I love the look of shingle siding on a house so I was attracted to the Ecoshel exhibit at the JLC Live show. I’d viewed their website before but seeing the high quality collated shingle panels up close was very telling.
The attractive finely milled and sanded red cedar shingles are collated into 48 in. panels with proper 1/8 in. to 1/4 in. spaces and held together with plastic clips reinforced with a fiber-mesh tape on the back. The quality of both the shingles and panel design is immediately obvious.
Shingle panels are a great way to improve shingle installation. Many installers don’t follow proper joint offset (1-1/2 in.) between shingles in successive courses; nor do they space shingles apart properly. Ecoshel panels take care of both issues. Following the panel installation guide, an installer only has to align the end shingle of the first panel in each course to the registration mark on a panel in the course below. Once the end is set on the mark, all the shingles joints will automatically be offset by 1-1/2 in. from the joints in the entire course of panels. The idea isn’t new but the execution is great. Each panel has joints in different locations and shingles of differing sizes so you don’t have to worry about patterns emerging in the field of shingles.
I haven’t installed Ecoshel shingle panels yet but I’ve installed a couple other systems and found the labor savings to be tremendous. A single worker installing shingle panels can out-side a crew of 4 or 5 installers applying individual shingles.
The best feature of the Ecoshel panels is what’s on the back. Each shingle has 3 to 5 vertical stripes of thermoplastic that space the shingles off the wall and off one-another. The space is between 1/16 in. and 1/8 in., enough to let water drain more freely and aid in drying. You can get the same gap between the wall and regular shingles by using a ‘small gap’ drainable housewrap but the shingle layers are still in direct contact. Ecoshel doesn’t have any long-term performance testing but my guess is that the gap between the shingles is a good thing and will improve shingle life and the lifespan of any paint or stain finish.
Ecoshel panels can be used for sidewall shingling and on roofs. The shingle joint offset meets the 3 course offset code requirement of 1-1/2 in. There’s a small premium for the price of the panels compared to individual boxed cedar shingles but that is made up for 5+ times over in labor savings; plus you’re getting a drainage gap between layers.
The shingles and panels are processed in Maine at a new automated facility that was designed in partnership with the University of Maine. The current line produces a shingle every second. A short video gives you a sense of the how the line operates.
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Ecoshel red cedar shingles are finely milled, sanded and collated into panels.
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Ecoshel shingles are spaced off the course beneath about 1/8 in. by filaments adhered to the backside.
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The shingles in the Ecoshel panels are attached together and spaced apart by plastic clips. Mesh strips reinforce the panels.
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Thermoplastic filaments bonded to the back of the Ecoshel shingles provide a drainage and air space between shingles in successive courses.
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Thermoplastic filaments bonded to the back of the Ecoshel shingles provide a drainage and air space between shingles in successive courses
View Comments
Great Article. Thank you for posting on FHB. Can you do me a favour and get a haircut and shave. LOL.
I am curious - has anyone actually used this product? What was your purchase and product installation experience like?
Still waiting for my shingles, ordered and paid in full over 3 months ago. Leaving emails and phone calls get no results, just the run around. Do some research and purchase from another company, doesn't matter how good ecoshel product, they are not professional in the business.
I ordered shingles from Eco Shell in August 2016 and was told I would get the product in 4-5 weeks. I gave them a 50% deposit with the order.
Over the next several months I was told of all sorts of delays and since I wasn't desperate for the material I went along with it. I was concerned that there may have been financial problems and that my deposit may have been at risk.
Finally on April 27, 2017 I was told my shingles were ready. I made the final payment and was told I would get shipping information the next day.
No shipping number or any delivery information came in the next 3 days so I was very worried that I had been scammed.
Finally Elizabeth called to tell me that my material that I had waited 9 months for was diverted to another customer who had a job in progress and they would issue a refund. I got the refund but now am left with needing to find some other material.
DO NOT DEAL: WITH THESE PEOPLE THEY DO NOT HONOR THEIR COMITTMENTS.
If anyone is interested I can send dozens of emails where I get excuse after excuse why they cant deliver.
Appears to be a nice system with potential, but owners lack the ability to manage business.
I put a deposit down for the product for $15,500 (terrible mistake) to secure the material in what they said would be as little as 4 weeks, and 7 weeks at the latest. Elizabeth Kirkey was very responsive and helpful, until I put my deposit in, then she disappeared.
After 5 weeks, I called and emailed multiple times asking for an update on delivery. I wasn't quite desperate for the material at that time, but I had great concern that all of my communication went unanswered. I was able to get proof of life again from Elizabeth and I gullibly accepted her excuses.
