Hi, newbie here looking for some free advice 🙂
Here is the situation:
Siding on the house is 30 year old cedar, it ranges from VERY POOR condition, on the south and west sides to almost OK on the north. Under it is homosote and no building wrap, yes homosote, I gues this used to be done, but I can’t imagine why.
We will live here for maybe 5-6 years.
I need to do this largely alone to keep the costs down(2 kids starting college, need I say more?)
It is about 2600 sq feet.
I don’t want wood, we have a HUGE problem with woodpeckers(on the good north side of course)
Shingle style is OK as is traditional siding.
My questions are:
Since I will do most of this by myself what do you recc for scaffolding?
How about the staging of it? Aim for completing one side at a time? How do you handle the wrap with this method?
Material choice? I have been looking around a lot, I really don’t like vinyl….but it might be the most cost effective option. What about other products like Tech Wood, or something similar?
What about insulation? How do I deal with the extra depth around all the windows?
Lastly I should add I am not exactly a DIYer, I do have a fair amount of building/remodeling experience including putting up siding but it always with one other person.
Thanks for any help,
Paul
Replies
Others can offer more than I can.
Is this a one story home?.
If your house is off by itself you can pretty much do whatever you want designwise. But if your in a subdivision type neighborhood it might matter how your house would look in comparison the the others in the area and what type of siding they have been replaced with.
You don't want it to be the odd ball of the area.
Construction-wise. I'm no help. Value I know though.
Vinyl is prolly the cheapest option (also one of the least aesthetic...). But it is extremely easy to install solo. Pump jacks or ladder jacks with picks / planks are prolly the easiest solo staging outside a lift.
Foam board nailed to studs and taped seams is the easy approach to wrap and exterior insulation. Windows and doors can be boxed out with bent aluminum, wood, or pvc trim. Don't forget the caulk.
Start with your level line around the perimeter of the building, address your corners and wall penetrations (windows, doors, vents etc). Then run your courses.
don't forget................
Foam board nailed to studs and taped seams is the easy approach to wrap and exterior insulation. Windows and doors can be boxed out with bent aluminum, wood, or pvc trim. Don't forget the caulk.
Don't forget to incorporate good waterproofing techniques-you'll need less caulk.
I just finished residing my house with pre-painted ("Color Plus") Hardieplank. I did the lower half first, working mostly from a couple of stepladders, then had scaffolding put up and did the upper half (simultaneously had the roof replaced with steel).
The whole thing took a year, working alone (including removal of all old siding and trim, and installation of rain screen under the siding). Due to the strange land footprint and tight borders, I had to stage the HP in my driveway, where I cut the boards and and sealed the cut ends, then hauled the boards one by one to wherever I was working. Our house was only 16 years old, so the insulation was still decently good and I didn't have to install foam boards; the additional depth of the rain screen was accomodated perfectly by the slightly thicker window/door trim I used.
I forgot to mention about handling the free end of siding planks; as Dan says, you'll need to fashion some kind of device to hold up the loose end of a plank when working alone--at least for the first two courses. I used a simple loop of plastic twine stapled to the sheathing in those cases at the bottom of a wall. After the second course, I used a pair of PacTool "Gecko" gages (http://www.amazon.com/PacTool-International-SA903-2-Piece-Siding/dp/B000VERBCU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341614685&sr=8-1&keywords=pactool+gecko+gauge). They are a bit pricey, but worth every cent in assuring safety, level installation, and speed.
Yeah to what Hokuto says.... the PacTool guages are indispensible when hanging FC solo. Almost makes it fun.
...Well, not quite, especially on the upper courses, but in that case you need to buy some used scaf. I just picked up four lifts for $400 which will make my summer a whole lot more enjoyable.
It's not worth building scaf if you can get decent stuff used. Scaf doesn't really "go bad", unless it's been bent, abused, and suffered decades of decay. I got eight frames, eight braces, and four screw jacks for $400. Check your local used market.
Thanks for all the help!
I'm in central NJ, have a 2 story house and don't really need to worry about local design issues.
I'm still struggling with what I WANT to use (fiber cement) and what I think the best value is. Given we don't plan to be here long term, maybe vinyl is the way to go?
I may be able to borrow some scaffolding, but buying some used maybe the best option, then re-selling it. I just checked craigslist and there is a bunch.
Again thanks, this is just what I was hoping to find here.
Paul
Vinyl is generally cheaper and quicker, and curiously is often regarded as superior by buyers (because it's supposedly "maintenance free"). In your climate, unless you're near the coast, it should provide reasonable durability/weather resistance. WIth the vinyl having a housewrap or, better, a "rain screen" type housewrap product is more critical than with FC. And you need to be more diligent about carefully sealing the housewrap where it laps and at "penetrations".
My own opinion is that a "mortal" DIYer should stick with rigid scaffold vs pump jacks when doing siding, though probably this is less necessary when installing vinyl vs rigid planks. You do want whatever the scaffolding is to extend the full length of a side of the house, though.
And I suppose I suggested building vs buying the scaffold because when I did our house nearly 20 years ago there was no used scaffolding market (and no Craig's List). But definitely don't rent scaffolding unless you're the sort of "go-go" guy who can get the job done in two weeks.
I posted a reply, but it's "queued for review", so you won't see it until Monday.
>>>I posted a reply, but it's
>>>I posted a reply, but it's "queued for review", so you won't see it until Monday.
Yeah, what's up with that? It's happened a few times for me too. Did I do something wrong?
SUNSPOTS!