Round Post and Beam homes are included in the category of log and timber homes. Specifically, the round post and beam style is part of the handcrafted log home construction. The reason for this is all the logs are left with the natural taper from one end to the other. All the logs are hand […]

The Big Timber Plan (Scroll down for Floor Plan) Dimensions: 40’W x 36’6″ D Levels: 2 First Floor Square Footage: 1,280 Second Floor Square Footage: 600 TOTAL Square Footage: 1,880 Porches Square Footage: 708 Bedrooms: 2 + Open Loft Baths: 1 Upper Balcony, Covered Porch ~Designs only? Planning Set $99 or No Change Construction Drawings […]

The Mule Deer Plan (Scroll Down for Floor Plan) Dimensions: 20’W x 20’D Levels: 2 First Floor Square Footage: 400 Second Floor Square Footage: 200 TOTAL Square Footage: 600 Porches Square Footage: 120 Bedrooms: Open Loft Baths: 1 ~Designs only? Planning Set $99 or No Change Construction Drawings $300~ The Mule Deer log cabin plan […]

The Outfitter Plan (Scroll down for Floor Plan) Click Here for Printable Version of Outfitter Plan Dimensions: 24′ 8″ W x 24′ 8″ D Levels: 1 Square Footage: 604 Deck Square Footage: 144 Bedrooms: 2 Baths: 1 Outfitter Log Shell Only Pricing: 6×8 D-log with Square Timber – Log Shell Only $ 8×8 D-log with […]

The Mustang Plan (Please Scroll Down for Floor Plans) Dimensions: 24′ W x 32′ D Levels: 2 First Floor Square Footage: 768 Second Floor Square Footage: 408 TOTAL Square Footage: 1,176 Porches Square Footage: 432 Bedrooms: 2 + Open Loft Baths: 1 ~Designs only? Planning Set $99 or No Change Construction Drawings $588 ~ The […]

The Cowboy Plan (Scroll down for Floor Plan) Click Here for Printable Version of Cowboy Plan Dimensions: 32′ W x 32′ D Levels: 2 First Floor Square Footage: 576 Second Floor Square Footage: 290 TOTAL Square Footage: 866 Porch Square Footage: 448 Bedrooms: 1 + Open Loft Baths: 1 Cowboy Log Shell Only Pricing: 6×8 […]

The Alaska Plan (Please scroll down for Floor Plan) Click Here For Printable Version of Alaska Plan Dimensions: 48′ 8″ W x 29′ 10″ D Levels: 1 Square Footage: 888 Deck Square Footage: 464 Bedrooms: 2 Baths: 1 First Floor Landry, Large Open Deck Log Shell Only Pricing with Free Shipping within 1,000 Miles of […]

The perfect compliment to go with Cowboy Log Homes are Cowboy log barns. Other outbuildings, such as detached garages, gazebos, boat houses, shops, etc can also be built from stacked logs. For many cabin owners it is very important that all the buildings around their log home match.

Log cabin barns can range from a smaller 2 stall barn with hay storage up to a large horse stable. Other features sometimes included within a barn floor plan can be an apartment, office space, tractor and tool storage, etc. Gasoline or any tool or machine using gasoline should never be stored in a horse barn due to the fire hazard. Instead a separate shed or building should be used to house gas powered items. (Don’t forget a 4 wheeler runs on gasoline too.)

When designing a log barn it is best to start with the number of stalls you anticipate needing. A standard box stall size (very few horse owners build standing or tie stalls) is 12 x12. This allows enough room for horses of all sizes to lay down and get up freely. Overhead height is also important. A scared horse can rear up and hit its head on a barn ceiling if it is not high enough. I like a barn ceiling that has 12 foot height. The solid part of the stall wall should be at least 4 feet high. Then above the solid wood sides bars, wire, or chain link  should be installed. This keeps horses from reach out and biting each other. The doors of the horse stalls can be either siding doors or hinged doors. This small log barn above is shown with two Dutch doors.

