James Hardie is a leader in fiber cement siding products and we recently finished a full house installation using their Hardie Plank lap siding, also known as clapboards. There’s actually a lot to talk about when it comes to Hardie Plank siding but I’ll try and keep things brief and you can either reach out to me for more information or visit www.jameshardie.com to see more. If you don’t make it all the way to the end of this article, Hardie Plank siding is a GREAT alternative to regular siding. If you combine it with Azek or other PVC trim material, you’ll wind up with a completely maintenance free exterior that will last for years. It’s not the easiest to work with, but home owner benefits after the fact are huge. Here’s a start, just to name a few…
The benefits:
Weatherproof – because the siding is made of concrete and fiber mesh, it’s not susceptible to insects, rot, humidity, shrinking or swelling, and all the like no matter the climate or the weather severity. This means no paint cracking, chipping, or pealing. It also means no woodpeckers, termites, or other bugs. Did I mention no rot?
Renewable – this product scores points on project certifications because of it’s composed of a highly renewable resource. This siding is environmentally friendly and stands the test of time.
Painting / Warranty – How does a 15 year, no crack, chip, or peel warranty sound? It sounds hard to resist… therefore, you can purchase James Hardie products with their “Color Plus Technology”. This proprietary process involves applying consistent, multiple coats of paint that was created especially for the demands climate places on a home’s exterior. The end result is a beautiful consistent finish that lasts up to 2x’s longer. A baked-on coating offers maximum durability and resistance to prolonged exposure to freezing climate and moisture contact. Not to mention that the factory paint process will probably be much cheaper than your local painter.
Options – Styles and colors are diverse. You can choose from “custom colonial rough-sawn,” “custom colonial smooth,” “custom beaded cedar mill,” custom beaded smooth,” “select cedar mill,” “smooth lap siding,” “beaded cedar mill,” and “beaded smooth.” They even offer help with the color selection process by showing what colors go together or play off each other.
Authentic – We want our siding to look authentic… James Hardie does a great job accomplishing this. The dimensions of the product make it look, feel, and appear to be classic wood siding. This is of huge importance… function over fashion isn’t the correct state of mind with homes. You want your home to look nice, not just last forever and be maintenance free.
Other notes to consider…
- Product availability is great. Our material was delivered within 3 days of placing an order.
- Due to this being a concrete product, it is HEAVY. It’s not like cedar clapboards, where you can throw a bundle on your shoulder and bring it around the house to where you’re cutting. The pieces are flexible, fragile, and susceptible to breaking. You need 2 people to carry material and you can only carry somewhere around 9 or 10 pieces at a time… 12′ lengths only too.
- Concrete products are tough on tools. We usually swap out a wood for a diamond blade on our chop saw, which works fine, however the saw is never the same after a large project. Concrete dust gets into the working parts of the saw, binds up working parts, and sometimes seizes parts from working properly. There’s ways to get through this… but take heed if you need to cut crown molding the next day.
- Repairs will be costly after installation… if needed. Because this is a “blind nail” product, meaning the nailing is high on each clapboard and the next course covers the previous nailing pattern, you can’t easily remove and replace a board if one should break. Our classic example would be a child kicking a soccer ball against the side of the house. With cedar clapboards, you can remove and replace a single clapboard. With a blind nailed product, you would have to strip from that board up the entirety of a wall and re-side with new material. This obviously all dependent on the soccer ball accident occurring, which may never happen.
- Caulk is essential, as with any siding project. James Hardie offers color matched caulk for whatever product you choose.
- Have the touch up kit included in your order. You may not need it on installation, but it’s a great thing to leave the home owner with for any thing that may happen years down the road.
- Benjamin Moore’s computer system (at your local paint supplier) has color match formulas for all James Hardie products. This comes in handy if you want to paint something to match you house.
