Tincup Log HomeRestoration Experts

Tincup sits at an elevation where very few log homes exist at all, and that altitude changes everything about how a cabin weathers. The air is thin and the ultraviolet exposure is brutal, so finishes fade and break down faster than almost anywhere else we work. The frost-free season is extremely short, cold arrives early and lingers late, and the swing between strong daytime sun and hard overnight freezes is severe even in summer. Wood and sealants here are pushed to their limits.

We treat Tincup projects as high-altitude work from the start, choosing stains that hold their UV protection under an intense sun and chinking rated to stay flexible through the deep cold that defines this place.

For much of the year Tincup is buried in snow and its passes are closed, which means most cabins sit empty and unreachable through the winter. That long absence is the central challenge of caring for a home here: whatever goes wrong in December will not be noticed until the roads open again in summer. A small gap in the chinking or a water-holding check has months to do damage with no one around. We plan around that reality with careful pre-winter sealing and a thorough inspection as soon as access returns each season.

Tincup's cabins carry the story of Colorado's mining era, and many have survived well over a century of the harshest weather the state can offer. Preserving them means respecting how they were built: sorting sound logs from those that need splicing, re-chinking joints that have settled over generations, and applying breathable finishes that protect without stripping away the weathered patina that makes these cabins special. Our goal on every Tincup project is a structure that is sound and sealed for the next generation, yet still unmistakably historic.