Dirt to Done | Coventry Log Homes

The Dirt to Done Series

Follow the journey of planning, designing and building a Coventry Log Home from start to finish as featured in Log & Timber Home Living magazine.

Articles below written by Adam Headley
Photos courtesy of Jim Ducharme

Dirt to Done: The Maine Event

Follow along the journey of planning, designing and building a couple’s Maine retreat.

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Jim and Michele Ducharme had a long-standing dream: They wanted a log home. For years, they looked far and wide for the perfect piece of ground to make that goal a reality, only to find that their ultimate destination was a familiar one — quite literally in their own back yard. The land they were destined for, and where their vision for a log home in a serene setting would come to fruition, had been in Michele’s family all along.

“I never thought I’d be building our dream home on my grandparents’ farmland,” Michele admits. “Though we’ve spent a lot of time there at family events, I never pictured it as a place where we would live. Once my parents floated the idea by us, we went to the property to see if we could envision our home there, and suddenly, everything just seemed to fit together.”

Both Jim and Michele are New Hampshire natives, but their home site lay just across the state line in Maine. When the option to build on this lot became available, the opportunity proved magical.

“The site consists of 25 acres of family land that abuts the Salmon Falls River, which is on the border of Maine and New Hampshire,” explains Jim. “Michele’s family’s history on this property goes back to the 1800s. Both her parents and grandparents have lived here.”

The first steps on the Ducharmes’ log home journey could not have shaped up better. “We have always shared a dream of building one to spend our retirement years together,” comments Jim, Chief Operating Officer at RSA Outseer, a company focused on fraud prevention in digital payment processing and a 20-year veteran of the online security industry. However, Jim concedes that Michele is the CEO of the family, having focused on raising their three children to adulthood. The time has come for both of them to relax.

“As long as I can remember, I’ve wished the day would come when we would be fortunate enough to live in a log home,” Michele says with a smile. “Something about the rustic feel, the fireplace and the high ceilings makes me feel like we are always at a camp and can have s’mores anytime of the year. It just always feels cozy and like a great place to gather and tell stories.

It’s with a tinge of serendipity that the search for the place that Jim and Michele longed to call home started — literally — at home.

So it begins, the log home journey of a lifetime, on familiar ground that in time would yield everything that was hoped for and even more.

Dirt to Done: The Best Laid Plans

With feet firmly grounded in the present but an eye turned toward the future, the Ducharmes embark on one of the most exciting parts of the log home process: design.

Situated on a wooded property in southwestern Maine, Jim and Michele’s future home has been meticulously planned from the beginning, from the way it sits on the property to the placement of the kitchen and great room to the size of the doorways. Photo courtesy of Jim Ducharme.

Time waits for no man, woman or log home project. Jim and Michele Ducharme were keenly aware of this fact when they began transitioning ideas for the design of their log home on a wooded tract bordering Salmon Falls River in southwestern Maine.

The couple spent long hours discussing, imagining and researching just what they wanted in a log home that would serve them well in the present and future. It needed to fit day-to-day living as well as those times that lay ahead.

“We wanted to build a home suitable for our current situation: children still living with us, me still working from home and through our eventual retirement,” explains Jim. “We knew we wanted a great place for entertaining our entire family, including eventually – hopefully – many grandchildren. As we were thinking about the design, we thought about key elements that we wanted. For example, Michele wanted the kitchen in the back of the house, we knew wanted a large great room with a grand fireplace and a loft overlooking the great room.”

Throughout the design process, Jim and Michele displayed a remarkable knack for “getting there.” They scoured magazines for concepts, considered a growing family and then planned for lifestyle changes that will inevitably emerge. Along with their own savvy and skill, they brought technology to bear.

Jim used home-design software to provide perspective, understand which elements worked and which didn’t and help with fine-tuning. “Thanks to this software, I was able to do 3D renderings and even virtual walk-throughs of our design to ‘test drive’ it. This was incredibly helpful,” he explains.

“However, looking at a design on a computer does have its limitations,” Jim admits. “For one, it doesn’t give you a sense of scale. It’s easy to draw out the design with room sizes, but are they big enough? Too big? This is where we would visit the site with stakes and flagging tape in hand and lay out all the rooms. We were able to stand in our pretend kitchen, walk into our pretend bathroom and get a much better sense of size.”

Assessing the retirement years, the Ducharmes considered 36-inch-wide doorways and a primary bedroom initially on the second floor with ease of transition to accommodations on the main level if stairs become an obstacle. Attention to detail today will pay incredible dividends tomorrow. But there was more – much more – to do.

