Can Hardie Plank Lap Siding be Installed Vertically?

[Beltzington]

No reason you couldn't install claps signal handed but you'd have to overcome your aversion to claps. I have it on my house and think it looks OK. I like it because it is also more fire resistant and fire is a concern where I live. Rot resistant and bugs don't eat it either. The only thing you have to do is get a hardy blade for your skill saw but you can also scribe and snap to length like drywall. To do holes for outlets and such I use my oscillating saw with an abrasive blade. Due to expansion you have to install outlets on wooden blocks and leave about a 1/4" gap around the block. There is a lot of info on the Hardy site that you might want to check out. They also have shingles so that's another option if you just can't bring yourself to do claps. James Hardie - World Leader in Fiber Cement Siding and Backerboard
They have vertical siding but I don't know if it's sheets or individual planks.

Didn't mean to imply clap siding doesn't look good, I have seen many beautiful homes with that style of siding, I just prefer the old school barn look. I'm trying out ideas on a small shed I am building to see how they work. The difference in cost between a 1"x12"x144" cedar board and a 12"x144" hardi plank is north of $40 so cost is a consideration not to mention the availability and quality of real cedar boards of that size. I'm thinking real wood battens and faux grained hardi boards may fool the eyes at a reasonable close distance.

 

[flusher]

Looking for a durable less expensive solution for B&B siding than using all wood. I have never worked with cement siding but was considering using the Hardie planks mounted vertically for the board and using cedar for the battens. The plank is spec'd at .312" thick which I am sure has allot of flex but I will be nailing it flat onto 1/2" sheathing so I do not think this will be an issue. I know they make a Hardie Panel but I do not want any horizontal seems showing. My main concern is the lap siding is tapered across the width. Any other problems I am overlooking?

Here's the house on my 10 acre ranch built in 2005. Hardiplank on the lower part (brick red) and Hardipanel on the upper part (off white) with brilliant white trim.



Owned the place for 10 years. Repainted the trim. The off white color held up nicely. The red color is showing some fading (like all reds do) so I would have repainted it if I still owned the ranch.

Hope this helps.

Good luck

 

[Tough Luck]

CertainTeed makes a vinyl B&B siding. I would assume it may be more expensive original investment, but you won't have to paint it (comes in autumn red) and should be easy to install and maintenance free.

 

[PILOON]

We covered a complete 2nd story level of my daughter's chalet with Hardie in the vertical fashion,
We made the front overlap the backs by 1 inch and used a nail gun to attach.
The Hardie we used was 'primed' and we finished with a water based opaque stain.
That was 12 years ago and the chalet is as attractive as the day we installed it with no issues at all.
We even ripped some lengths to fashion the door and window trim.
The overall look was excellent.

In our case the primed Hardie was a close out sale of store stock and a real deal.
I later used some to box in my chimney on my home, again in the vertical 'board/baton' fashion.
Nice product, won't warp, split and is fir proof.
Downside it is hard on saw blades, LOL.

 

[Gary Fowler]

Personally, I think cement siding is going to be the next "Masonite" type class action lawsuit. If you've ever read the installation & warranty info thoroughly, or talked to a siding contractor that has had "issues" we'll say, with this stuff and the factory rep. you'd run away from it fast. It's almost as if it's not meant to get wet.
I'll put it this way, if you put as much care into installing wood siding as is required by Hardi pryor to and while installing it, wood will last just as long.
They have done a fantastic job selling this stuff, starting by calling it "cement", and going on from there. People think it's similar to their cement driveway or sidewalk-NOT.

I sure hope you are wrong on that. I have Hardie products exclusively on my house and shop. The shop has the woodgrain looked vertical 4x8 sheets and after 7 years it looks as good as the day it was put on. It was pre-primed and I had the contractor put on a coat of good latex paint. My house is all brick exterior but has Hardie material under all the eaves, soffits and exterior porch ceilings. So far not issues at all on either building.


I don't know what you are concerned about with the use of Hardie cement based products. Maybe you could elaborate a bit on it so I can be on the lookout for any issues.

