Finnlife Reikko Log Cabin

The Finn-life Riekko Log Cabin

The Finnlife Riekko Log Cabin is an beautiful looking log cabin offering a decent-sized space inside and the scope to create something truly lovely for yourself and your garden.

Like all log cabins in the Finnforest range it is constructed using top quality Scandinavian White softwood. This comes from sustainable forests which are well managed, and where industry and the wildlife live in harmony.

Why buy the Finn-life Reikko Log Cabin?

Well illustrated, step-by-step plans are supplied with your log cabin making assembly more simple and more straightforward. The doors and windows come fully glazed making life easier for you. The wood is packed in protecting sheeting and comes packed in the right order for assembly

FEATURES

* Made from Scandinavian White softwood
* 28mm wall logs
* Timber joists
* Pre-cut floor & roof boards
* Roof shingles
* Ready made, fully glazed doors
* Reinforced corners and pre-cut wall battens
* All necessary fixtures and fittings
* Illustrated step-by-step instruction manual

DIMENSIONS

Height:9'5" (2.9m)
Width:9'7" (2.96m)
Depth:14'11" (4.34m)

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You too can build a Finnlife Riekko Log Cabin!

Wonderful lounging summer evenings might be calling, but don’t rush to build your Finnlife Log Cabin. Spend the time to figure out how it goes together, and you will savour many years of trouble-free pleasure. No construction abilities are required. Everyone can build a Finnlife log cabin, although some tasks may need more than one pair of hands. Build times will vary depending on your skills and the number of people who help you. Obviously you don’t need to do it without any help!

It is possible to present this document to a handyman then take it easy until he presents you with the keys to your brand new Finnlife Log Cabin. Having said that, whoever does the job, the initial step is to familiarise yourself with these instructions. The plan is to be systematic and to plan ahead. Though Finnlife log cabins share many features in common, each model style is distinctive. This set of general instructions cover the basics of log cabin construction and apply to all Finn Forest cabins.

For features that are unique to your own Finnlife Log Cabin – such as dimensions, component numbers, building plans and component lists – you should refer to the separate Building Plans and Parts List. If you are building cabins Finnlife Helppo, Finnlife Helsinki, Finnlife Joki, Finnlife Kesa, Finnlife Pori, Finnlife Seita and Finnlife Valo be aware that certain instructions maydiffer slightly from those found here.

Concrete option: Remove all organic material before you begin work on the foundations. Concrete foundations should always be the exact base size stated in the Parts List and Plans instructions to minimize the amount of water that the base will hold. It is recommended that the concrete base be 6 inches thick.

Foundations and preparation: You can assemble your Finnlife Log Cabin on foundations of concrete or on compacted gravel. Whichever option you make, a firm and level base is important. Time spent on the foundations is well invested. An uneven or unstable base will affect the final outcome of the Finnlife Log Cabin. Doors and windows will not fit exactly, walls may bow and joints may not fit together.

Before you begin to build you should check that you have a complete set of components. Check off each component against the component list in the Building Plans and Parts List as you remove it from the transit packaging. In the unlikely event that there is a missing component or that a component has been damaged in transit get in touch with the distributor, quoting the Finnlife Log Cabin reference number displayed on the packing label of the transit packaging. As you check off each component lay them out on the ground around the site of the log cabin. Place each component near to where it will be used. Laying out helps you visualize how the Finnlife Log Cabin goes together and it means that components are ready to hand when you need them. You can utilize the Building Plans and Parts List as a scheme to what goes where. Be wary not to lay components too close to the Finnlife Log Cabin footprint. Give yourself adequate room to work in.

Put out the four sides of the door frame on a clean and level surface so that the doors open outwards. Loosely arrange them to match the finished frame. The top and bottom jambs are not quite the same. Place the one with the Lock RECESS AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM. Ensure that the door cills go behind the doors. Put the joints together loosely and check THAT YOU CAN STILL OPEN THE DOORS before continuing.

Note again that if your Finnlife Log Cabin includes partitioning walls, also Put the full-height wall boards that form the bottom-most layer. Refer to the Building Plans and Parts List for guidance. Pay peculiar attention to the location of any notches in the wall boards of multi-roomed cabins. The position of these notches determines where the interlocking walls go.

Screw one end (5mm Dia x 100mm length wood screw) only of one half-height wallboard to the underlying outermost floor beam by driving a screw (supplied) through the base of the corner joint. Leave the other three corners loose. If necessary, adjust the internal floor beams to retain an even spacing between them. Screw the half-height wall boards (5mm Dia x 100mm length wood screws) to the rest of the floor beams. 10.5 Ensure that the structure is square by comparing the lengths of the cross-diagonals. If necessary, you can adjust by pivoting the four linked wall boards on the one corner that you have already screwed down. Temporarily lift the full-height wall boards so that you can affix screws through the three remaining corner joints into the outermost floor beams.