“I would say the biggest benefit Michele and I had in this process is that we were so aligned on our vision for what we wanted the exterior to look like,” Jim shares. “Once we had that, we needed to consider how to lay out those elements inside the ‘shell’ based on the key elements we spent so much time talking about.”

At this juncture, the couple thoroughly engaged their professional teammates: the Coventry Log Homes group and their builder, Brandon Perry, who made suggestions that preserved the desired aesthetic but solved a structural issue related to trusses in the purlin roof construction. Coventry architects revised the original plans to everyone’s satisfaction.

This was just one example of the team approach that would eventually render fantastic results.

Jim and Michele acknowledge the value of their professional partners and advise, “Find your Brandon! Calling Brandon ‘our builder’ doesn’t begin to explain the value he brought. Our advice is to get a builder early in the process simply to give creative input to the design. If you can get him or her to understand and invest in your vision, like Brandon was in ours, they can be instrumental in making your dreams even better.”

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode One

As part of our "Dirt to Done" series, here is an interview with Coventry's Mark Elliott and writer Mike Haskew as they talk about articles one and two, "Dirt to Done: The Maine Event" and "Dirt to Done: The Best Laid Plans." From the planning phase to the design phase, see how these homeowners started their log home journey.

Coventry's Mark Elliott and writer Mike Haskew talk and answer questions about the Dirt to Done Series. From the planning phase to the design phase, see how these homeowners started their log home journey.

Dirt to Done: Set Your Sites on Success

Jim and Michele Ducharme take the crucial next step of their log home odyssey — they prepare the property for construction.

As the Ducharmes began the excavation process, they quickly hit ledge rock and had to bring in a 10,000-pound hammer along with other excavation
equipment to remove it. After that, up went the footings and foundation walls. Photos courtesy of Jim Ducharme.

Michele Ducharme is intimately familiar with the ground that she and husband Jim selected for their long-awaited Coventry Log Homes residence. She grew up enjoying family gatherings on this property in southwestern Maine near the Salmon Falls River.

“Our homesite was previously my grandparents’ property that had been used for farming for many years,” she shares. “I have very fond memories of the huge garden they planted every year, which is almost the site of our house. When we got it, the property still contained their old house, which was built in the mid-1800s, but it had fallen into disrepair. It also had a garage our family had helped build for my grandfather about five years ago, which was convenient because we were able to use it to store building materials and equipment.”

For Michele and Jim, site prep, a key component of any log home construction project, came with some distinct advantages – along with a few surprises. The good news: They were able to leverage existing site improvements, including a recently repaved driveway to the original house, a working well and even electrical and cable service. With these available, cost and time savings were immediately realized. No permitting, approvals or inspections were required.

However, there were critical elements that needed to be addressed.

For starters, a second structure, affectionately dubbed the “old shed,” was riddled with termites. Immediate action needed to be taken to guard against future infestation.

“We had an exterminator come in to ensure there were no termites present even close to where we were going to build,” Jim says. “But just to be safe, we cleared almost two full acres of top soil where our house was planned to make doubly sure there was no termite food source — and a nice cold Maine winter — prior to construction.”

Next, the existing structures were demolished to make way for new construction. The money saved on the driveway, well and utilities helped cover this expense.

“Once the site was cleared, we took three weeks to lay out the foundation using stakes and landscaping tape before digging began,” Jim recalls. “Much like the staking technique we used to get a feel for the layout, this allowed us to get a sense of the orientation of the house on the property and the natural light at different times of day. Plus it gave us a sneak peek of the views we would actually see from any room. We would sit on our imaginary back deck and watch the sunset, as well as on our imaginary front porch to decide if we wanted to be closer or farther away from the road.”

Before the first shovel of dirt was turned, the Ducharmes engaged an excavation contractor and hired a septic designer to ensure that this aspect of the project met local codes to facilitate the remainder of the footprint.

“The building site is mostly flat, but it does have a natural grade downward toward the rear of the property,” explains Jim. “This made it perfect for the full walkout basement we wanted.”

However, one bit of project angst did occur once excavation got underway.

“Our final challenge in preparing the site was when we started digging the hole for the foundation,” Jim sighs. “We hit ledge rock almost immediately and had to bring in a 10,000-pound hammer and extra excavation equipment for a full day to remove it.”

