Siding Options to repair clapboard type siding

30Five

Hello everyone. I am looking for some good (read cheap) options for repairing some rotting siding areas on my house.

I have a pretty old 1-story house that has gone through Hurricane Katrina, and is in pretty bad shape overall. I don't care too much about overall visual appearance, I just need something that will be effective and low-cost that I can install myself.

The siding on my house is something like this: http://studio-tm.com/constructionblo...lap-siding.jpg

Not really clapboard siding, but not really ship-lap either. Lowes does sell siding that looks very similar to what is on my house, but is much taller. I will use that if I have too, but I'd rather use something else if possible, as that particular siding is rather pricey.

I was looking into T1-11 siding, but I was a little concerned about fire protection as I know plywood has lots of glues in it. I also looked into "LP Smart Side" but I wasn't sure what to think of it. It seems to be made of an OSB type material. Fiber Cement siding is used a lot in my town, but I've read you need special tools to cut and install it, as well as a lot of safety precautions due to the large amount of fiber dust when cutting the material.

All suggestions greatly appreciated. This is only for a 10x15 foot area, but when the money is available, I intend to replace the rest of the front of the house as well.

Thanks!

abracaboom

Fiber cement siding gets cut with a circular saw and cheap all-purpose blades (they get dull after 50 cuts or so). If you spend much more for a special blade, you will have spent much more for a blade that lasts a bit longer. A knife and a jigsaw or a handsaw will take care of the cuts that don't go all the way across.
Safety precautions for cutting fiber cement siding: stand upwind from the board you are cutting.

You nail it with a roofing nailer and 1-3/4" roofing nails. (Waste of money to use specialty nails and nailer.)

TarheelTerp

Another vote for the fiber cement siding.
Be sure to follow the directions exactly when you do joints.

abracaboom

Oh yes, I forgot about the joints: get yourself some metal flashing, and cut a piece about 2" wide by 4" long for each joint. Tuck one inch of the width behind the edge of the first piece of siding, so that when you butt the second piece of siding to the first, you have a metal barrier behind the joint (no caulking neccesary).

30Five

Thanks for the advice. I looked into fiber cement siding some more, and I think I'll be going that way. The prices are fantastic for such nice material.

Now, I have another issue as well. My house had the siding installed over just bare 2x4 studs and frame. No house-wrap, no sheathing. I really think I need to install at least house-wrap, but I'm wondering if I should go ahead and install house-wrap on top of 1/2" plywood sheathing to secure a good barrier against moisture and wind.

For environmental reference, I live in Mississippi, and my house is situated about 2 miles from the Gulf. It can get pretty humid in the summer years around here, and it rains heavily at times during the year. Also hurricanes and such are a concern as well.

TarheelTerp

This thread started with questions about a make do fix for a few years until: "but when the money is available, I intend to replace the rest of the front of the house as well." Which will/should grow into doing the other faces of the house...

Sure, put up some Tyvek over the studs and some insulation between them too. When the time comes to do the whole job you might even be able to leave all this stuff in place.

hth

ps: when I referred to joints before I meant the butt joints at cut ends of the planks.
The instructions vary by the part of the country your in.

30Five

Thanks for the assistance. I know fiber board can be brittle to an extent, is sheathing advised, or will 16" spaced studs be sufficient?

Really the whole house has a lot of issues that need fixing, but if I'm going to repair one part of the siding, I might as well set it up so that I can continue to rework other parts of the house.

abracaboom

In theory, you would need plywood sheathing or 5/8" drywall inside to resist shear forces, but if your old house has lived through at least one hurricane, common sense says that you don't really need them for your house.