Your log furniture has cracks. Before you panic or demand a refund: most of what you're seeing is "checking" — a normal, cosmetic feature of log construction. But some cracks do indicate problems. Here's how to tell the difference.
Checking is the woodworking term for small radial cracks that appear on the surface of a log as it dries. Every log does this. It's not a defect — it's wood physics.
Here's why it happens: a log dries from the outside in. The outer layers shrink as they lose moisture, but the core is still wet and hasn't shrunk yet. The outer wood is now too tight for the still-expanded core, so it relieves the stress by cracking — always along the grain, radiating outward from the center.
Even perfectly kiln-dried logs can develop new checks when moved to a different humidity environment. A log bed frame that was fine in the maker's workshop in Dundalk may develop checks when it spends its first winter in a Toronto house heated to 22°C with 25% relative humidity.
This is the wood acclimating. It's expected.
The biggest cause. If the maker built from wood at 15% moisture content instead of the ideal 6–8%, the wood still has a lot of drying to do inside your house. Green-built log furniture can develop dramatic cracks in the first year as the moisture escapes.
This is a quality control issue — ask your maker about their drying process before buying. Read our buyer's guide for what to ask.
Forced-air heating systems drop indoor humidity to 20–30%. This is the #1 environmental cause of checking in Canadian homes. A humidifier targeting 40–45% dramatically reduces wood stress.
It's the single best thing you can do for any wood furniture. Read more in our care guide.
The unheated cottage environment is the hardest on log furniture. Humidity swings from 80% in summer to under 20% in a frozen January cabin.
Checking in this environment is essentially guaranteed. Oil finishes and acceptance are your friends here.
A log bed frame positioned next to a baseboard heater or in direct afternoon sun dries unevenly. The side facing the heat source checks more than the opposite side. Rotate or reposition if possible.
Leave them. They're part of the wood.
Filling small checks with wood filler looks worse than the check — the filler is a different colour, it doesn't move with the wood, and it pops out eventually. Embrace them.
If they bother you: flexible wood filler (not rigid) tinted to match your wood species. Minwax Stainable Wood Filler works. Apply, let dry, sand flush.
Re-apply your finish over the repair. Accept that the repair may need redoing as the check moves seasonally.
If structural: contact the maker. A large crack at a joint may warrant repair or replacement under warranty. For cosmetic-only large checks on decorative pieces, you can fill with tinted epoxy — it's flexible, bonds well, and can look attractive if you embrace it as a design feature rather than trying to hide it.