: Should I chink the interior, exterior or both?

  Chinking the exterior is always recommended because you  can access all the logs to provide an air tight seal. If you did just the interior then you might not be able to access behind cabinets, counters or studded walls. You can later chink the interior for that nice finished look. If your home is an older style and you have fibreglass insulation showing between the logs on the interior you should consider having the interior chinked too.

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: Can you apply stain over the chinking?

  Yes the chinking will take any type of stain once it is completely cured. However, some of the lighter chinking colours will show some discolouration if you intend to stain over it rather than around it. You may want to consider a darker colour chinking for ease of staining over it.

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: How often does my home need to be chinked? 

  In almost all cases this will be the first and last time. Many years ago, a home I chinked was a few years later disassembled log by log and reassembled on another property. I had to redo the chinking because it was somewhat damaged from this process. While working on the redo, Andy who was the home owner told me his contractor had a very miserable time trying to separate the chinked logs from each other and that my name was mentioned often.

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: How much of a difference can I expect after having my home chinked?

 That depends on how much air infiltration your home is experiencing. Some of the homes we chink probably have the equivalent air infiltration of leaving a window open year round, without the screen. A few home owners have told me they cut their heating costs by 50% and have found their homes to be much more soundproofed. Another told me they had to buy a smaller wood stove because the existing one threw off to much heat after the home was chinked. Without mentioning any names, several have told me they haven't had a mouse or cluster fly in house since being chinked. Reduced heating/cooling costs can recover chinking costs in only a few years plus the bonus of no outdoor guests in your house every morning. 

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: Do many log home owners chink the interiors after having the exterior of their home chinked?

  I would estimate 70% of the homes we chink on the exterior eventually have their interior chinked. A chinked interior makes rooms brighter and feel bigger by filling in the dark shadow between the logs.  The chink then reflects the light rather than having the shadows absorb it. Also where drywall meets the logs, chink can be applied to give a finished look by hiding the spaces that may have formed during the log settling phase. Where cabinets and counters meet the logs, there are at times unsightly installation cuts in the logs which can also be chinked to give that finished look. 

  

 :  Can you chink a log home in the winter?

  Perma-Chink is water based and we are unable to chink exteriors in the colder months. Interiors can be chinked year round.

 

: Do all log homes need to be chinked?

 Not all log homes need to be chinked. Log homes that have been built with two expandable solid gaskets between the logs are doing very well at keeping the logs tightly sealed. The homes that just have rock wool insulation stapled to the  top of the log and then assembled will probably require chinking after the log settling finishes. Any homes that have fibreglass insulation installed between the logs should definitely have their logs chinked and especially if the insulation is visible. This older style fibreglass insulation may pose a serious health risk when particles given off from it are inhaled long term.