We had repairs done on our house about two years ago, and an entire side of the house sided in Hardiplank siding (over new plywood and two layers of felt paper). It was factory primed (I think), with one coat of finish paint (Benjamin Moore Exterior Latex) put on in the shop (indoors, before the siding was hung) and another about 6 months after it was hung.
We live in a damp climate, in a windy spot, so that side of the house gets a fair amount of wind-driven rain pounding on it.
About two weeks ago, I noticed a few blisters in the paint. It’s increasing by the day, and there is now a significant amount of paint blistering and peeling on that side of the house.
It’s certainly possible that wind-driven rain has worked its way behind the siding. But, the main reason we chose to go with Hardiplank rather than the cedar that was there beforehand was the understanding that Hardiplank won’t absorb moisture the way wood will, and peeling paint shouldn’t be a problem.
Has anyone seen this problem with Hardiplank? Any suggestions for dealing with it?
Replies
what did Hardie say to use for a finish paint ?
i thought they wanted a 100% acrylic ( or is that what you meant by "latex " ? )
anyways... paint blistering ( on any siding ) is usually a symptom of moisture moving from behind the siding and coming out thru the siding...
see if you can find the invoice and find out wether it was "factory primed " of not
if it wasn't primed in the factory... and you didn't prime it in the field... then good luck
BHT,
I have not seen that type of failure on Hardiplank, but I am here to tell you that Hardi WILL absorb moisture, lots of it. Was the Hardiplank backprimed prior to installation? If not, wetting of the back could well have caused blistering of the front, just like with wood.
Hardiplank and wood are different, but they both absorb water and benefit by being sealed. One big difference is that some wood works okay left raw, but Hardiplank should always be painted.
Bill
Ahem...I have it that Hardie or Certainteed FC siding should NOT be back primed. I have the install sheet here from Cert. There is SOME primer on the back, but not 100% coverage. Check for your self. Also the ends MUST be caulked.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
The secret to a long life is knowing when its time to go. M. Shocked
Sphere,If that is true what you say, then the OP may need to reinstall his FC siding over a capillary break so it can dry out from the back faster than it will now, up hard to a double layer of felt. Somehow I doubt his problem is merely poor paint bond. However, poor paint would be the easiest of the problems to fix.Bill
The primer may also have been exposed too long. I forget the actual time limits , but it is recommended that the top coat be applied in X amount of days/months.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
The secret to a long life is knowing when its time to go. M. Shocked
"I forget the actual time limits "
Six months, or 180 days, whichever comes first. ;-) (My own Hardi-clock is ticking and is currently at 3 months. Hope it warms up soon!)
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
PS: Sorry if this double-posted -- having an Internet burp.
I got the same clock ticking. Arrrghh.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
The secret to a long life is knowing when its time to go. M. Shocked
Yeah, but I happen to know mine is a couple of months ahead of yours. ;-)
No big deal though -- only problem if the clock runs out is that I'll have to slap a coat of primer on before painting.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh PA
I like to prime mine then paint it the next day then install it the next day.I usually don't put a second coat on but will touch up and paint my caulked seams.
So far I haven't had any problems with paint.
I have noticed while driving around Harbor Town that there are a lot of hardiplank siding houses that are fading.I would definately repaint before they got this far.
ANDYSZ2 WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
Hardie has been being used around here for for maybe 10 -12 yrs. that I am aware of and this is the very first I have heard of paint peeling off of it. I am wondering if it isn't incompatible primer to paint or maybe just bad paint that is causing the problem.
Perhaps even a contaminated surface prior to paint? "Here" being the Willamette Valley in Or.... Plenty of wind driven rain .
Edited 2/2/2007 7:46 pm ET by dovetail97128
Yes, I did mean acrylic, not latex paint.I wasn't aware that Hardiplank would absorb and "pass through" moisture like that. The cedar that had been on that wall previously had other problems (it rotted, over the course of about 12 years), but the paint didn't peel at all.I'll have to dig out the invoice and check on whether or not it was factory primed, or not.
Edited 2/6/2007 2:28 pm by BHT
I would talk to the paint rep and get them involved.
Have a piece of Hardie that has been soaking in a bucket for two years and the basic acrylic latex paint that i rolled on can't be scraped off still.
I dry it out for a couple weeks and then soak it again fully expecting the finish to fail first but so far nothing at all has happened.
It will readily wick and pass water, that is why they forbid ground contact or roof contact.
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according to my james hardie product guide hardiplank is warranted for 180 days without painting and for 5 years against chipping and peeling. for warranty info you can call 800 9hardie .
Not much moisture here where I live, but Hardi plank on my house is three years old now and shows no changes that I can see. At least the paint/siding combo seems to be doing well to intense sun and UV.
"Doubt is not a pleasant condition, but certainty is absurd."
~ Voltaire
Hardie wants the siding painted with CABOT C3. I have the book right in front of me. It's what they use for the factory applied paint.
What you describe sounds like moisture driving the paint off. You used to see this all the time on old houses where moisture from the inside would drive off oil paint.
Hard to tell, though, if this case is due to too much moisture, paint that is too impervious to water vapor, or a poor bond between layers. Getting the afternoon sun can be a factor too.
I'd definitely have the local Hardie rep look at it and test how good their customer service is. It would be so uncommon that there are probably only a few possible causes.
We use Hardi-Plank and Hardi-Shingles on almost everything now, and have used a variety of paints. We also have stained the shingles to look like wood. And have not had any problems with any of the paints or stains.
But a question, is the paint blistering off of the primer or the first coat of paint?
Same Problem
My home is on the NC Coast and we had our siding replaced by a professional builder with Hardie Plank almost 7 years ago. We primed and painted with Benjamin Moore Professional Acrilic paint and it is peeling bad. How did you resolve your problem? Any sugestions?
Paint peeling on cement fiberboard siding
Our home build in 2003 has cement fiberboard with severe peeling of the paint down to the fiberboard. Do we need to hire a specially skilled painter to strip it all down to the original surface and the prime and paint?
I'm wondering what the cost / benefit is to doing this or should we just cover it all with vinyl?
help!
Remove any loose paint (no need to scrape everything down bare) and prime with a proper primer (if you can find one anymore). Used to be that "alkyd" primer was the ticket, but you can't find that anymore.
That sounds like the original paint was put on dusty Hardi or there was a problem with the paint. The issue with priming and painting just the peeling spots is that you haven't addressed why the paint is peeling. The odds are that the original paint will continue to peel taking the new paint with it. I'd strip it with a chemical stripper and start from scratch. Please don't put vinyl over it!