When a log barn has a center aisle traveling from the front of the barn to the back, the box stalls open into the aisle. The door ways of the stalls should be about 4 feet wide. One caution is to make sure that the tracking the rollers are hung from is not lower that the height of the barn ceiling. If the ceiling is 12 feet high then the frame of the door should extend up as high as possible and the rollers mounted high over head near the ceiling. There are two reasons for this. A horse can rear when they go through the door way. If the doorway is low then the horse is more likely to hit its pole (nerve center between their ears) on the top of the door frame. The second reason is sometimes if a rider rides the horse into the barn the horse may dive into a stall with the rider on its back. If the stall door height is lower than the ceiling the rider can hit themselves on the top of the doorway frame and get hurt.

Log barn aisles should be anywhere from 12 to 16 feet wide. This allows for easy access for a tractor pulling a manure spreader. Also this allows for young horses to be ridden up and down the barn aisle when they are first being trained.

A nice addition to a barn is a run-in shed on the side. When run-in sheds are available for the horses then there does not need to be as many box stalls. Most horses do very well turned out with other horses. Having the run in shed allows them to get in out of the weather but also freely go back out. A good size for a run-in shed depends on how many horses you plan to use it for. If you have a 6 stall barn with a center aisle, then the barn is probably 36 feet long. A shed roof can be extended off of the length of one side of the barn providing a shed that is 36 feet long and 8 to 12 feet deep. Also open sheds are easily cleaned with the use of a tractor with a front end loader or a skidsteer.

Our log barn kits are very similar to a log home kit. The package can be purchased as either just a log shell or as a full dryin package. The 8 inch milled log size is the most economic. To help protect the logs it is wise to extend the footer up to provide a cement knee wall of anywhere from 12 to 24 inches above the soil line. On the interior of the barn the box stalls should be lined with either thick plywood or wood planks. Rough saw wood planks work well. Any type of fruit wood should always be avoided as it can be toxic to horses.

Log horse barns can also come equipped with a heated tack room, wash stall, feed room, and even a vet area. If possible it is better to keep the feed room separate from the feed area, even if it is just partitioned off by a wall. This helps to keep any mice, etc from being attracted into the same area were the bridles, saddles, horse blankets, etc are stored and causing subsequent damage.

Log barns are a rustic choice which accent a log home, instead of distracting from it. A log barn can be built of stacked logs or as a framed structure or pole building with log accents. To match the home log siding can be installed on the outside of the barn. Log corner posts can be added. We have even added little log tails to the end of the peak of the gable and intermediate out riggers to give the feel of a log ridge beam without the expense. We are happy to design any log barn floor plan. We have many years of experience in the horse industry as well as with log homes.

Cowboy Log Homes

I thought it would be very interesting to share with everyone our top small cabin plans as chosen by YOU – our customers. Within the log home world there seems to be some cabin styles that are trendy, but they pass with time. But some of our designs are popular year, after year, after year. […]

In appreciation to any of our customers who recommend us to others we offer a $500 referral fee when we close a log home sale with them. We are confident that you will love your new Cowboy Log Home. So why not make some money by just talking about it? Whenever we have a log […]

Log cabin dreams are the precursor to the reality of sitting in your log home next to the roaring fire. Or even enjoying your log cabin from the outside. I remember a photo contest winner was a picture of a log home owner sitting outside of his cabin in a lawn chair in the summer […]

The Bridger is one of our most popular plans. One draw back is the shipping.  If you purchase a log shell two trucks are required for transportation.  To help maximize your log home shipping dollars, we often recommend that our customers purchase the log shell. If there is any more room available on the truck […]

In our smaller cabins of under 1000 square feet we have several cabins that fit into the A Frame log cabin kit category. One feature that all of our A Frame has in common is an upper balcony. A small cabin is nice but let’s take a look at how to enlarge a plan for […]

One feature of our website that many visitors love is all the small log cabin floor plans and pictures. Many websites only offer black and white sketches of their homes or maybe a colored rendering accompanying their floor plans. But we always strive to place as many relevant photos as possible with each. The elevation […]

Log cabin kits are based on the idea of getting all of your log and materials from one place. Some cabin kits only offer the logs. Some kits come with everything including the kitchen sink. So how do you decide what it the best route for you? We can provide either just a log shell […]