[GumbyMan]

Hi there-
I am in the process of rebuilding a duplex that burned down a year ago, where it is located (Sydney Nova Scotia) there are some building requirements for that area of town - basically so people don't just build ugly boxes with vinyl siding. So you have various options to choose from so that you can get 6 points. 4 roof slopes gives you 2 points, a dormer gives you a point etc. I got all I could from design elements and need to get 2 points for 'exterior cladding other than vinyl or metal'.
-- while I agree in principle with the spirit of these rules it seems stupid to me that there are no case by case exceptions for them as there are a lot of really nice vinyl sidings that would meet their real goal of making new buildings fit in with older homes of the area --

Anyway, I have gotten quotes of CanExel wood composite siding which looks like a good product but is very expensive. We are on an extremely tight budget and I am looking for other options that would work. I am ok with doing the work myself if it isn't really complicated.

The options that I am looking at are:
Unfinished pine clapboard - I can get it for about $110/square (vr $80/sq for beige vinyl) and then finish it my self (I think the best bet would be to rent a sprayer and stain it on all sides on ground and then install it.)

Stucco - not sure whether this feasible, seems like it should be cheap and easy... but in researching it seems looks like a lot of work and a lot of materials, so I don't know how expensive it will be.

Any other options, and/or opinions and advice for either of these two options

Thanks for your assistance!!
GumbyMan

 

[joecaption]

James Hardee lap siding.
Once painted looks exactly like real wood with out all the draw backs of wood.

 

[GumbyMan]

James Hardee lap siding.
Once painted looks exactly like real wood with out all the draw backs of wood.

But that is a lot more expensive than $110 a square though isn't it?
So is it a better option than CanExcel? if we have to go with an expensive option?

Basically I have enough money from insurance to do basic vinyl but can't as it isn't allowed by city. so I am looking for cheap options...

 

[joecaption]

No way to know what it cost in your area.

 

[woodworkbykirk]

james harty siding in no longer available in nova scotia and if canexel isnt in your price range fibre cement isnt either.

stucco or dryvit doesnt hold up in the maritime environment, people are using it here but their having to get it patched in under 5 years or even replaced within 10.. the freeze thaw destroys it.. the salt water environment is even harder on it

metal sdiing is pretty much non existant here..

you said vinyl siding isnt an option.. ive never heard of vinyl not being allowed anywhere in nova scotia. hrm specs it as a requirement for close proximaty buildings if fibre cement isnt going to be used as per fire codes. mind you vinyl has to be installed with concrete board as the sheathing on the wall.. ... have you looked into cedar one select vinyl siding.. it looks like cedar shingles

 

[shazapple]

Hardie siding isn't warrantied in Atlantic Canada because of the amount of failures, so it is hard to find. Certainteed still sells their version of fiberous cement siding though.

You could look into prefinished wood such as Fraiser or Cape Cod. Probably similar cost as the engineered wood though.

What about a board and batten style? Or wood shingles?

 

[GBrackins]

some nice cedar shingles (red or white) may be your best bet, they work well on Cape Cod's harsh winters and can be easily replaced

 

[woodworkbykirk]

harty stopped availabity on the entire east coast both u.s. and canada do to high wind and high humidity.. the freeze thaw cycle being the issue causing the paint to flake off. ive installed my fair share of their siding and weve never had issues. the real problem is the install, if you dont follow the installation guide for your region your going to have problems... via improper flashings, not installing a rain screen system for proper drainage.

certainteed's fibre cement is garbage.. its extremely brittle so fastening is a nightmare, the issues harty has had with their product is 3x worse on certaineteed. though its available here pretty much every reputable contractor wont touch the stuff so their steering clients towards wood, vinyl or other composite products

 

[philS]

Wow. Hardie board not available on east coast? I'm in OR and we use tons of it every week. I did my first installation almost 10 years ago and the paint is still just fine. Of course we followed the directions with felt paper flashing behind each butt joint and LOTS of caulk.

 

[paintdrying]

second on the cedar shake. Or board and batton could look nice

 

[joecaption]

I live right on the bay and we have freeze thaw and up to 115 MPH winds and have never seen a Hardee failure.
And it sure as heck is still being sold every day.
http://www.jameshardie.com/builder/hurricane_testimonials.shtml

 

[woodworkbykirk]

Wow. Hardie board not available on east coast? I'm in OR and we use tons of it every week. I did my first installation almost 10 years ago and the paint is still just fine. Of course we followed the directions with felt paper flashing behind each butt joint and LOTS of caulk.

you did it correct then, like i mentioned it comes down to a correct install. a ton of people are installing only a handful are doing it correct. the only issue we have had with harti was getting the color match caulking for a job.. the house we did was extremely popular at the time and the supplier wasnt able to get the color match caulking to us until 8 months after we finished the job.. fortunate for us when we install fibre cement we back caulk our siding where it meets trim

 

[philS]

you did it correct then, like i mentioned it comes down to a correct install. a ton of people are installing only a handful are doing it correct. the only issue we have had with harti was getting the color match caulking for a job.. the house we did was extremely popular at the time and the supplier wasnt able to get the color match caulking to us until 8 months after we finished the job.. fortunate for us when we install fibre cement we back caulk our siding where it meets trim

Why not use paintable caulk? The siliconized acryllic seems to work very well and is paintable.

While we're here, I helped a contractor friend do a garage siding job and he insisted we didn't need to back flash (butt flash?) the Hardie Board. He used some fancy caulk that I hadn't seen before for the butt joints. It was expensive, dried very slowly, and has remained super-flexible (and it's paintable). Any opinions on whether high-quality caulk eliminates the need for the butt flashing? OTOH, the flashing can't possibly hurt and it really doesn't take very long, once you get the rhythm down.

I love watching the sapsuckers try the Hardie board -- once!

 

[woodworkbykirk]

hardie wont warrenty the install if you caulk butt joints, they want it left open and a flashing in behind . it can be scraps of aluminum coil stock or simply tar paper

as for painting the caulking no... harti comes prefinished so they make caulking that matches it. once the siding is on the wall all siding meeting corner, window and door trim must be caulked. except for at the top of windows and doors so to allow any water thats behind the siding to be able to run out on top of hte flashing .. once its caulked your done no touch up with paint

 

[philS]

hardie wont warrenty the install if you caulk butt joints, they want it left open and a flashing in behind . it can be scraps of aluminum coil stock or simply tar paper

as for painting the caulking no... harti comes prefinished so they make caulking that matches it. once the siding is on the wall all siding meeting corner, window and door trim must be caulked. except for at the top of windows and doors so to allow any water thats behind the siding to be able to run out on top of hte flashing .. once its caulked your done no touch up with paint

Well, we agree on most of it except I don't like the look of the hardie pre-finsih. So I paint.

 

[Windows on Wash]

Inexpensive and non-metal or vinyl are somewhat mutually exclusive.

+1 on not being a huge fan of Hardie these days with other options out there.