T1-11 damage protocol

[Chris Bernhardt]

Has anyone ever heard of a damage protocol for T1-11 plywood siding? The composite siding manufacturers have them although maybe forced up on them through litigation.

I was told there is a "shop grade" of T1-11 that has a lot more defects in it. For example there will be a lot of core voids that one can see in the grooves that are supposed to be caulked as part of paint prep.

What kind of defects are allowable? How much deterioration before replacement is needed?

As a side note I read some where that T1-11 was originally designed and intended to be a nice looking sheathing until you got around to putting real siding over it hence the over abundance of core voids and defects via the manufacturing process. True or False?

In my region usually only the south side is messed up with "blow outs", excessive checking and blisters while the north sides will look perfectly fine.

Concerning the picture, when I first looked at this area I didn't see any of these defects as the sun was shining brightly on the siding but after a cloud passed by all of these defects came into view.

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It was well painted. Would you call for the panels replacement?

Chris, Oregon

[hausdok]

Go here: http://www.apawood.org

There's enough information there about T1-11 and other engineered wood materials to keep you occupied for the next decade.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Chris Bernhardt]

Been there many times. They have a paper on repairing plywood but I think the intent was for a few defects not panels litered with them and panels being blasted by sun and moisture are not likely feasible candiates for repair.

What I have noticed is that the quality of panels is all over the place. The defects, which for the most part already exist in the panel, are magnified by moisture and heat. Get some panels in the right lighting and they look terrible.

At what point do you choose to recommend replacing a deteriorated panel?

Throw an extra heavy coat of paint on a panel and maintain it with normal maintainance then the panel might continue to perform a very long time but that is often times hard to judge when you don't know how hard that panel is going get hit with the weather and sun.

In other words with some panels their quality is so bad that no amount of normal efforts will save them.

If there is no damage protocol in the industry, have any of the brethren come up with their own criteria at what point they would recommend replacement other then rot.

Chris, Oregon

[Jim Katen]

Originally posted by Chris Bernhardt

Has anyone ever heard of a damage protocol for T1-11 plywood siding?

I've never heard of one.

I was told there is a "shop grade" of T1-11 that has a lot more defects in it. For example there will be a lot of core voids that one can see in the grooves that are supposed to be caulked as part of paint prep.

I've never heard that before, but it makes sense. I've seen very nice quality T1-11 and really crappy quality T1-11.

What kind of defects are allowable? How much deterioration before replacement is needed?

My personal approach is to recommend replacement of anything that's rotting. I recommend replacement of entire panels only, not parts of panels. This stuff is the sheathing for the house in addition to the siding so I'd rather not see unnecessary small pieces.

As a side note I read some where that T1-11 was originally designed and intended to be a nice looking sheathing until you got around to putting real siding over it hence the over abundance of core voids and defects via the manufacturing process. True or False?

Sounds false. Though lots of people have used it in that manner. Good quality T1-11, if kept well painted, lasts better than lots of other stuff out there.

In my region usually only the south side is messed up with "blow outs", excessive checking and blisters while the north sides will look perfectly fine.

Sure. The nice thing about plywood siding is that you can replace one piece at a time for a very reasonable cost. As for checking and blistering, I figure those are cosmetic issues; if they bother the buyer he can replace the panels rather cheaply. If they don't bother him, he can leave them alone.

Concerning the picture, when I first looked at this area I didn't see any of these defects as the sun was shining brightly on the siding but after a cloud passed by all of these defects came into view.

Grazing light can be a harsh and show all sorts of problems that aren't otherwise noticeable.

It was well painted. Would you call for the panels replacement?

No.

- Jim Katen, Oregon