 

[EddieWalker]

I'm a big fan of Hardie and find that all of the nay sayers of it have a personal issue with it that doesn't reflect the reality of just how good of a product it is.

I've used the 12 inch wide Hardie siding with the 1x4 trim pieces to get the board and batten look with great success. I'm planning on doing it for the upper part of my house. Bottom story will be normal lap siding, and the eaves and second story will be vertical board and batten style.

This is my deer blind. I did the vertical Hardie on the bottom part of it maybe ten years ago? I forget exactly when I built it.

 

[Beltzington]

I'm a big fan of Hardie and find that all of the nay sayers of it have a personal issue with it that doesn't reflect the reality of just how good of a product it is.

I've used the 12 inch wide Hardie siding with the 1x4 trim pieces to get the board and batten look with great success. I'm planning on doing it for the upper part of my house. Bottom story will be normal lap siding, and the eaves and second story will be vertical board and batten style.

This is my deer blind. I did the vertical Hardie on the bottom part of it maybe ten years ago? I forget exactly when I built it.

View attachment 481698

Thanks Eddie, that is exactly what I envisioned, minus the camo paint

How did you nail the vertical planks, did you float them, nails on one side, or just nail them down the middle?" What nails are recommended for attaching directly to 1/2 OSB? I have pneumatic staple, brad, finish and coil nail guns so I just want to know what type works best, I know the need to be stainless or dipped.

 

[Snobdds]

As long as the hardi is not in contact with the ground...it last a long time. Plus paint really holds up well on the stuff...

 

[newbury]

Personally, I think cement siding is going to be the next "Masonite" type class action lawsuit. If you've ever read the installation & warranty info thoroughly, or talked to a siding contractor that has had "issues" we'll say, with this stuff and the factory rep. you'd run away from it fast. It's almost as if it's not meant to get wet.
I'll put it this way, if you put as much care into installing wood siding as is required by Hardi pryor to and while installing it, wood will last just as long.
They have done a fantastic job selling this stuff, starting by calling it "cement", and going on from there. People think it's similar to their cement driveway or sidewalk-NOT.

I sure hope you are wrong on that. I have Hardie products exclusively on my house and shop. The shop has the woodgrain looked vertical 4x8 sheets and after 7 years it looks as good as the day it was put on. It was pre-primed and I had the contractor put on a coat of good latex paint. My house is all brick exterior but has Hardie material under all the eaves, soffits and exterior porch ceilings. So far not issues at all on either building.


I don't know what you are concerned about with the use of Hardie cement based products. Maybe you could elaborate a bit on it so I can be on the lookout for any issues.

I agree -WITH GARY about OLDER HARDIEBOARD -

I (single handed) installed 4x8 sheets (primed) on a shed 10'x15'x (about) 12' at the peak of the gable roof in Alexandria, Virginia about 10 years ago. Tore of the decaying T-11, just left a layer of tar paper/roofing felt between it and the 2x4 frame, with nothing inside the paper. Used screws. Put a "batten" across at the 8' level on the ends so I could continue up for the gable roof. Cut it with a circular saw while standing upwind in a breeze.
Handling was a breeze back then, only had to lift the gable end pieces up 8' and set them on top of nails I had put in to support the pieces until I screwed them in.

No problems w/ cracking or anything since then. Painted most of it with a layer of exterior latex, still looks fine. Even where I left the original surface unpainted (on pupose) it looks fine.



The arrow points to where I left part of a door unpainted.

Installation couldn't have been simpler, maintenance has been nil.

As long as the hardi is not in contact with the ground...it last a long time. Plus paint really holds up well on the stuff...

It lasts a long time IN CONTACT with the ground. I had some left over pieces I left laying around near the side of the shed, sort of ultra thin pavers. They've broken up some over the years as I walk on them but they still have not rotted, they are cement.

But this may have changed with newer Hardiboard, I've read about complicated install instructions and problems with installation.

 

[EddieWalker]

I used 3 inch deck screws to attach the thicker trim pieces, then smooth out the built ridge around the screw and caulk.