Once that rock was gone, the site’s preparation could proceed with the building contractor and his partner installing footings and foundation walls. A local insulation company used spray foam and waterproofing to firm up the full basement. In due course, the Ducharmes knew that their log home would take shape according to their vision.

“We have so many wonderful memories of time on the farm, as does my father who grew up on this property,” muses Michele. “So many holidays, family get-togethers, or just hanging out by the ‘old shed,’ where we all chatted while my grandfather passed out the Beck’s dark beer that he loved to share with the boys.”

Remembering those days past conjures up the anticipation of memories yet to be made. And soon, the home where it all would come together would begin to rise.

Dirt to Done: Can I Get a Raise?

The day the logs are erected is a banner step in the log home building process. Jim and Michele Ducharme share their experience.

Choosing the right roof is a big decision. While the couple originally leaned toward a purlin roof system, they ultimately opted for a rafter system, as it didn’t require support posts and gave them the uninterrupted interior they wanted. Photo courtesy of Jim Ducharme.

When the walls begin to rise, a log home construction project takes on a new dimension. And for Jim and Michele Ducharme, the big day was both emotional and exhilarating, because this is the phase that truly takes log home plans from dream to reality.

“I remember as the layers went up, I thought it was so cool! As it progressed and we could see the cutouts for the windows, it reminded me of when our two boys used to build things with their Lincoln Logs,” Michele recalls.

“In a traditional stick-built house, you see one wall go up and then another and another and then they tie the walls together,” says Jim. “But in a log home, you see one row of logs go up for the entire house, then another row, and another. It’s kind of like watching a cake being assembled one layer at a time.”

The Ducharmes chose a manufactured package from Coventry Log Homes in New Hampshire, and the kit arrived with logs cut to length and ready to stack and interlock atop the foundation and subfloor.

“We went with the D-log shape, where the logs are rounded on the exterior but flat on the interior side,” explains Jim. This choice affords flat walls, which enable furniture and artwork to be flush with the wall, but still achieve that round-log cabin look from the curb. “We also chose butt-and-pass-style log corners to get that traditional log home look,” he says.

After considering several log species, the Ducharmes chose eastern white pine, preferring the color and knotty appearance of the wood, which also are ideal for achieving the shade of stain the couple wanted.

As exciting as it is, a stage this significant can also be a bit nerve-racking. When concerns arose, Jim and Michele’s builder was reassuring.

“Our biggest issue in watching the log walls go up was the natural ‘staining’ that was happening due to rain and snow exposure. The time that the untreated wood was sitting out in the elements was causing it to turn gray and just look terrible!” exclaims Jim. “With a log home, your finished interior and exterior walls are getting rained on, snow piling up inside — and not just for a day. It took a couple of months for our house to be weathertight, and by the time it was, the logs looked horrible.”

While understandable, Jim’s fears were unfounded and, ultimately, alleviated.

“The entire time our builder, Brandon, told us, ‘Don’t worry! We will clean them up and they will look as good as new.’ I asked, ‘Clean them up? How long will that take?’” recalls Jim, reliving the concern he had over the process. “Brandon brought in our stain guy, Matt, who was an expert at log home staining and maintenance. He showed us the process to clean the logs through his spray, and it truly was amazing how good it looked and how quickly they did it.”

For Jim and Michele, the roof design, both in looks and functionality, proved to be one of the most critical components of construction. Sitting down with the folks at Coventry, they discussed, at length, the pros and cons of each option.

“There were essentially two different roof styles we had to choose from: purlin or rafter,” notes Jim. “Purlin roofs are supported by beams that run horizontal to the ridge beam, the big beam that runs the length of the house at the peak of the roof. Traditional rafter roofs include roofing structural elements connecting from the top of the wall to the ridge beam to support the roof.”

Jim and Michele originally favored the purlin variety, envisioning the dramatic appeal of exposed beams in their great room, even though it would involve a significant number of structural logs and posts to support the sheer weight of the system. As the decision process moved along, they discovered that a purlin roof would require a heavy, 28-foot support post right in the middle of their great room and dining area, which interrupted the open flow they sought for their living spaces.

“Our builder consulted with us on the overall look we wanted, and recommended going with a traditional rafter roof,” Jim relates. “He suggested that if we still wanted exposed beams, we could certainly add them wherever we wanted and that we could get the look without needing them to be structural. This not only saved us money, but it also completely changed the weight of the roof and meant the elimination of the 28-foot supporting post in the middle of the great room.”

