Fiber cement siding: properties, characteristics, installation

Choosing a material for finishing the facade of a house is far from easy. It must be beautiful, durable, strong, require minimal maintenance. And I really want it to be inexpensive. It is impossible to satisfy all the requirements at the same time. Well, no, so far, such material. If you omit “cheap”, you can consider fiber cement siding. To all the pluses, it is also non-combustible and is compatible with all types of walls. 

What is fiber cement siding or panels

Fiber cement siding or slabs (fiber siding) is a cement-based composite material that is used for exterior facade decoration. Mounted on the principle of a ventilated facade – on the crate. Some systems allow mounting on a wooden frame, others (Japanese) recommend only their own – made of metal.

There are two forms of release:

• In the form of long boards of different thicknesses and widths. This type of material usually imitates wood. Actually, this particular type is called fiber siding and the fastening system is similar to conventional siding.
• In the form of plates of different formats. In this category, there may be smooth panels or imitating brickwork, stone, etc. They are also not mounted on a crate, but they have their own characteristics.

The composition of fiber cement siding varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, but it is always based on cement and reinforcing fiber. Some add cellulose fibers (almost all), others include fine sand, mica or other minerals. Depending on the additives, the type / appearance of the outer surface changes.

Fiberboards and fiber siding can be painted in bulk or on the surface (acrylic paint). There are options with an external ceramic coating (very expensive), there are options without staining – for your own painting. Ceramic coated – very beautiful and durable, but also very expensive. Finishing with clinker tiles will cost about the same. It is a little easier to work with material dyed in mass during installation – no need to tint the ends and saw cuts. It is also better in the sense that there will be no difference in color on the chips. But, over time, the paint on the surface will fade, you will have to update the color. As well as with painted on the surface. That’s just the cost of mass-dyed fiber cement materials is higher.

If we talk about similar materials, then when cut, fiber cement siding and slabs are very similar to asbestos cement products. The only difference is that fiber is used instead of asbestos. Well, they look different – more solid.

Advantages

We will talk specifically about fiber cement siding, because it is more common than slabs (due to the price, mainly) and there are more reviews and operating experience. In general, the material is recognized as worthy, non-capricious in operation. But this is under one condition: with proper installation. Each of the companies has an installation manual and it has more than a hundred pages. It describes specific nodes and processes. If everything is done according to the rules and recommendations (or just a little away), then a good result is guaranteed.

In general, the advantages of fiber cement siding are:

• Dimensional stability. There is thermal expansion, but it is small.
• Fiber cement boards and boards are not hollow, without voids. Corners and joints can be made “butt”, without the use of additional elements, as with vinyl siding.
• Does not burn.
• The material is thick and hard. With a properly assembled frame, it almost “does not play”, it does not squeeze through, you can lean against it, it is difficult to break it.
• High frost resistance – 50 cycles for Rospan, 150 for Enterit, 300 for Japanese Nichiha.
• Subject to the installation rules (painting over the ends, cuts, fasteners with a suitable paint), low water absorption – no more than 8 (Japanese plates) – 18% by weight when immersed in water for 48 hours.
• Carelessness. An attractive appearance is maintained for a long time, no paint renewal is required. For example, “Kedral” guarantees color fastness for 10 years.
  

• You can install at any time of the year. Only tinting of seams and chips can be done at positive temperatures, which still imposes certain restrictions on the installation time.
• You can cut with a hacksaw – a blade with hardened teeth, a circular saw or an angle grinder (grinder), a jigsaw. When using a grinder or a circular saw, the recommended discs are Leitz or Bosch for fiber cement. For a jigsaw, special fiber cement files are also needed.

It’s all about merit. In short, we can say that with normal quality, there are no complaints about fiber cement siding. It can be used for years and still require absolutely no attention.

Disadvantages

Like any material, fiber cement siding or slabs have drawbacks. If we talk about operational moments, there are almost no minuses. Properly mounted, it does not change for a long time. Even the pieces left on the street have not changed in a year, and their ends have not been sealed. But it’s all about quality stuff. And yet, there are also disadvantages:

• High price. It develops not only from the cost of the panels themselves or siding. More costs go to the structure to which all this will be attached, plus expensive fasteners that are not subject to corrosion.
  

• Complicated installation. In the sense that the nodes must be done as recommended by the manufacturer. It is also necessary to process joints, joints, saw cuts, fastener installation sites with the recommended composition (paint or sealant). All this time, and paint / sealant cost a lot.
• A rather specific look when using fiber cement siding. But this can be argued, since there are different textures, and you can combine them in different ways, getting a different style and look – from modern to classic.
• A large weight to be taken into account at the foundation planning stage. And not all walls can be “hung” with a large mass.

In general, fiber cement siding and slabs are not the cheapest, but a good material. It has been on our market for more than ten years. If it were bad, there would be a sea of ​​negative reviews and complaints. There is none of them. There is a generally positive operating experience with some nuances that are usually caused by installation errors.

