HARDBOARD SIDING – how to install it?
toolbear
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HARDBOARD SIDING – how do you install it?
I am looking for tricks of the trade that can be used with Habitat volunteer crews in running hardboard siding. We take waaaaay toooo long to get the stuff up. Besides – are they really supposed to be at the same level at the corners? <g>
How do you do level control? We shoot laser lines. I have heard of using a story pole from the rafter tails. I want to try a common water level on the next project and strike a lot of lines.
ToolBear
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When we resided our house (Woodsman from Masonite) ten years ago, we used a water level to establish levels at the bottom (the foundation isn't terribly even), then a story pole to mark the position of each course at the corner and several points in-between. Tried chalk line, but it didn't work very well on Tyvek, so just marked every 10 feet or so with the pole.
To hang the boards I came up with a little S-shaped clip that established the approximately correct distance above the lower course, using that at the "wild" end to keep the "dumb end" guy from having to hang on for so long. (This also let me work single-handed at times.) Then nail the other end even with the adjacent course (or even with the mark, if starting at a corner), put another nail roughly in the center (16-footers will flex an half-inch easy, so you line it up with a mark), then remove the S clip and nail the far end. Come back and nail in-between.
For around windows I found a small L-shaped corner bracket (ie, a random piece of hardware from my bucket of stuff) that was precisely the 3/16" we needed for spacing, and I would stick that in the joint to hold spacing while doing the positioning and initial nailing. We used the aluminum joiners at the in-course joints, and the standard corner caps on the ends.
After the first few boards, we started pre-drilling holes for the nails. Mostly this was because the boards were so damn hard, but it turned out to be pretty good for assuring that we hit the studs, and it kept the nails very nicely in line vertically. (Requires a little forethought, though, to get it right.) Generally my wife was on the ground, doing the cutting and drilling on some sawhorses, while I'd be up on the scaffolding hanging stuff with one of my sons.
This project ended up VERY nice. Much better than the steel crap on most of the neighboring home. We painted it last summer, and the siding is still in perfect condition.
Of course, you probably can't get the better quality hardboard siding any more, but I think the same techniques would work fine for Hardie siding.
Did your story pole witness up from the level line or down from the top of the wall? Tell me more how you manage it. We tend to play with levels rather than poles and that can be a source of error.
We are currently nailing the corner boards on flat, no rabbits, and spacing the siding with popsicle sticks. Previous projects, we rabitted and ran the siding under. Damn mess to caulk.
Like this better. Think it seals the corners better. I like to run the Tyvek in 2' overlaps at the corners. I'd run MoistStop over it if they would let me.
Our stuff is T&G so it's beater blocks and such. I was thinking of having one person predrill because I will get better nailing with novices. With Hardie, found that a lot of the ladies could not get a nail started in it. We would like to gun it, but not on a Saturday with a crowd. Too dangerous.
Did one story pole up from the level line, and then a second to carry up through the second floor, referenced to a course on the first floor. I can't for sure remember how I referenced the bottom -- I think maybe the pole was cut to rest on the foundation which protruded a half inch or so, though we'd make adjustments where the foundation was out of whack. The first course, of course, goes over a starter strip (we ripped the siding down to 1.5" and bathed it in primer for this) and overlaps the foundation slightly.
As I recall it wasn't rocket science. The pole was marked every 7 inches (8-inch siding, one inch overlap) and generally we'd just go up it with a ladder, marking the Tyvek with a Sharpie at each tick mark. Couldn't have taken more than 2 minutes per set of marks.
We could ref. the pole to the weep screed, which is supposed to be level. After all, they shot it in with a laser <g>.
Like I said, on the corners we used the aluminum corner pieces. Considered corner boards, but the wife didn't like that look.