[PirateKatz]

Hello,

I live in a 100 year old brick house but with an addition that was built in the 1970's. The addition is one story and is roughly 10 ft long by 20 ft wide, with 3 exterior walls. It currently has wood clapboard siding. The siding is generally in good shape but it's suffering from serious dry rot on the windward side (about 10ft wide by 10 ft tall or about 12 boards). The lower edges are either crumbling or soft to the touch on the lower 5 boards.

We've gotten several estimates for vinyl siding. We like the idea of the low maintenance of vinyl but it was more expensive than we anticipated and we don't like the idea of being locked into a color indefinitely.

We're having a contractor come out next week for an estimate and we're not entirely sure what to expect. We have a few questions and were hoping to get some advice before he comes:

- Are there any composite materials that could replace the wood on the one side that are more durable but not look noticeably different?

- How big of an undertaking is something like this; one day, a week?

- We'd prefer to handle painting ourselves. Do contractors generally want to do all of this themselves or is it typically case-by-case?

- Is there anything specifically I should ask or look for (outside of references, license, insurance)?

Thanks!

 

[Gary in WA]

Pictures would be nice. Be safe, G

 

[Ron6519]

They have cement siding that would be paintable without the rot issue. Hardi is one company that makes it.
I would look at some of these guys previous jobs to see if what they've done is acceptable to you.
Ron

 

[KOHNSTRUCTION]

hey you got to check out hardyplank great stuff...i know you said painting it yourself, but if you get a factory applied paint i believe is like a 20 yr warranty on it.
if after a few years you don't like it paint it a different color.
by the way it should take about 3 days to install
use a roofing gun to nail it on above the level of the next row

 

[bjbatlanta]

I'd go with Hardi Plank. You can handle your own painting. Just tell the contractor that. Three days is about right depending on how many guys are there and if they run into any problems during demo. Definitely get references and a certificate of insurance....

 

[Tom Struble]

just replace the boards that are bad then repaint the wall there really is no need to reside with some man made siding

 

[Knucklez]

call me a traditionalist.. but i like the wood siding, especially on historic homes. if you put vynle siding on a 100 year old home you deserve a kick to the nards

i am in favour of replacing the boards that are damaged. however, when it comes to painting WOOD siding, let the manufacturer do this! they guarantee the wood against rot for 50 years and guarantee the paint for 15 years (plus another 15 if you paint it again).

this is worth the cost to me.

maibec and cape cod are local suppliers of wood siding.

this is a job that you and a buddy can do over a couple of weekends (just replacing some boards, not the entire siding job which you can also do but takes much longer).

Knucklez

 

[Tom Struble]

that guarantee requires a rain screen detail witch is really the proper way to install most sidings
that would most likely require a total reside on this house

I would pull the bad pcs[not difficult] and see if any areas on the sheathing is bad
if you find its bad i would replace the affected sheathing and reside the entire section with western red cedar properly primed and with 1 finish coat of the highest quality paint i could afford,priming all cuts then paint the second coat

if the sheathing is good i would just replace the bad boards making sure that any wrb is properly installed and use the same finish details as above

 

[LookoutRanch]

I'm with those who would discourage you from putting vinyl on it. I've never seen a vinyl house that didn't look like crap after a few years when the carapace gets brittle and starts cracking. Vinyl is just wrong.

 

[Tom Struble]

what did he say??

 

[PirateKatz]

Thank you for all of the advice!

I'm still waiting on getting a contractor out for an estimate. We should have somebody out later this week but I'm not holding my breath.

I've attached a few photos to give an idea of the level of rot. The west wall is the one with most of the issues as storms always travel west to east and it gets hit by all of it. The south wall doesn't have any apparent problems because it's protected by an awning. The east wall has an issue on the lowest board at the corner.

All things being equal, I'd rather not go with vinyl but a lot of that depends on much it will cost to repair the damaged sections vs. the cost to cover the whole addition with vinyl.

 

[AtlanticWBConst.]

My suggestion would be for total removal and installation of either vinyl or pre-painted hardieplank (fiber-cement) siding.

Something like that should only take 2 -3 days for removal to completion.

