An 8,000-square-foot log home built for a Ponoka-area family will be featured on the new season of the Timber Kings.
The house described as “a work of art” is owned by Brad and Amanda Kelly. While they could not be reached for comment, a Central Alberta couple with the same names won $18.4 million in a Lotto 6/49 draw in July 2014.
Like other homes on the HGTV show, the residence was built in Williams Lake, B.C. by Pioneer Log Homes —the largest builder of hand-crafted log homes in the world.
Chainsaws were fired up for the six-month construction project starting in March. The structure was completed, under a tight schedule, by the end of August. The home was then disassembled into numbered pieces and moved to Ponoka, where it was put back together a few months ago.
“It’s a beautiful work of art… with great, big massive red cedar logs,” said the company’s co-owner, André Chevigny, who co-hosts the show along with his brother Bryan Reid.
The log home was custom built for the Kellys, who wanted four-bedrooms and lots of entertainment space for their family. Chevigny said, “It’ll be very different from anything else around there… We do everything by hand, peel the logs, the notches…”
Hanging trusses are visible in the rafters, and there’s a load-bearing aesthetic “family tree” in the middle supporting the roof. Chevigny ‘s 25-person construction crew also made a “beautiful bar and rec room… with lots of event space” in the house. The upstairs is mostly open-concept, with a rear entry and double garage.
After the residence was reassembled in Central Alberta, Chevigny said the home’s owners had to hire a general contractor to enclose the roof and add shingles, install kitchen cabinets, flooring and other finishing work.
The house is much larger than the average 2,500 log residence built by the company, but far smaller than the largest, at 21,000-square feet, said Chevigny, who did not want to talk costs.
The biggest challenge was the tight time frame for construction. “We wanted to get a roof on it before the weather turned bad,” he recalled. “There were thousands of pieces and we were trying to get the work done…”
He believes the Timber Kings show has popularized log homes. The Williams Lake-native believes they have the best value, are most natural, environmental and long-lasting.
In Europe, where some of the houses have been shipped, they are rated to last 300 years, said Chevigny. “It’s really opened up people’s eyes as to what’s possible…”
The new season of Timber Kings begins on Jan. 3. The Ponoka home episode is expected to air mid-February.
lmichelin@reddeeradvocate.