That’s the consultative process in action and proof it yields the desired results for homeowners. Such win-win outcomes are the stuff a great construction experience is made of, and it continued the Ducharmes path to success.

Dirt to Done: From Mechanicals to Masonry

Jim and Michele Ducharme make several complex decisions about how their home looks and performs.

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For the home’s exterior, complementary finishes included a stone veneer for the 38-foot chimney, log siding and false corners from Coventry Log Homes for the breezeway to match the main log home.

With steady progress in the completion of their log home odyssey, Jim and Michele Ducharme simultaneously zeroed in on the aesthetic and the pragmatic as they approached the installation of their mechanicals, as well as the materials that would provide the look and feel they wanted in the home’s exterior.

As they assessed the proper size and positioning of HVAC and other systems, their tastes and desires blended with the necessities of efficiency and cost.

“In terms of the mechanicals, we had a few important requirements that we wanted the various contractors to solve for us,” relays Jim. “First, and most importantly, we knew we wanted central air, but we didn’t want to have baseboards or any obviously visible units – mini-splits for example – for the heating. We also knew we wanted supplemental heat with a Napoleon wood-burning fireplace insert in the great room and a wood stove in the finished basement.

“Second, we planned to heat with propane, so we hired a gas plumbing contractor to not only plumb for our furnace but also for many of our appliances, including our kitchen stove, a gas clothes dryer, an outdoor kitchen with two grills and an additional grill on the deck, a portable generator, a heater for the garage, a 400,000-BTU heater for our swimming pool and, finally, a heating unit for our bar — all served up by a 1,000-gallon propane tank buried on the property,” Jim adds breathlessly. “I never wanted to run out of gas while cooking on the grill or to have to lug those tanks to the store to get refilled ever again!”

“Third, our house was going to be completely automated and connected. With my computer background and having done the work in our previous house, although on a much smaller scale, I took on this effort myself,” Jim says proudly. “We wanted every light switch, every door lock (including the garage door), our thermostats, our appliances, the heater and chemical controls for the swimming pool, the irrigation system, our entire security system from cameras to motion detectors, and even the incoming water supply line into the house to be fully automated and accessible through mobile apps or voice control.”

And as if this wish list isn’t exhaustive already, Jim adds one more thing: “In a house this size, we didn’t want to wait 20 minutes for hot water. We needed our plumber to recommend a solution. He suggested a single, large hot-water heater with a circulating pump. We had never heard of such a thing, but the result is that hot water is circulating throughout the pipes of the house all the time.”

Collectively, the requirements were a tall order. But Jim and Michele took on part of the project themselves while enlisting the skills of professionals who were prepared to deliver, although there were a few issues with the HVAC install.

“Unfortunately, we learned the hard way that you can order the best furnace money can buy and do all the custom metal fabrication in the world, but if the contractor doesn’t know how to move air throughout a house properly or know how to zone a house or know how to take ‘solar heat gain’ into account, then the system just won’t work.”

The original HVAC contractor was replaced, and ductwork was redone with new zoning and controls. Fine tuning is still ongoing, and Jim calls the experience “by far the biggest nightmare of the building process,” but it’s being resolved.

For the home’s exterior, complementary finishes included a stone veneer for the 38-foot chimney, log siding and false corners from Coventry Log Homes for the breezeway to match the main log home. Cambridge paving stones encase the patio and fire pit, and cut blue granite coping lines the pool.

“Our material choices are really about the look we want,” explains Jim. “In some cases, such as the pool coping, the decision has been influenced by availability, but it worked out well. We have been very fortunate that we haven’t had to sacrifice much in terms of choices due to cost or supply chain issues, but then our tastes aren’t exactly those of kings and queens.”

Installation challenges included using a 10,000-pound hammer to remove a rock ledge encountered while digging the pool and switching to the granite pool coping when the manufacturer discontinued the paving stones.

“Our builder also crafted a timber-frame-inspired pool house for us to have a changing room and a mechanical room for all the equipment,” Jim notes. “He used a vinyl shake on the walls along with a metal roof that matches the house, which we think came out great.”

And so, choosing exterior materials was an exercise in combining good looks, availability and value, and in each instance, the decisions the Ducharmes have made couldn’t have worked out better.

Dirt to Done: A Strong Finish

Jim and Michele Ducharme select finishing materials that hint at nostalgia as they head toward the completion of their future home.

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“We wanted that look with V-match pine ceilings and even pine interior walls throughout the house,” explains Jim, “but we also wanted to incorporate a bit of color and texture change, using drywall with color or stone here and there to break up all the wood. In the great room, we wanted an impressive fireplace with a massive chimney to fill up the 28 feet of log wall up to the ceiling.”

