I plan on building a small cabin to use some during trapping season, but mostly during the rest of the year. My question is should I dig down abit and put maybe 2 rows of cinder bricks, or put the cinder bricks on top of the ground. I need to level the ground anyways, so some additional digging would be a big problem.

I'm not an expert on log cabins, but I do build houses if I were you over dig and place glavel on both sides of the block, and I don't think I would use open web block seeing that you dont have a flat surface like a footing and it may sink if the ground gets to wet. and the gravel will help with getting the water away from the wood.

It would be best to get the base of the building below frost level. That prevents the building from heaving and settling during the freeze/thaw cycles. If it is just going to be a shed on top of the ground with a dirt floor then it probably wouldn't matter much. Also starting below grade helps to deter the critters from digging out under your walls and taking up residency in your cabin. It's your cabin do what ever flips your skirt!

Sorry, I also wanted to put a cement slab under it, the cabin size might be around 12X12 and maybe 9 ft high at the center ridge pole.

If you started with a reinforced concrete floor poured on top of a gravel base you should be fine on a 12 x 12 structure. That is a design that is sometimes referred to as a "Floating Slab"

Ok, thank you. Would a 1 foot of rise for 3 feet of horizontal roofing be fine?

I would recommend putting a thick (mm)plastic sheet down underneath the slab.Prevents sweating of the concrete. Also a raised foundation helps with water any problems (Just my two cents worth )

close but no cigar, a floating slab is one poured inside concrete blocks,like a garage floor,the slab rests on a bed of gravel,hence the name floating slab.To support a stracture you will need a concrete footing the bootom of which must be below frost line,the concret slab can be poured at the same time,plastic is a good idea,be sure to check with local building codes.My real life job is finihing concrete.

More like 3' rise to a foot of Horiz, to carry the snow load you'll be getting. A high roof allows shorter walls or makes for a good storage area.

Man your lucky. I would love to have a trapline were I had to have a cabin to check it.

Thats way to steep BigBob, The attic/roof would be 18 feet tall on their own, the walls may be 7 feet high and maybe 4 feet to the top of the cabin.

I said shorter walls, go with 1:1 then, but what you said is too flat.

You talking shed or peaked roof?

Sorry I misunder stood, a peaked roof. Ok that sounds fine. How long should it take if I work on it alot and have a friend help me some. grousehunter, my trapline isnt long, I would just like a cabin to camp in some during trapping season. Maybe in the next couple years I might expand it.

Depends on how much snow you get there, but on that small a structure a 3/12 or 4/12 pitch will be more than adequate. I usually build in this area with a 6/12 pitch. Steeper will look better and give you more room though.

Wouldn't local building codes require frost footings?

You need to look at your building codes - you start pouring slab's and such turns it into a "permanent structure" and will require building permits ect..Don't know how involved you want to get - just trying to give you a heads up ...

Whatever you decide to build, you GOTTA take lots of pictures of the process and start a new thread here with updates ... I think that's the kinda thing a lot of us would really enjoy seeing.

when we done ours, we built it above ground-(crawl space underneath) 16 X 24
with the 3 to 1 pitch you won't regret it-LOFT!!!! makes a
very nice sleeping quarters & warm. the 18 ft ceiling is really nice but since ur doing it smaller I would go noless then 14 ft ceiling point
the walls you can defer to whatever size you wish for height.
we have three bunkbeds down and two beds upstairs...
i built it from logs on the property & taking 6 months for completeing; thats scraping all the logs(bark free)
and treating them also.
I treated the under cabin with creasote and the only problem i had was porkypines;inwhich we ate some and throwed the rest.
when complete, bleach logs (they will turn completely white)
then clear coat. i used a spray gun(pressure washer) for doing it.
if ya need more i have a book in my files..........
also, you drop it down on a foundation you are required to have a permit! & permits! to update to all codes....
being off the ground it is considered moveable.........

I am no expert but I have built a few buildings in my days.
If it were me, I would start with digging down around the outer edge, where the outer wall will be for a footer. Dig down below the frost line. I like to dig a little deeper and fill back in with sand packed hard. I also like the bottom of my footer to be a few inches wider than the top of that is possible with your soil. So you start by marking off your square your floor will sit on, dig down the floor to the level you want plus the thickness of the concrete plus a few inches for sand. Fill back in with sand to the depth you want. Then dig the footer aroud the outer perimeter to below the frost line. If you are planning any interior walls I dig another footer where the interoir wall will be, but on this size of cabin that is probably not necessary. Then add rebar to tie it all together then pour the concrete.
The concrete guys on here will know better than I would know..... this method might be oveerkill for your size of cabin. So take their advice over mine.
Next I frame the outer walls and stand them up around bolting them down to the concrete. Around here we have a serious termite problem. I like to sprinkle a little spetricide or other termite killer around the footer, under ground. I use treated lunber for the bottom of the wall frame. You could get moisture between the concrete and the wood. Make sure the concrete does not extend out past the wood, this will give a place for water to run in. Also termites don't like treated lumber as well.
As far as having it dug below the ground a little or raised off the ground, it depends on your preferance and your location. have it level with or below the ground be careful of water flow. You don't want a flooded cabin floor!
Next, are you going to leave the floor concrete, or lay insulation sheets and plywood over it? Check into the cost of the different ways.
Another way to do this is to dig a footer. Just a trench below the frost line. Bring the footer up to ground level or taller if you line. You can either go with cement blocks on top of the footer, or form the footer all teh way to the height you want the floor to be. Then using 2x8's frame in the floor, then lay the plywood strudyfloor down. One downside to this is the expense of lumber, flooring, and insulation. This may or may not be cheaper than cement. Make sure you insulate the floor well if you do it this way. You will have critters living under the floor doing it this way so make sure the crawl space is tall enough you can crawl in and set traps. This way would be much better if you have deep snow and to keep things dry when the snow starts melting.
For the size you are talking you could also build it like a deck. Dig a hole every 4 feet and set a 4x4 treated lumber post in concrete in the hole. Your holes will have to be down below frost again, but this will save on concrete. Then set in 2x12's across each of the rows of 4x4 posts. Then frame the floor with 2x6's running the opposite way of the 2x12's. Build up from there just like a deck. This method you could get the floor of your cabin a few feet off the ground, not have a tight crawl space for critters. The floor would need to be insulated better, but would be protected.
Carpenters on here could probably tell you weather or not this way would be good or not. I know it would work good, but for long term durability someone else can probably advise better than I.