Mounting: what and what

Fiber cement siding is mounted according to the principles of a ventilated facade, that is, on a crate with the possible use of insulation. As already mentioned, each company has its own installation manual. It is freely available. Before buying a fiber cement siding of a particular company, we recommend that you carefully read the manual. If you plan to mount it yourself, you should have an idea of ​​​​what and how to do it. Even if you plan on hiring an installation crew, it doesn’t hurt to know how everything should be done. After all, each manufacturer rests on the fact that long-term operation is possible only with correct installation.

Crate for fiber cement siding can be wood or metal.

• The metal frame is recommended to be installed on concrete, brick and aerated concrete buildings. It can be made of stainless steel, galvanized steel or aluminum alloy.
• Wooden crate is recommended for wooden or frame houses. They make it mainly from a bar of 50 * 50 mm, but there may be options with a width – maybe 50 * 40 mm, and 50 * 30 mm. A prerequisite is to use a dry timber with preliminary protective impregnation on the crate.

“Native” fastening systems of manufacturers of fiber cement boards and road siding. Therefore, even on brick or concrete walls, wood is used for the frame. It’s cheaper for us. Be sure to put a metal starting profile, everything else is assembled from a bar. As practice has shown, if you use dry wood with high-quality impregnation and do not neglect the recommendations for fasteners (the mounting hole in the plate is slightly larger than the diameter of the fastener), there are no problems.

Fasteners, by the way, must also be taken resistant to corrosion. Stainless self-tapping screws are expensive, of course, they can be replaced with galvanized ones with galvanized coating. But not with an aluminum subsystem. Attach to it only with stainless steel fasteners.

Types and methods of docking

Most fiber cement siding is installed in a herringbone pattern, with one board covering the other. This is how clapboard houses are usually sheathed. The main advantage of this method is the minimal possibility of water leakage between the boards. Moisture simply flows down, as the boards overlap each other by 25-30 mm (depending on the size of the board). But at the same time, there is an increased consumption, since with a width of 19 cm, only 15-16 cm remain “working”.

The second type of joining of fiber cement siding boards is end-to-end. It was implemented by the Belgian company Cedral in the “click” series. The board of this series has a selection of a quarter, is inserted one into the other, fastened with self-tapping screws to the clamps (small mounting plates for hidden fastening). In this case, the surface of the board does not need to be drilled, since the tongue of the clamp clings to the protrusion of the board and thus holds it.

The corners and joints of fiber cement siding can be decorated with additional elements – corners, you can join them by sawing the boards at an angle of 45 ° and smearing the cut with paint. To the batch of siding, a jar of paint is issued / bought, with which your material is painted. Japanese facade fiber cement panels are coated not with paint, but with the recommended sealant. Under the additional elements, the sections, by the way, should also be painted over. Also lubricate the holes for fastening with an appropriate agent.

If you like the design with finished corners, but don’t like the price of these very corners (much more expensive), there is an option – saw the same board along (the same or a different color), paint the cut and connect them at the corner with self-tapping screws. It is clear that upon closer examination, this option will lose in aesthetics, but if the budget is limited, this is a good way to save money.

Characteristics and prices of facade fiber siding from different manufacturers

The Japanese Nichiha (Nichiha) appeared on the market before all other manufacturers, followed by the Belgian Cedral (Cedral). Both brands do not differ in affordable price, but have stable quality. The Japanese stand out for their texture and ceramic self-cleaning coating, which is guaranteed for 50 years. Currently they have 6 series, in each series – from 20 to 120 different textures and patterns. There is a different stone, brick, plaster. There are a lot of options, so there are plenty to choose from. Today they have the widest range of finishing fiber panels. The disadvantage is the high price, as well as the fact that the seams between the panels are visible. The last drawback is corrected in the new FUGE series.

Fiber siding Cedral (Cedral) is produced by a large company Eternit, which is headquartered in Belgium. One of the factories was launched in Russia. He makes quality products. For use in low-rise construction, only two rulers are available – with a regular edge (overlap mounting is possible) and with a lock for butt mounting. The surface imitates wood (qualitatively, I must say), there are no other frills.

Rospan and Latonit are usually distinguished from Russian manufacturers. In terms of assortment, they are more modest; they give a 10-year warranty on their coating. Latonite differs in that it produces a board of different lengths – from 1800 mm to 3600 mm. Fiber cement siding Latonite has a smaller thickness – 8 mm, which allows it to be made cheaper, but its strength will also be lower. The company can produce panels without a finishing protective layer against ultraviolet radiation – for use inside buildings. There are also unpainted products – for self-painting.

All in all, you’ve probably figured out that fiber cement siding and panels are a great choice, as long as your budget isn’t too tight.

Interesting ideas and some knots