I’m in NY State and will be stripping the clapboards on my house to bare wood due to pretty bad alligatoring. I’ve decided on a method of stripping and on the paint I’ll use to repaint. But I’m not sure about caulking. I’ll do around doors and windows as required but what about the clapboards. Should each board be caulked on the underside for the full length? And is there a method of caulking other than the standard caulking gun? Doing a whole house with caulk gun would give me Popeye arms.
Any guidance on caulking would be appreciated. Thanks.
Replies
gerald... a properly hung clapboard only has one nail in it... so it can expand and contract....
most installers incorrectly double nail their clapbaords so it cannot expand and contract.... resulting in split clapboards... this expansion/ contraction normally takes place across the width.. end to end there is little movement..
bottom line.... caulk the ends and the joints.... don't caulk the laps
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Gerald
Re: bad alligatoring. Often wondered if staining on bare wood might be an alternative to painting. Since stains come in most any color, you might ask a Pro regarding the "pro's & con's (excuse my pun).
Rookie
caulking the bottoms of those laps is a definite no-no. It will retain water behind the siding and cause the new paint job to blister. Caulk the verticle jhoints at butts and at other trims
Excellence is its own reward!
I've seen powered caulking guns years ago, but unfortunately don't have any leads on where to get one.
When caulking, I recommend priming first, then caulking, then applying the topcoats. Caulking adheres better to a primed surface than to bare wood. Don't use a silicone caulk, because it's completely unpaintable. I've had very good results with a 35 or 50 year siliconized acrylic latex. Urethane caulks are supposed to be very good, but I have not tried them. They are used all the time on commercial jobs, especially on masonry. Don't use straight latex or "painter's caulk". They are not durable at all.
Observe the required dry times between painting and caulking from both the paint manufacturer and the caulking manufacturer without shortcuts.
Gerald, Mike and Piffin are right on. In this case "less is more", do less...do a better job.