Take pictures..I'm thinking of doing that myself one day.

Depending on the location, you may not want to dig down, you may want to build it up. Located on the base of a hill or in a low spot, water infiltrartion could be a problem. I wouldn't consider building codes, use your noggin and create your own cabin your own way. Love to see some pictures......

The location I have picked out is on top of a railroad grade. There are no tracks and the railroad was ended along time ago. I will make sure I take aot of pics to show you guys.

10 years ago, we built a fairly simple 12x20 log cabin. We put it up on concrete pylons that stick out of the ground about 2 ft. In doing some research, we were told that any closer to the ground and an animal might den up under there and cause problems. So far we haven't had any issues with that. Also, because it was built on pylons, the township considers it a portable building and taxes are much less than they would be on a permanent structure. This cabin isn't moving without some serious crane work, but I won't argue with the taxes. It's located in central Wisconsin and we went with a 9/12 pitch on the roof because of the snow. Haven't had any problems with that either.

Close but no cigar to you also. A floating slab is a slab with no foundation support. The structure can then be constructed on top of the Floating Slab. Depending on the size of the structure and the load reactions being transferred to the slab perimeter, A swail may be required, wich is a thickening of the slap at the load bearing points.
Maybe the terminology differs some from region to region but my discription came from my Code book in my office.

+1 bic

Up here they're called monoslabs or thickened edge slabs...really popular for places with good soils (gravel or well drained sands)but if you are in a cold climate, you need to insulate them properly and in alot of cases, the building has to be heated all the time...

I agree with Bic, same terminology here in Iowa. Another thing to think of is placing insulation under the concrete to hlep retain heat loss. I would also choose the rafters with a loft. I helped a buddy build one last year that was 20x20 for a house, and their is no space left. Granted this is his house, the couple hundred bucks for different rafters would have been worth it.

Relocated Badger what is a concrete pylon? A cement column?

Yep, Just another name for the same.
Thanks Guys for the supportive replys. I have been designing buildings and roof systems since 1985. This ain't my first rodeo. lol

So pour cement below the frost line and up a foot or so. The rest or bolt the bottoms of the logs to it?

On a 12x12 cabin , I wouldn't even worry about the frost line. I would level off my area. Spread 4" of gravel over the area. Cover the gravel base with 6 mil plastic. Build a perimeter form with 2x8's. Cut 2" high density foam sheathing on the gravel bed inside your 12 x 12 form. Pour your reinforced concrete slab keeping it even with the top of your 2x8 form. This will make the concrete approximately 6" thick. Before the concrete sets up. stick a couple 1/2"X 8"anchor bolts into the concrete about 4 ft from each corner. Leave the bolts stick up so you can anchor the bottom of youe walls to the slab. Enjoy building your cabin.
If frost raises the whole elevation of the cabin an inch higher in the winter than it is in the summer...Who cares. (As long as you don't have permanent indoor plumbing installed)

There won't be any plumming in it. I might be able to start building it in the next couple weeks. I have to bust up some concrete first to give me plenty of room. How long should the logs be for a 12X12 inside dimensions, an extra foot on each end.

If your building on top of an old railroad grade, how long has it been since it has been in use? If it has been used within the past 50 or 75 years I would guess it is a very thick raised layer of hard packed rock! You probably won't have a lot of issues with the ground shifting. I would also guess you will find it vry hard to dig down too deep!
Is this cabin going to be built out of logs or out of lumber? if it is built out of logs I would guess the weight would be distributed differently than if built out of 2x4 or 2x4 stud walls and sheeting!
Also Bic, would the pad you describe be the same as what some in my part of the world call a monolithic pad?

Out of logs, the only part that might be actual lumber is the floor.

Of course it is. It is all poured at the same time.

How long do you think the logs should be for a 12 foot inside wall? 15feet maybe?

Bic is a smart guy..i concur and re-affirm everything he has spewed from his doughnut hole..

depends on the diameter of the logs. I made mine 4 feet longer than inside dimensions. Milled them flat on top & bottom with a chainsaw mill, 7 inches thick, and scribed the notches.

that would be a 4/12 pitch and I'd say in a snow region that would not be sufficent pitch ......... I'd go at least a 7/12 and preferably a 9/12 which is roughly around a 37 or 37-1/2 degree angle

What the heck is a cinderbrick??? Is that a cinder block, or a brick???

its a cinder block.