Feature Project: Building a Log Home in Italy

Over the years we have helped numerous homeowners build their dream log cabin or home. One project that stands out was one we call the “Italian Job”.

Due to the high energy standards in Europe, there are not many log home structures. Western Canada is one of the few places in the world able to provide the size of timber required to meet these standards. At the time there were only two log homes to our knowledge. So when we received a call from an Italian couple in Pomparato, Italy who were interested in building a log home, we were excited to be the ones to build the third.

During the winter and spring months of 2012, at our Mission, B.C. log yard, we constructed a two-story, 1,080 square feet on the main floor and 528 square feet loft, full-scribe log home. Due to the extreme winters and strict energy code we used Western Red Cedar for the shell. The total cost of the project was approx. $1250,000 including the log rafters. Tariffs and duty accounted for 18% of the total invoiced project.

We invited the Italian couple to visit us in Mission to not only see firsthand their dream home coming together, but to also experience West Coast Canadian living. It was a pleasure to host them for a few days and really get to know the family.

We fully constructed the home in our log yard. Once completed, the home was packaged up into 2 soft-top shipping containers. Over the next four weeks the logs traveled by train to Montreal and then by boat to a port in Italy, after which they would be trucked from the port to the job site located in the Alps.

We arrived with a 4-man crew a few days before the logs to review the job site and to settle into the region. It was a real eye opener when we arrived in Pomparato, Italy. This was authentic Italy where few people spoke English. Thanks to Google translator and hand signals we were able to find our way and communicate with the locals.

Once the logs arrived on-site we were prepared to go to work like we do in Canada, working from sunrise to sunset. One of the things that we loved about Italy was the hospitality and welcoming nature of everyone. Instead of working through lunches like we normally do, every day at noon we were greeted by a vehicle that would take us down into the village where we would be wined and dined by the owners and other locals in the village. After two hours of Italian pasta and wine we had a shot of espresso and headed back up to the project site.

After five days we completed the project. It was a heart warming experience to see the joy and appreciation in the couple’s eyes knowing that this home was a dream home come true.

It was a pleasure and an honor to be welcomed into the community and the homes of many people while we were in Pomparato and it has been wonderful continuing to receive updates from the couple.

They are officially living in their home and have installed solar panels making their home even more energy efficient.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience to work in such a remote part of the world. We hope to have additional projects like this in the future!

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