents. After that we headed back to Heather's back yard to set up a big tent. After 15 min- utes we got the tent set up. When we were done that we all went inside the tent to play a hat game. When we were done that the leaders took down the tent. Then we all went inside and enjoyed doughnuts and Juice. At 9 p.m. our parents picked us up. At the combined United Church when Nestleton joined Blackstock congregation Glenn Larmer was in charge. The theme of his worship was the place of music in worship. Dur- ing the service Glenn sang a solo which was well received. The following two Sundays there will be no service at Black- stock as the combined congrega- tions will meet at Nestleton at 11:15am On Sunday Gerald and Joyce Kelly, Elaine Kelly attended the annual Walker picnic held in Lindsay. Durham East 4-H competition By Barbara Weese, P.H.Ec., Rural Organizations Specialist Recently, 54 4-H members from across the Durham East 4 H Counal area met at Black: stock Fairgrounds for a most successful Judging Competi- tion. Major sponsor of the evening was Welcome Feeds, Bowman- ville. In addition: High Senior and Winner of the I.B Ells Memorial Award: Tom Benschop, Bowmanwville. High Junior and Winner of the Royal Bank Award: Kath- leen Dewell, Orono. High Novice and Winner of the CNE Shield: Kathryn Bar- key, Enfield. The Top Judging Team and Winner of the Durham Federa- tion of Agriculture Award was "the Junior Dairy Team of Caro- lyn Barkey, Nancy Metcalf and Kathryn Barkey.