You wouldn't want the floor a couple logs up. The higher you set the floor the higher you have to make the walls. On a small cabin
built by man power I'd build the floor right on the ground with
treated wood. The higher you set the floor the higher the walls have to be. If you set the floor on the ground, start with the bigger logs on the bottom rings and work up to the smaller logs
on top then with two or three guys you can stack the cabin by hand without having to monkey around rigging a gee pole, which saves a lot of time. On the rebuild project I put down a 16X20 ft sheet of typar (geotextile road fabric) on the ground, framed the floor with beams and 2X6's on top of that, then pulled the typar that stuck out on all sides up on the outside edges and stapled it all the way around. The floor was insulated between
the joist with fiberglass batts. The typar makes a vapor barrier
between the gound and floor and protects the insulation. If deep snow is a problem extend the roof out front to shelter the entrance. My extends out about 3 ft which is sufficient here.

Spek,

You have any issue with rodents getting through that road fabric and into the insulation and such? Around here, you can lay a tarp on the ground and pull it up two days later to a vole race track under it through the dirt.

-TJ

Jimmy, don't have a decent darn set of Xray glasses so don't know
what the little devils are up to under there. The typar is much tougher though than the poly tarp and I doubt they are chewing through it. I'm sure they have tunnels around under it
though. Main thing is they are not getting inside the cabin.
A pack rat may chew through it, never been around them. Suppose if it was a concern a person could trench down around the beams on the outside and skirt the beams with sheet metal. Long as they are not inside I don't much care what they are doing. The cabin is so easy to heat since I perma-chinked that I wouldn't bother with insulation in the floor if I had it to do over. Would
still put down the typar though for moister barrier.

I'm curious about using typar as a vapor barrier? Its function under roads, over septics, etc. is to allow moisture to pass through but not silt/dirt. Tyvek allows air and moisture to go out but not in. Which are you using and how could it be a moisture barrier? Have you ever checked inside the insulation?

yea perma chink is great stuff i have used it on at least 20 cabins so far. down here the mice can have the virus that kills people, so i always build a good insulated floor with plywood on both sides (or heavy mesh on the underside) then the walls go up on top of the floor and every thing is chinked. i also put lots of mothballs out as well as poison in the off season, and with over 20 cabins in the woods i have very little problems with mice and bear boards take care of the bigger critters. I have rolled in to too many cabins late at night that were infested with mice, to want to do it any more. I bought a woodbug mill a few tears ago and everything since has been framed, ten times faster uses half the logs and way warmer than any log building.

Akntrpr, the filter fabric used on septics and the geotextile road fabric are two different materials. The material I used is
Amoco 2002, a medium duty road fabric that water does not go through unless it is damaged. It is tough stuff. ("Typar" is
actually a brand name used as a slang name for road fabric.)
Some road fabrics are the felt type like the filter fabric and
while the road engineers rave about it IMO is worthless and a waste of money.
Yukon254, I agree on the stick frame being easier to build but I still much prefer the log cabins for out in the woods.

The Typar & Tyvek that I am familiar with won't pass water but is designed to pass water vapor. Code calls for minimum 6 mil poly as a vapor barrier on the ground in crawl spaces.

As far as rodents are concerned I set out a couple packs of D-Con when I leave in the spring. Haven't had a vole in the cabin in a very long time.

Snareman, you wanted to build a quick and simple shack to spend the night in and these guys are talking you into building a modern home up to code. Next they will be talking you into indoor plumbing and a hot tub!!! Have fun with whatever you decide.

Hey I love my hot tub! Thanks for the info guys thats what I was curious about.

Yeah, every cabin needs a hot tub.

-TJ

Hot tubs are part of the plumbing code.

I doubt I'd get in a hottub with any of you trapper's out on the line no matter how much we smelled like bait. Beware Okiekajun! stranger things have happened at trappers cabins.

I wonder if White has told Okiecajun that swimsuits are not allowed in the cabin hot tub?

I hope the camera's are shut off by then!!

The cameras are hardwired into the bottom of the tub.

I don't live in a cabin!

We love our hottub.

Now that is funny!!!!

Thanks for the concern takotna, but I think that hot tub will feel pretty good after the pillow fights.

You might be sleeping in the cache just so you get that full Alaskan experience.