I was lead along for another 5 weeks. During that time, it continued to be impossible to get any response whatsoever by email or phone.
Finally Elizabeth admitted that they could no longer source cedar to make their product and offered to return my deposit. After 10 weeks of waiting and their inability to supply the product, I assumed my refund would come quickly. I was wrong again. Elizabeth went silent again and I was forced to pursue the return of my deposit with my credit card company. Several more weeks later, my credit card company returned the deposit.
DO NOT PUT DOWN A DEPOSIT WITH THIS COMPANY.
I am skeptical that outside of a display model that this product actually exists. I also question the financial stability of the operation and the safety of any deposit held by Ecoshel. Whether or not there were production issues, it was unnecessary and irresponsible how Elizabeth failed to communicate honestly.
If the product exists, put your hands on it before money is exchanged or you will be along for a great ride of frustration.
The new US tariff on Canadian softwoods caused major cedar supply problems for Ecoshel, which is produced in the US from Canadian western red cedar.
The cedar supply was highly constrained well in advance of the tariff, as suppliers assumed the tariff would be imposed. Ecoshel paid a premium for whatever cedar was available, but often received lower quality fiber that could not be used.
The cedar supply problem developed just as demand for Ecoshel was increasing rapidly.
Customers have every right to be furious. Promised ship dates were not met and numerous orders had to be cancelled. Many of those customers had quoted based on the reduced installation time and cost, especially builders who had used the product previously. Other customers had already sold their client on the ventilation system.
Customer deposits were refunded, but once a dispute is filed with the credit card company, we have to wait for that process to complete, which can take several weeks.
Ecoshel is a great product, but the supply problem has been more than frustrating for us, and for our customers.
The good news is that Ecoshel is now partnering with a Canadian company that will provide unlimited access to the highest quality cedar, without tariff restrictions. They will also provide the production capacity that is required to meet the growing demand, and fill orders immediately. The new partnership will be announced in January, 2018.
It has been a while since I have been on the Fine Homebuilding site. I was curious to see what was new. I was surprised to see an article on Ecoshel, the siding I used on my new home five years ago. The article points out the primary benefits of the siding panels. I would hasten to add that it also provides for a one person installation. I did the entire installation myself (disclaimer - I did have a helper for the gable ends so I would not need to get on and off the ladder repeatedly).
I had outstanding support from the company, both in terms of installation questions, color selection and the "best exposure" for my style of home. All shipments were timely and complete. There were no issues of any kind with deposits or payments.
The article references the lack of long term performance testing. Five years isn't forever but it is not insignificant either. My shingles continue to lay flat and true and are colorfast to this point. They were the #2 grade and factory pre-finished in solid color Olympic Premium stain. We could not be happier. In our case, we feel we received superior siding materials and a major enhancement in curb appeal at a reduced cost from the common alternatives of vinyl or cement board. Nothing looks more like a cedar shingle than a cedar shingle.
Bryan and Elizabeth were very responsive to any and all inquiries.
Since we built, the business has relocated from Atlanta, GA to Maine. And apparently, based on some reviews, they have experienced some challenges with the supply of raw cedar that were beyond their control.
I know the company to be committed to customer satisfaction. They have a very unique and efficient product. We ordered for 5% waste and actually had much less than that. With a little forethought, there is almost no waste at all.
What a fantastic product! I installed Ecoshel shingles on my log building in the UK several years ago, if my memory is correct it was 2010.
First impressions of the product were of pure quality, the first time I had seen Ecoshel shingles was when I received the order a long way in to what turned out to be an epic build. Naturally fatigued by many months of hard work my spirits were lifted greatly by the quality of the product, and the smell too!
The speed of installation was such a joy, one of the quickest and as planned jobs on the entire build. Certainly one of the funnest jobs too even though we were in winter at the time. A very uplifting product to use as every day you feel that you've achieved a lot compared to the many other days where i wondered how I had achieved so little.
Bryan and Elizabeth were a joy to deal with too, helpful and always there on hand for any questions or queries. This order required shipping to the UK which was new to us all and quite a time consuming process but they handled it well and delivery was made to the door of my build.
Several years on and the shingles are looking amazing still. The colour has changed from fresh to weathered, and they have really settled in well. The quality of this product still shines through and the roof still catches the eye, particularly on a crisp winters day.
I would highly recommend Ecoshel, and frequently do! The speed and ease of installation is unbelievable, a real game changer. The quality of the product and the awesome customer service have made Ecoshel a real joy for me, without doubt I will be ordering again.
Ecochel internet reviews are comical and fun to read. Clearly, they have screwed many customers out of time and money. Don’t trust these phonies or you will also be cheated out of your money.