With that high ceiling and plenty of interior walls that called for the V-match pine treatment, the Ducharmes opted for a pre-stained product offered by their lumbermill. They picked their color and wood grade, and the material came ready to hang, saving time and proving to be well worth the higher production cost.

With a nod to a bygone era, an innovative approach to one interior wall made a lasting impression on the Ducharmes. “Given that this property was my grandparents’ old farmland, we wanted to try to preserve that family history,” relates Michele. “Our son, Ryan, had one of the best ideas for our interior finishes, and we call it the barn wall. Outside our master bedroom in the loft, this wall looks like the front of an old barn and pays homage to the old red barn that sat on the property for many years.”

Builder Brandon Perry also contributed to the theme of “old into new” with some repurposed timbers from the grandparents’ farmhouse. “He created an amazing fireplace mantel,” Michele says. “He was particularly nervous when working on this, given how delicate the old wood was. But it came out fantastic and is a wonderful memory of the old farmhouse. We used more of the reclaimed beams to create a bar and other finishing touches in the basement.”

The subcontractors’ experience paid unexpected dividends during the installation of tile in the primary bathroom. “We had picked this amazing tile that we thought would be perfect for that space,” recalls Jim. “We happened to stop by one night after our tile guy had finished laying out all the tile and grouted the floors. We absolutely hated it! We couldn’t believe how different it looked and couldn’t figure out why.” Our tile guy told us, ‘I don’t think it’s the tile you hate. I think it’s the grout you picked. It’s too light and takes away from the tile. Let me just try changing the grout and see if that helps.’”

“Well, he was right,” Jim acknowledges. “With the darker grout, it looked exactly how we had pictured, and in the end, it came out fabulous. Our expert saved the day!”

Finishing the floors, cabinetry, countertops and other accents was a labor of love for Tom Penny, a custom cabinetmaker who Jim and Michele have known for years. Tom also provided a number of custom built-in pieces.

“Tom has been a huge help to us over the years,” Jim remarks. “We could simply say, ‘Tom, we need something here,’ and he would design a visually and functionally perfect piece that was unique just for us. Tom built most of the hard fixtures, and that really helps tie everything together. Our kitchen was custom designed, including a 9-by-5-foot center island with tons of storage, pull-out drawers, and custom reclaimed-pine countertops. Every other cabinet got leathered-granite countertops that are great to work on and easy to keep clean.”

The wide-plank pine flooring provides incredible visual appeal, as well as a poignant coda to the interior finishing process. “Dave Boucher and his father, also named Dave, did them,” recalls Jim, “and I’ll never forget his dad hammering in thousands of cut nails day after day and laying down all that wide pine wood. Every contractor that came into the house commented on the quality of work that father-son team did.”

Sadly, Dave, the son, recently passed away at age 38 due to a heart issue. “He was an amazing man who had a young family of his own,” Jim and Michele reflect. “We are blessed to have his hand prints on our house.”

Such is the fabric of life — joy and excitement mingled with moments of sorrow. The work of the craftsmen remains, another tribute to the passage of time and a legacy in the making.

Dirt to Done: Home Smarts

Jim and Michele Ducharme tackle a few final projects themselves, putting their smart-home know-how to work as their build winds to a close.

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When Jim and Michele Ducharme embarked on their quest to build the log home of a lifetime on their old family property near the Salmon Falls River in southwestern Maine, they didn’t anticipate doing much of the work themselves.

“To save money, we put a lot of sweat equity into the last home we built,” Jim reflects, “but this time, we decided the project was big enough that we wanted to leave the vast majority of the ‘heavy lifting’ to the professionals.”

Yet when the opportunity arose, there were a few projects the couple simply couldn’t resist putting their own touch on — literally. Their participation began with the decision to give some old wood a great second act.

“The first thing was extracting, cleaning and refinishing reclaimed timbers from the old farmhouse on the property that we wanted to repurpose in the new house,” Jim relates. “We leveraged these reclaimed timbers in a few areas of our new home — our fireplace mantel, the bar in my man cave and a decorative wall in the basement. While we were tearing down the old house, we went in with chainsaws and cut out the nicest timbers from it, cleaned them up and refinished them. We did this mostly so we could get the exact look we wanted out of those timbers.”

