Masonite installation manual

[Marc]

Today's one year old house had what I first thought was fiber cement siding but after taking a photo of the bottom of the first course with my camera on the ground, I then realized that it was masonite.

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This client is taking legal action against the builder for reasons other than this masonite but I'm trying to get her as much ammo as possible. There's no fasteners on the exposed surfaces, some panels deflect when you press upon them lightly and the first course is within 2 3/4 of the soil in some places.

Does anyone have a guide on masonite siding installation?

Marc

[Jim Katen]

I don't have any of the hardboard siding installation instructions.

I thought that Masonite stopped making siding many years ago.

Are you sure it isn't another brand of hardboard siding?

[Marc]

I don't have any of the hardboard siding installation instructions.

I thought that Masonite stopped making siding many years ago.

Are you sure it isn't another brand of hardboard siding?

I'm in the habit of referring to any type of hardboard siding as 'Masonite'. Who's manufacturing it today?

Marc

[patt]

Year?

Panel or lap?

[Marc]

Year?

Panel or lap?

2009.

Do you call this panel or lap?

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Marc

[patt]

That's lap.

I have all the Masonite from the late nineties but they won't help you.

[Chris Bernhardt]

Marc

That siding in your pictures is way too thin and the edges too sharp for hardboard siding, it really looks just like a smooth face fiber cement. They stopped making Masonite, what, a decade or two ago?

Chris, Oregon

[Tom Raymond]

Marc, check your local lumber yard. I don't know who makes it, but that is definitely hardboard lap. The supplier should have an install manual.

Oh boy, a quick search points to LP.[:-banghea

[Brandon Whitmore]

Looks like fiber cement to me as well.

Hint: If you can't tell for sure, take the sharp point of your screwdriver, push it up against the siding, and grind slightly. You should be able to tell from there......

[Marc]

Looks like fiber cement to me as well.

Hint: If you can't tell for sure, take the sharp point of your screwdriver, push it up against the siding, and grind slightly. You should be able to tell from there......

I scraped the bottom edge of the first course with my fingernail, as I usually do, and the material was brown, not white.

I've written the report which 'suspects' hardboard and recommends that the installation be repeated with compliance with the manufacturer's installation instructions. I used LP's smartsiding manual as an example. there were many examples of a faulty installation.

Marc

[hausdok]

Hi

Color or no, it does appear to be a fiber-cement product. If so, blind nailing is required and panel movement is pretty much the norm. BC has to be 6-inches above soil but can be down to within two inches of porches, steps, patios or other hardscaping.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[AHI in AR]

Hi

Color or no, it does appear to be a fiber-cement product. If so, blind nailing is required and panel movement is pretty much the norm. BC has to be 6-inches above soil but can be down to within two inches of porches, steps, patios or other hardscaping.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

With James Hardie products blind nailing is preferred, but (properly done) face nailing is acceptable. I haven't used other brands to know about them.

Marc--

Are you sure the brown color you found when scraping it wasn't simply dirt seeing as how you tested the bottom edge of the first course?

[hausdok]

With James Hardie products blind nailing is preferred, but (properly done) face nailing is acceptable.

That's not exactly correct; JH says that face nailing should "only be used where required for high wind areas and must not be used in conjunction with blind nailing."

Isn't the color plus primer a light brownish color?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Chad Fabry]

It's a funky olive greenish tan color... a little darker than khaki.

[hausdok]

It's a funky olive greenish tan color... a little darker than khaki.

Yeah, that'd probably look sort of brownish.

OT - OF!!!

M.

[Chad Fabry]

Yeah, that'd probably look sort of brownish.

A turd is brown. It's not the color of a turd. More like the color of pond water turbid with algae.

[Tom Raymond]

I still think it's hardboard. 2009 is too old to be the new Hardie, and the shadow line looks too fat to be the old. Look at the pic below, the bottom piece is brand new hardboard, the top is Hardie.

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Based on the suppliers in my area I would guess the hardboard is from GP or Weyerhauser. I 2 stepped it so I can't be sure.

[Chad Fabry]

It's not the new Hardie, the new stuff has a beveled edge. It looks like mud stained old generation Hardie or some other brand of fiber cement. No matter what it is, it's too close to grade.

[Marc]

Marc--

Are you sure the brown color you found when scraping it wasn't simply dirt seeing as how you tested the bottom edge of the first course?

I'm sure it wasn't dirt, but there's a chance that some paper wrapping had stuck to the bottom edge.

Marc

[Marc]

It isn't too far away. I think I'll settle the question by making a return trip. Client is a very happy client and she won't mind.

I'll let you'll know.

Marc

[Jim Katen]

If it's any help, I've seen Hardiplank in grey, white, light brown (very much like masonite in color), light blue, and pink (actually sort of a very light dusty rose).

[palmettoinspect]

I'd say from the first picture that looks like a hardboard product. The third picture looks like a smooth face Hardiplank. If I can’t tell for sure I take my pocket knife and cut a VERY small piece in an inconspicuous place to see for sure. It’s easy to tell once you have a small piece in hand.

[glues4wood]

Hi I have read the posts here and buy doing so I believe I have the same stuff as Marc was describing it's like paper

it's smooth on the front and at very bottom has a beveled edge ½ round and it is very thin

I need to replace like 18-20 pieces of this through here and Google I get the idea you can't get it anymore ?

although someone asked who was making it now.

I went to Lowe's and checked the Hardi plank one was about same thickness but was textured and missing the routed edge

I know there must be something to replace this or at least replicate it

I am not sure on how to add photos to these posts

but I will take a photo tomorrow of the siding and maybe someone could post a quick how -to

I'm not brain dead just need a refresher in html

Well thanks for the info

Mike

[hausdok]

Hi,

Make sure that the photo is in a compatible format - saving it in JPEG works best - and that it's not too large. Use a photo resizing tool to get it under 200k.

Make sure the name on the photo doesn't contain any spaces or special symbols.

This won't work: my photo of my issue(3)

This will work: MyPhotoOfMyIssue_3 or My_photo_of_my_ussue_3 or something similar without special symbols or blank spaces.

Click on the "edit post" button above your post. Once the composition box comes up, place your cursor where you want the photo to go, left-click, click on the "upload a visible picture" button below the box, scroll to the photo on your computer, highlight the photo file, click upload photo to .....'s post. It will tell you that you were successful, close the box. Click submit changes and you're done.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[ejager]

Marc,

Did you ever figure out what it was/is?