 

[4gy6]

Victorian house siding repair

Hello,

I have a 10 year old house that has wood siding. The style of the house is Victorian and the builder used old techniques to apply TNG. The siding has 45* and 22.5* ends and they butt up tightly against each other at the corners. The builder did not cover those butted edges by running verticle a board that covers those joints. Now the joints are separating thru normal expansion and contraction. Can anyone tell me how to repair those joints. I could fill them with caulk and repaint, but it'll happen again. Moisture has gotten to them yet so it just seems like it may be a scraping and painting project. Any idea? Thanks

 

[II Weeks]

hardi board would work like they said but I hate that crap. PIA to cut. Use some 1X4 tough board on the outside corner. it will make your life easier

they still sell 1X8 pine beveled siding. just prime both sides. way cheaper and the bottom picture shows a good way to do outside corners.

 

[Thurman]

PirateKatz, you didn't give your location, so it's hard for me to imagine your year-round weather pattern. BUT-that stuff looks like the old composite material to me, made of finely ground up sawdust, mixed with glue, formed into sheet sizes, and then baked to set the glue. Bad stuff all around as they found out. I've replaced a lot of that here in S. Ga. Hardie Board siding is very popular around here to replace that with. It comes with either smooth siding or a wood textured siding, installs easily enough for a novice DIY to do, a buddy is helpful. This material can be painted as you wish, I always prefer to prime first, before beginning installation, although the manufacturer states it is "pre-primed". I do not recommend those butted corners as they tend to allow some water in them no matter what. I prefer to install corner boards, one board ripped to make the width's match when butted, and caulk each siding board where it butts into the corner board when installed so the caulk oozes out some. Maybe a little overkill, but weatherproof as you can get it. As others have stated, I also would not recommend vinyl siding on this house, this material is used around here and in our hot summers you can see how a lot of it buckles from the heat. Good Luck, David P.S.- -I forgot, Hardie Board siding is not that hard to cut if you get the proper blade, although it will be dusty and I do recommend using a dust mask.

 

[4gy6]

II Weeks,

Thanks. I think I got what you mean; use a water resistant 1"x4" board for the corner's trim boards, but I don't know why the 3/8" shim. Are you saying to cut the siding all the way up to the roof the width of the shim board, then insert this long shim in the area you just cut out (using it as a nailing surface for the corner's trim board), and then nail the 1x4 water resistant trim board to it all the way up? Sorry, I'm not good a diagrams.

The siding is not a flat surface. If I just run the trim board up, I assume I'll have to caulk the gaps between the back of trim board and the siding's ridges.

The Trim around my windows are about as you describe. The edge of the siding laps over the window's black barrier paper and stops about 1/2" from the verticle side (h) of frame. Then they rabbeted a 1"x1/2" wide groove about 2" from the end of the siding the height (h) of the window, then inserted a 1"x 1/2"x(h) wood strip in that groove--which acts as the nailing surface for the window's verticle trim. There is no need to caulk (but you should a little) the seam between the two because you have the flat backside if the window trim nailed flat againts the front flat side if the wood strip. Is this about the same as you have suggested? I'm not real good a words either.

Thanks again.

 

[4gy6]

Thurman,

This novice lives in Redlands (So. Cal), California; hot and dry in the summer and mild and mostly dry in the winter. But, sometimes it rains like heck. We should have water issues with houses here--unless thry are constucted poorly or using methods they used on Victorian houses 100 years ago. Hardie board is heavy. Is that the same stuff as "Hardie Backer" board that you lay bathroom tile over?

Thanks

 

[4gy6]

Sorry, "shouldn't have issues........"

 

[Thurman]

4gy6-I cannot say for sure if the Hardie Board siding is the same material as the Hardie Board backer used for tile applications, it seems to look similar and cut similar, but as far as the actual composition, I really do not know. My experience with the Hardie Board siding has been good so far, as far as being able to cut it, nail it in place and paint it to suit the customer. Yes, this stuff is heavy, and if allowed to bow when picked up will break easily, that is why a helper is nice to have. I tend to take on small jobs with my "Household Handyman" business and seldom use any help. You learn how to pick up a full piece, put it in place without breaking it. In our area there are the Home Depot, Lowe's and Pro Build. They all carry either Hardie Board siding or a similar product under a different name. It depends on what the customer wants as far as smooth or simulated wood grain as to where I buy for each job. As I stated though, I firmly believe in priming before even starting any cutting or installation and caulking all joints, I bevel all adjoining siding edges and caulk to help prevent water intrusion. Some say I take too much time to do things like this, but I believe they make the job/product last longer. All of my exterior corner boards are PT also, primed before painting. Fortunately, I'm retired and do this work to stay busy and have my "boy toy" monies so I can spend all this extra time on a job. The job in question would be one that I would do if it were in my area and I had the chance to bid on it. Thanks, David