Next came the installation and connection work for smart-home functionality. Jim has experience in this type of networking installation, and the opportunity to incorporate it into his home fit perfectly with his skill and comfort level. “I knew what I wanted and how I wanted it all to work,” he comments, “so I ran over 1,500 feet of CAT6A cables through the home to network the entire house, my equipment rooms, as well as a mesh Wi-Fi system and in-wall/ceiling speakers for my entertainment areas in the basement.”

The benefits of the “smart home” concept are readily apparent to Jim and Michele. Convenience and comfort are available with the simple sound of a recognized voice.

“It means we can control just about every light in our home and even doors and locks and many other devices through voice or put them on schedules to turn on/off or even control remotely when we’re not at home,” explains Jim. “For example, at sunset our outdoor lighting turns on automatically, and some of our great room lights turn on so we aren’t left in the dark. When we’re ready for bed, we simply tell our home-automation system ‘good night,’ and it ensures that all the doors are locked, closes any garage doors we forgot to close and turns off any lights we may have left on.”

Even the Ducharmes’ swimming pool is enhanced and maintained by smart devices that regulate temperature and provide alerts for chemical treatments to keep the water clean. Smart alarms are a planned addition to keep children safe around the pool, ensuring that they don’t wander into the area unsupervised.

Efficiency and security are major benefits of smart-home tech, too. The HVAC system can be adjusted by voice or controlled from anywhere when Jim and Michele are away. Water monitoring keeps track of usage from the well and detects any issues such as leaks, faulty toilet apparatus or a ruptured pipe. Alerts come through mobile devices, so prompt action can be taken if necessary. Electrical usage is also monitored and provides data on efficiency, allowing changes to any appliance or system that might over-consume or need regulation.

Motion detectors and cameras are located throughout the property, and smart locks warn of any attempt at unauthorized entry. “We can answer the doorbell no matter where we are through our mobile devices and lock and unlock the doors in case we need to let in a contractor or dog sitter while we’re away,” says Jim. “Our smoke detectors will send notifications to our phones, too, which is handy if we aren’t at home.”

For those planning to install smart-home features, Jim and Michele recommend planning early in the construction process, working with an electrician who is familiar with the technology’s needs and considering which features, both large and small, will add value in leisure living.

“A smart home does depend on having a home network,” advises Jim, “typically a Wi-Fi network. When planning, it’s best to think through the experience you want to have in interacting with lights and devices in your home or what smart features you will find helpful. Just about everything can be automated, from alerting you that the freezer door is open or your clothes dryer has finished to reminding you when to flip the burgers on the grill.”

Now that’s a smart idea.

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode Two

Join us for an interview with Mark Elliott of Coventry Log Homes and writer Mike Haskew as part of our "Dirt to Done" series. In this informative discussion, they explore installments three and four: "Set Your Sites on Success" and "Can I Get a Raise?". From preparing the property for construction to delivery day and watching the log walls go up, see how this dream home came to life.

Coventry's Mark Elliott and writer Mike Haskew talk and answer questions about the Dirt to Done Series. From the preparing the property for construction to delivery day and watching the log walls go up, see how these homeowners continue their log home journey.

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode Three

Join us for an interview with Mark Elliott of Coventry Log Homes and writer Mike Haskew as part of our "Dirt to Done" series. In this informative discussion, they explore installments five, six and seven: "Dirt to Done: From Mechanicals to Masonry," "Dirt to Done: A Strong Finish," and "Dirt to Done: Home Smarts." From making several complex decisions about how their home looks and performs, to choosing finishing materials that hint at nostalgia, to putting their smart-home know-how to work, follow along as these homeowners create their dream log home.

Have more questions? Call us at 1-800-308-7505 or email us at info@coventryloghomes.com.

Total I want to spend:	$

Estimate of how much I can spend on my complete Coventry retail package:	$

Estimate of how much the rest of the budget breaks down:
Site Work:	$
Foundation:	$
Labor to Construct:	$
Insulation:	$
Plumbing:	$
Electrical:	$
Heating:	$
Kitchen:	$
Flooring:	$
Appliances:	$
Staining:	$
Miscellaneous:	$

The Dirt to Done Series

Dirt to Done: The Maine Event

Dirt to Done: The Best Laid Plans

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode One

Dirt to Done: Set Your Sites on Success

Dirt to Done: Can I Get a Raise?

Dirt to Done: From Mechanicals to Masonry

Dirt to Done: A Strong Finish

Dirt to Done: Home Smarts

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode Two

Coventry Dirt to Done Video: Episode Three

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