Replies

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 05, 1999 08:31pm | #1

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   I'd go with the thicker materials. Cedar is a better material if it is exposed to the weather. No wood should be left exposed to the weather, however! Once the latex coating is on it, both shoud perform equally as well.

   I'm opting to use osb 8" LP lap siding. Ive installed a lot of cedar, and think the osb is a better product than the normally wafer thin cedar.

   If you are a purist, insist on the "old fashioned" 1" thick cedar siding, and watch the costs soar! If you use the 21st century 5/8" stuff, be prepared to fix a lot of splits after the sun gets the stuff moving!
   

   Blue

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   "Which came first? The woman or the department store?"

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 06, 1999 10:23pm | #2

   *KeithNo matter where you live in North America there's an awful lot of very old pine sided buildings around still goin' strong. . . a little periodic maintenance goes a long way!!. . . Seems a total waste to me to paint cedar!!-Patrick

2. 
   Stephen_Gorry | Mar 09, 1999 05:45am | #3

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   A guy up here in ME I met at the Common Ground Fair mills white pine clapboards the old fashioned way, cutting clear logs tangientially, then slicing them off with a slick. His decree... "Cedar is grown in a wet spot and should stay in a wet spot, like on the bottom of a boat. Pine has better resistance to the sun and weather!"

3. 
   Guest_ | Mar 09, 1999 06:32am | #4

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   Keith, have to go with the ceder with this. If you plan on painting even if you don't back prime all the boards. Pine( todays stuff you can get) just won't hold up to the weather. Out my window I'm looking at a tobacco barn that was build with site sawed logs it's all oak and pine. Never seen a coat of paint in it's life but the differance is this. Pine is running verital and is open to air on two sides plenty of air to move around it. Still looks good today.

4. 
   J_Callahan | Mar 11, 1999 04:47am | #5

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   Pine would work fine. Vertical grain is the best ..... and the most expensive. I haven't had much luck with latex primers on pine clapboards (despite the latest FH article on paint)...... use a good oil base primer, making sure you sand the millglaze and spot prime the knots with BIN before you prime all sides. There's more than a few 150+ year old houses here in Me. with the original pine clapboards. jc

1. 
   R.J._Casey | Mar 15, 1999 02:02am | #6

   *I have been looking at every web site that refers to cedar and pine siding. I still need help. What do you guys recommend for a mountain house in North Carolina? We want long lasting durability + low maintenance + warm brown color forever. Cedar shake roof that turns to weathered gray is fine, but we really don't want an all gray house. We also don't like the light to bright orange colors. What part does oil or latex have to do with color and mildew, etc. or is it really the wood that matters? Please reply...thanks!

1. 
   R.J._Casey | Mar 15, 1999 02:09am | #7

   *Sounds good...Where can we get info on osb 8" lp? We are ignorant first time builders...thanks!

5. 
   Guest_ | Mar 15, 1999 10:07am | #8

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   RJ, it's the oils in the cedar or mahogany that help make it durable. Same for redwood and a few others. A Oil Sealer, Stain or Waterproofer will only help. You can select a Sealer, which will keep the original color and retard mildew; or select either a transparent stain or a opaque stain (which is more like a paint) to enhance or change colors. See Cabots, or California's liturature or web sites for more on paints and stains.

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 15, 1999 06:02pm | #9

   *RJ,Durable/lLow-maintainance/Warm brown color forever.Pick two. Same goes for Better/Cheaper/Faster.If you want a natural-wood siding (pine or cedar) with a clear finish to stay looking like new wood forever, then it will take regular maintainance.Stain would probably be longer lasting between coats than clear finishes, but will still require periodic recoats.Steve

1. 
   Guest_ | Mar 15, 1999 06:17pm | #10

   *j,I spot primed a whole wall in my painting days when the owners bought knotty pine claps and then dicided they didn't want to see the knots. Two years later all the spot primed peeled. Had the same experience covering a stain on drywall...Two years later it peeled...I have no idea why but I never have had a problem with alyd primer and latex finish alone.J

6. 
   Keith_Hilpl | Mar 15, 1999 06:18pm | #11

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   I am currently planning to build and
   am trying to decide whether to use
   pine clapboard instead of cedar to save
   cost. I have read that well primed
   pine can be used in place of cedar. My
   concern is that I will pay for it in
   the future. Any experienced input?