Eco Log Homes

Sustainability

From the Forest…

Operating in beautiful British Columbia, we know how essential our forests are for the continued health and well-being of our communities. That is why we take pride in balancing our business practices with our continued commitment to a productive and sustainable future.

All of our timber is sourced from British Columbia Timber Supply Areas (TSAs). These areas are home to rich, bio-diverse ecosystems that our suppliers protect and conserve through their Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) goals, therefore maintaining a thriving environment and community.

Pan-Abode air dries our western red cedar and uses low carbon energy sources in the manufacturing processes. The BC Log and Timber Builders Association commissioned a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA study available here) on a variety of log home styles (hand-hewn round logs, timber frame and machine-milled like Pan-Abode) and species of wood. Pan-Abode eco log homes perform better than average since we air-dry not kiln-dry our wood, Cedar needs to be stained and maintained less than other woods, and our raw materials are sourced in BC which reduces transport to manufacturing facilities.

Forestry Innovation Investment commissioned an International Policy Review on Embodied Carbon of Buildings and Infrastructure; with one of their conclusions being the importance of LCA and how well wood performs in limiting climate-related impacts of the building over the life cycle. The study is available here.

BC is recognized as a global leader in sustainable forest management, meeting the environmental, social and economic needs of current and future generations. Stringent forest laws, skilled forestry professionals, comprehensive monitoring and enforcement support our renewable resource. This is further reinforced by Canada being the international leader in forest certification, with BC contributing more than any other province. Learn more here.

Further to this, Forest Products Association of Canada commissioned a study on Global Environmental Forest Policies: Canada as a Constant Case Comparison of Select Forest Practice Regulations. It discusses many regions around the world and finds British Columbia to be one of the most strict regarding sustainable forestry practices. All of Pan-Abode’s Western Red Cedar is sourced from BC. Read the study here.

…to your Low Carbon Impact Buildings

Pan-Abode International is a keen proponent of the environmental and health benefits of building with and living in wood structures. Wood is a renewable resource grown in forests that provide cultural, ecological and carbon sequestrating benefits. Used in long-lasting structures like homes, the carbon sequestering benefits are especially long-lived. Learn more about our low carbon buildings here.

Each home is energy modelled (read more here) with recommendations made to provide you the performance level you need, the comfort you desire and to meet or exceed local building code.

We are also open to working with customers interested in doing a deeper review of their home’s impact and working with them to make needed adjustments where we can (including the non-log kit components that we supply) in the design of their eco log home.

Some highlights of Pan-Abode eco log homes include:

• We are entirely made in Canada with strict environmental, engineering and safety requirements
• All of our home designs can be done without the need for drywall / gypsum
• We can design a Pan-Abode to be on any type of foundation (there are even wood foundations available)
• We can design a Pan-Abode with smaller windows (window-to-wall ratio) and upgrade those you do have with triple glazing
• Our standard windows and doors are supplied with wood frames
• Our preferred stain suppliers are low or no VOC and are water-borne (Cedar can often be left unstained too, unlike most other wood, depending on the amount of water and UV exposure)