Siding Part 2 – The Wall Application

An Important Part of a Good Siding Job: The Wall Application

When it comes to hanging the siding you first need to check the sub straight, the surface area you will be applying the siding to. In most cases you will have to remove the old siding. Now you can apply siding right over cedar siding or even T-111 but you still need to prepare the surface.

Vapor barriers during the siding process

We normally start with a house wrap like Tyvek but there are many others. In some cases, it is not necessary to apply Tyvek. If you are going over the home with Dow-board and all the seams are taped this is not necessary. There are several schools of thought on this. You can apply the siding right over the top of the vapor barrier, but ask any good siding company they will say the best way to do this is to apply a backer-board over the Tyvek. This is normally a 4 x 8 piece of ¼ inch thick styro-foam board, also known as Dow Board. Do not confuse this with insulation. This is applied so that when hanging the siding you have a flat level surface to start with. The R factor on this backer-board is minimal. If you want to add insulation I suggest you have it blown in to insulate your walls. We always tape the seams as well.

Plastic or Steel Starter Strips?

You are now ready to start with the siding. Hint: Do not use a plastic starter strip! Always use a steel starter strip. This is the most important piece of siding you will hang. You do not want this to break. This has to be level or you will be off on the rest of the home. Of course there are different ways to do this as well. The best way we have found is to use a laser level. Always make sure it is level to start with so there are no surprises at the end.

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