# Siding question.. should I and is it a DIY?



## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

Old arse 1945 house here...

I understand the manual labor involved will be great to remove it all and prep the walls, i.e. shakes, furring strips probably, trims, etc......

My main question though.. is it easy for a person that has no construction experience to put up the hardie shingle siding and finish out?

Also, would replacing the old cedar shake on a home be worth it with hardy shingle siding? Or should the cedar shake be left on, is it "in style" these days?

And, if you have an idea, about how much is it per sq foot or whatever for the hardie shingle siding?

Attached is a pic of a part of the home showing the cedar shake, height (about 7' to soffit), etc. and a pic of the hardie shingle siding style (not the color I would pic)

Thanks for any input.


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## ROBOWADER (May 22, 2004)

Get someone to do it for you. Call Swampus.


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## padrefigure (Aug 22, 2006)

Your existing siding does not look like cedar shake. Be sure there is no asbestos.


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

J - when I built the garage at my (former) beach house, mom and I did the walls in Hardi-Plank. It's not hard - just time consuming.

if you want to try tackling the job yourself, start on the back of the garage as a practice area where it won't be seen.

painting it afterwards is going to be the biggest PITA.

we've talked about using the Hardi shingle on the new house if we ever build it, but it is about 4X the cost of regular plank IIRC.


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

padrefigure said:


> Your existing siding does not look like cedar shake. Be sure there is no asbestos.


it is cedar shingles... verified with pieces off the garage and some minor damaged pieces around the home...



speckle-catcher said:


> Jif you want to try tackling the job yourself, start on the back of the garage as a practice area where it won't be seen.


the garage will completely demolished in the future and rebuilt big enough to store a boat  along with a completely new slab and driveway...



speckle-catcher said:


> but it is about 4X the cost of regular plank IIRC.


that's what I was afraid of because it looks alot better, in my opinion... maybe I'll just go with regular hardie plank

so are cedar shakes cool for homes these days? it would certainly save me alot of time/money/hassle to just leave it.. or should I worry about future termites, etc. in it? the home is like half brick half cedar shake..

BTW, that color is not the end color I am painting the home, it will be more beige than "yellowish" looking...


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

I don't think termites eat cedar. it repels them just like it does with moths in a cedar chest.


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

ahhhh, didnt think of that.. duh.. thanks. what about a roach hotel under the shingles? do they repel roaches also?


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## Too Tall (May 21, 2004)

InfamousJ said:


> My main question though.. is it easy for a person that has no construction experience to put up the hardie shingle siding and finish out?


I'll let you know shortly but I'm not using Hardie. PITA to cut and nail. Make a storyboard so you get the spacing correct and nail away. Like SC said practice in an area that won't be seen.


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## Haute Pursuit (Jun 26, 2006)

You will save some on fire insurance by getting rid of that cedar. And no, it's not something people really want as a feature in a home.


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## TexnMedic (May 26, 2010)

My house was built in 1967 and we just replaced all of my old wood siding with hardieplank. We also tore out all the soffits and replaced them with the continuous hardie vented soffit. Hardie is expensive to begin with and I know the hardieshingle is way more expensive that the plank. Was it hard? No. Was it time consuming? YES!

They way I figure it I saved a ton of money by getting my *** out of the house and doing it with a buddy. I paid a buddy to help me. He had all of the tools which was nice. Its all about measurements and making sure you keep everything even. The house looks a million times better. The back of my house is hardieplanked now and we also did both eves and the front door.

If you have the tools and the time Id say go for it. The soffit was a ***** and I hope to never have to do it again. The siding was easy. We just hit it on the weekends until we finished.


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## Gilbert (May 25, 2004)

replace the cedar with hardi cheap arse. Don't use the knockoff hardi either. Rent a nail gun to hang it. Don't try and do it any other way.


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## Gfish (Aug 31, 2009)

I'm in the middle of changing the old asbestos sidding to Hardi plank and I decided that since I have a wall open to reinsulate and then do a house wrap before the Hardi plank goes up. It's not hard just time consuming. An extra pair of hands will help. And I agree get a nail gun it goes alot faster. And remember the cardinal rule "measure twice cut once".


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## dwalker (Jul 17, 2010)

Hardie is real easy to install, a few tricks/ tips of the trade

The right tools make a difference:
A circular saw with a concrete blade
Air Compressor
Roofing nailer with 1 3/4 nails for blind nailing
Siding nailer for any face nails, pay the money and use Stainless face nails
Caulk and Paint make a carpetner what they aint...

We dont hang siding often but...
We first run a chalk line at the bottom for a level first row, then we measure on the piece of hardie the reveal 6" or 7 1/8" on both ended of the piece, then hang the next piece at the reveal mark, and repeat.

We level every fourth or fifth piece to make sure it is staying level. Pretty easy to do.


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## dwalker (Jul 17, 2010)

Oh BTW Hardie Shake is about $400 for 200 sq ft!


