hello to everyone.
i just want to know if anyone has installed fiber cement siding. what are some of the “tricks” to make it go up fast, straight, and look good. i have been to different web sites and all manufacturers say their product is the best. i want real peoples opinion. i have installed vynil ,cedar lap , and shakes before, but never fiber cement. i have seen a couple of installs and they look terrible. the butt joints at the seems were all uneven and the installs all looked bad. is this a trait of the product or poor workmanship? and how long after ii paint will the paint hold up. (i know to use a 100% arcrylic paint )? any help to these questions would be great.
Replies
I have had good experience with cement siding and I believe in the product. Having said that, the butt joints are hard to make right. I always use the factory cut for butt joints. Other methods I have tried: shears, circular saw, radial arm, cut from the top, cut from the bottom leave something to be desired.
Minimizing face nails is a good way to go. Even here in Florida, where wind resistance is important, blind nailing is o.k., according to the manufacturer and building deptartments. If I have to face nail painters putty seem to fill the hole well. Just stuff it in with your fingers and use the heel of your hand to smooth it out. Once painted the holes virtually disappear. You will find that blind nailing will sometimes require caulk to under the course to hide the gap at the lap. This is no place for cheap latex caulk (assuming there is actually a place for cheap caulk). I like clear elastomeric. It remains flexible and wont split after two weeks. It's paintable and cleans up with water. Clear is good because no other color matches well enough during the period between "Can I have my check now" and when the painter comes.
As with any thing else repetitive use a template for the gable cuts
Also, go easy on the scrap allowance. The drop from hardi, due to it's symetrical cross section, is easy to use elsewhere on the job unlike bevel or vinyl.
Good luck
FC can be done neatly and holds a good paint extremely well. I prefer the Certainteed product over Hardy, but that's just a personal choice.
If you do some searches of the archives here you'll get a lot of unvarnished opinion about FC siding and how to do it, trim, it, cut it, nail it, ad nauseum.
Have fun.
People tell you to make the gaps reall small, like under an eighth at butts and ends. Be careful since this stuff has no give to it. Making a tight fit is often what gives you those big spaces under a course. Make sure there IS a gap at the ends. If the ends are tight, it will bow out. Also does not turn out great if the wall isn't perfectly flat.
I like the electric shears. The new carbide blades work fine, too. There are also diamond blades. A regular carbide blade will work if you put it in backwards. Don't let the blade get too dull or it will delaminate the siding. There are some fixtures you can buy (or make) that clamp under the previous course and support the next course at the proper spacing. A must if you're doing solo work and a big help even with two people. The stuff is heavy. Nail from the center out. That helps prevent it from being too wavy.
I'm not a great fan of acrylic paints. I use oil and have not had problems with it. Prime again and 2 finish coats. I always paint it before installing it. Or, better yet use the new prepainted stuff. It has a warranty.
My experience is limited to 1800 sqr ft I put on my house, but here goes.
I nailed it over foam sheathing, and after trying a few courses with a power nailer, I opted to drill and hand nail. Reason being, the foam did not support the backside and the nailer blew off a penny sized ring on the backside around each nail. Some of the nails that were slightly into the surface were not actually holding anything, and I had no problem tearing off the siding. I also used stainless steel nails after becoming concerned about the reaction between the cement and the galvanized nails.
As far as cutting goes, I tried the expensive 6 tooth blade and found it to vibrate too much, and make a poor cut. I used up 5, 24 tooth cheap framing blades to finish. ( thicker blade, less vibration.)
At the butt joints I put a piece of roof felt behind the joint, as well as caulking the joint.
To hold the pcs while I nailed, I bent some "J" shaped pcs of metal, that got nailed to the wall with the bottom of the J were I wanted the bottom of the course to be. Set the siding in the brackets and nail away. The pull the nail out of the upper part and slide the bracket out from behind the siding.
I ordered the siding primed, and then painted 1 coat of Cabot Cement Coat in the shop. I have been meaning to give it the second coat on the house for.....oh........about 3 years now.
Some time back there was thread (in the photo gallery?) where the poster actually stained the fiber cement siding, and in the picture at least it looked really nice. Not sure if it still does. Just thought I'd offer up that there are alternatives to paint.
I did a dormer end.
love the stuff
we should junk wood and use more Hardie.
no flake warp pop rot split twist burn etc
Edited 5/14/2004 5:43 pm ET by wain
I have my first fc job coming up.
> Make sure there IS a gap at the ends. If the ends are tight, it will bow out.
This project has runs that'll butt 4 pieces. You said to hit 1/8 or less on the butts, will I have a problem doing that in this situation?
> Also does not turn out great if the wall isn't perfectly flat.
This building will not be flat. It is a 1920 structure with some settling, and old wood lap siding. I am planning to tyvek over the wood lap and install ledger boards over the studs horizontally to nail onto. Any thoughts?
>Use a nail gun
Roofing nailer?
thanks,
remodeler
My builder used Hardie Shingle on my home in 2000. Since it was shingles instead of clapboards I can't give advice on butt joints. It did turn out beautiful, though. http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=35327.1
I can give firm advice on paint. Use 100% acrylic primer and topcoats as you plan and not oil based paints as someone else suggested. Oil is not recommended by the manufacturer for good reason. When oils and fats are exposed to alkalai the oils or fats saponify. That will produce a weak bond which will lead to peeling. It will be very difficult to remove the residue and correct the peeling. Oil based paint contains oil (obviously) and cement is an alkalai, so the combination is asking for trouble.