Begin laying the second level of wall boards. Bear in mind that the wall that contains the door will consist of two distinct wall boards with a door-width gap between. To ensure a snug fit, you should tap each set down on to the layer below. Do not hammer wall boards directly. Use the pre-requisite assembly piece (a short length of wall board with a matching joint on the lower surface) to take the blows. In the event that you have not received an assembly piece then any scrap piece of timber will offer adequate protection for the tongues. Do not hammer too hard.

When laying the roof boards, you will need to temporarily stick an eaves fascia board to the ridge beam as a guide batten, and use it to make sure that all roof boards end in a flush ridge line. Mark the middle line on the front and rear faces of the ridge beam. Begin nailing roof boards on one side of the roof, starting from the front. The leading edge of the first roof board should be set 5mm from the ends of the ridge and roof beams. The top end of the roof board should be flush with the temporary ridge-beam guide batten. Nail each roof board to the ridge beam (V-Joint facing downwards) and each roof beam, driving 2 nails per board - per joint in at right angles to the roof slope.

Tack an eaves fascia board temporarily with nails to the ridge beam so that one edge is flush with the marked middle line. Do not hammer in all the way. You will need to take it out later on. When constructing the Finnlife Log Cabin during the summer periods, we advise to leave small gaps between the roof boards to allow expansion of the boards during the colder periods. When building during the winter period we would advise knocking the boards together, to minimize any gap appearing during the hot and dry periods.

Work through, board-by-board to the rear gable. Make sure that the eaves line
made by the lower edges of the roof boards is as straight as possible. The ending roof board may stick out beyond the rear gable. Tack it down lightly and mark on the underside where it meets the ends of the ridge and roof beams. Remove the final roof board and cut it length ways 5mm inside the marked line. Put it back on the roof and nail down. Remove the temporary guide batten from the ridge beam, then repeat steps for the other side of the roof.

Ensure that the eaves line made by the roof boards is reasonably straight. If necessary use a cut to remove it flush. Attach the eaves fascia boards perpendicular to the roof boards, and flush with their upper surface. You need one piece for each side of the cabin. Fix by nailing into the ends of the roof boards with 50mm nails.

Roofing shingles are rectangular. The lower half of the face side is a decorative green with slits that divide it into three surfaces; the upper half is black and coated with bitumen. With the exception of the first row, all shingles are laid with the green surfaces at the bottom. Ridge shingles are made by cutting individual roof shingles into three. Put roof shingles when the temperature is above 5°C. We recommend that you use a bitumen shingle adhesive on the underneath of the tiles. This would be an extra measure to ensure longevity of the shingle life.

Put the initial row of shingles with the green/black face top and the green surfaces at the top. Place the first shingle so that one side aligns with the right-hand edge of the roof and the black bitumen overhangs the eaves fascia board. Move till the edge of the black bitumen extends about 10mm out from the edge of the eaves fascia board.The 10mm overhang is known as the 'water drop edge'. Secure the shingle with four clout nails driven through the bitumen patches on the shingle into the roof boards. End the row by laying more shingles edge-to-edge until the complete length of the eaves is covered. Remove the excess from the left-hand end of the roof. Hang on to cut pieces for later use.

Begin the second row from the left-hand end. Put this row (and all subsequent rows) with the green/black face top and the green surfaces at the bottom. Align the second row of shingles so that the lower edge of the green surfaces are just proud of the roof edge. fix with four clout nails driven through the lower green part. Put these nails just below the line that separates black bitumen from decorative green. Properly located nails will be obscured by subsequent layers of shingles. Remove the ending shingle to fit. Hang on to cut pieces for later use. Put the initial shingle in row three so that the mid-point of the left-hand flap aligns with the edge of the roof. Adjust its height until the tips of the decorative surfaces align with the tops of the slits between the surfaces in the row below.

Nail down the shingle. From now on each row has to be aligned with the row below to create an even pattern. Start every row from the left hand end of the roof. In each case the first shingle in the row must be offset to the left by half a flap, that is by 16 of its complete length. That means that the centre of the surfaces of the current row will align with the gaps between the surfaces in the row below. Continue laying shingle sheets from left to right, edge-to-edge, to complete a full row.cut off the excess from both ends and hang on to cut pieces for later use. Continue putting rows of shingles from left to right, giving each row an extra half-flap offset to the left. Where possible, use the cut off pieces you have already saved as the first or ending shingles in the row. When you reach the final row, the upper edge of the shingles will extend beyond the roof ridge. Bend the excess over the ridge and nail it down. Cut several roof shingles into thirds to create ridge shingles. Cut them by extending the slits between the surfaces right through the bitumen layer. You may do the same with any trimmed pieces left over from lower rows. To complete each ridge shingle you should taper the half containing the black bitumen. BeginStart the taper at the point where the first slit ended. Complete it at the furthest edge of the black bitumen. Take the taper in about 10mm at either side of the bitumen.

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Finnlife Models

Finn-Life Reikko Cabin

Finnlife Reikko Log Cabin

You too can build a Finnlife Riekko Log Cabin!

Finnlife Models