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

Gfish said:


> I'm in the middle of changing the old asbestos sidding to Hardi plank and *I decided that since I have a wall open to reinsulate and then do a house wrap before the Hardi plank goes up*. It's not hard just time consuming. An extra pair of hands will help. And I agree get a nail gun it goes alot faster. And remember the cardinal rule "measure twice cut once".


that sounds like a good plan.. this is an old 1945 house with nothing int he walls.. or should I let it stay that way? I can't get them all, the house is about 50% brick, 50% cedar shingle so I could only do some of it.



dwalker said:


> Hardie is real easy to install, a few tricks/ tips of the trade
> 
> The right tools make a difference:
> A circular saw with a concrete blade
> ...





dwalker said:


> Oh BTW Hardie Shake is about $400 for 200 sq ft!


great info for me.. I think I will tackle the job after Easter. Looking for quote now on 500 sq. ft. staggered hardie shingle.. I like that look.


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

guess you want be doing much fishing this spring/summer. :work:


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

it should only be a couple days worth of work 


decided to go with straight edge notched shingle...


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## TexnMedic (May 26, 2010)

dwalker said:


> Caulk and Paint make a carpetner what they aint...


Amen to that LMAO! Caulk will become yur best friend.


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

TexnMedic said:


> Amen to that LMAO! Caulk will become yur best friend.


about the soffits you repalced with hardi... do they make the hardi soffit wider? My eves are huge, can actually get out of the rain under them... about 24+ inches wide (I guess they made them half a sheet of plywood) because they are painted plywood right now... and then they framed in some screen type air flow vents in them.. see picture on first post for reference on how wide the soffits are


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=hardie+products


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

speckle-catcher said:


> http://www.lmgtfy.com/?q=hardie+products


:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

is this what you were looking for when you found that website?


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## FREON (Jun 14, 2005)

InfamousJ said:


> is this what you were looking for when you found that website?


 Bwahahahahaha


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## dwalker (Jul 17, 2010)

You will probably have to rip down your own soffit material from 4x8 sheets. I do not think I have seen vented soffit any bigger than 12" x 12', but I could be wrong, hardie is making all kinds of sizes now.

Also when you hang the shingle, you will want to run a 10" wide piece of regular hardie siding as a starter board, so that when you put the shake up you will see hardie in the grooves, not what ever is behind the siding.


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

I am told I will have to pull all off all window trim as well... the cedar shake is butted up against the trim right now... and caulked along the edges..

I guess it will be a bigger job than just ripping off cedar and then replacing with hardie  I have to wrap in tyvek up to windows, install hardie, then put window treated trim around windows again, also trim along soffits, etc... hmmmmmm

I have no construction experience 

Maybe I better hire out.


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## dwalker (Jul 17, 2010)

I would pull all trims too and use hardie, it will also give you a change to recaulk windows and put window wrap (peel and stick) around your windows.

But, hardie is a pretty easy product to work with and after a few rows, you should have it down. You and a buddy shuld be able to knock it out. If you have to pay someone, those shakes are going to look even more expensive...


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## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

I called one of the "dealers" and quoted $465 a square (100 sq feet). I need 700 sq feet after measuring tonight. Sooooo..... $3300 just to get the shingles.. then trim, caulk, wrap, paint, nails, etc., etc... still planning


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## Gilbert (May 25, 2004)

wait a month and I'll get my *******'s out there to do it


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## speckle-catcher (May 20, 2004)

your *******'s what?


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## TexnMedic (May 26, 2010)

Hardie makes up to a 24" vented soffit. Lowes has it the cheapest right now. About $10 a piece. 24" comes in 8' sections. Some parts of my soffit were 28" and we just cute a piece if hardieplank in half to fill in the gap and caulked. Looks fine. Same thickness. Most of mine was 24" except the back of the house. I think McCoys was $17 a piece but they load it lol.


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## TXXpress (May 23, 2004)

dwalker said:


> Hardie is real easy to install, a few tricks/ tips of the trade
> 
> T*he right tools make a difference:
> A circular saw with a concrete blade
> ...


X 2! I installed some lap siding on the first level of our home after Ike stole it. dwalker has some very good points. I didn't have access to a nailer. What a PITA that was... Pre-drill all the holes, then nailing it on the old fashion way! :help: It's not that hard as long as you keep a level chalk line. Caulk is your friend! :slimer:


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## surfgrinder (May 18, 2008)

they sell starter strips for hardi at mccoys. Put the starter strip up and start the first row. Check for level and get the first row completed. 

they make a spacer tool that allows hardi to be hung by one person. They sell them at Lowe's and can save you alot of time. 

This is a SUPER EASY project that just about anyone can do. And when you caulk it - use elastomeric caulk or the seams will open up over time. When you paint it - do not spray it - or if you do - make sure that you back roll it. Use a good paint and you won.t have to do it again for 10 + years. go to the hardi website - lots of good info


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