warped wood siding

[John Dirks Jr]

What causes wood siding to warp like this? Is this from the siding being installed before it was sufficiently dried?

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[kurt]

Could you see if it was backprimed and painted?

[Brandon Whitmore]

Are you sure the siding is warped, or the the siding "following the wall" as in the studs bowed after drying? I would guess that there is a heavy bow in the wall at that location. Although, that's not a full length stud, so I am probably wrong.

I can't say I've ever seen wood lap siding warp that bad.

Is it only in one location, or around the entire home. Were interior walls bowed?

[John Dirks Jr]

All good questions. I was just there briefly to deploy radon testing equipment. The actual inspection is not until Friday. I got there early to deploy the equipment so I poked around for a few minutes before the agent got there.

The questions you ask give me tips on what to look for.

I doubt Ill be able to tell if it was back painted. It was curling quite a bit too, pretty much all over. At few places where the ends butt edge trim it was pulling away between 1/2 to 3/4 inch. You can see an example of this on the left side of the window frame where one of the siding boards is pulling out at its end. That is aside from the curling I mention. The curling is width wise, along the length.

So we have curling, warping and pulling out.

If the siding has only one side painted/primed, what is the issue? Moisture retention that leasd to warping and such?

It does look like the effects of moisture and drying.

[Chris Bernhardt]

If it's warping that much it's probably how it's fastened, not some abnormal moisture problem.

Is the warping primarily on the weather side?

Chris, Oregon

[Les]

John,

That does not look like wood lap siding. My 23year old crt does not allow much definition 'tho.

[waynesoper]

WOW, The window is leaking. Look above the warped siding. OOPS there it is. A window. GO figga

[Jim Katen]

Finger jointed material sometimes behaves like that, especially if there's a mix of flat grain & vertical grain wood in the same length of siding. The vertical-grain stuff stays pretty stable while the flat grain stuff tends to cup or crown.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[John Dirks Jr]

If it's warping that much it's probably how it's fastened, not some abnormal moisture problem.

Is the warping primarily on the weather side?

Chris, Oregon

I didn't get around to the back yet. Here's a full front shot.

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[emalernee]

Looks like blind nailed cedar. If it was wet when installed, I woulod think you would get the effect that you saw. Face nailing with the proper nails may pull some of it tight, or just cause bigger cracks in the cupped siding.

Ezra Malernee

Canton, Ohio

[hausdok]

Hi Ezra,

Long time no hear! How's the treatise going?

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[emalernee]

Mike,

Setting here working on it as I lurk . The course will look similar to the Building Preservation & Restoration program that I finish this June.

Lots of hands on classes and site visits. I plan on a Certificate track that will take about 50 Quarter hours to complete. The Degree program will have around 110 Quarter hours.

Had a nice long talk with John Bouldin from Virginia Tech, though the course that he is working on is wood inspection, he has lots of experience in Home Inspections in Virginia.

Ezra Malernee

Canton, Ohio

[John Dirks Jr]

This home is 26 years old. Do you think the siding is finished its deformation for the most part or could it continue to move?

[Brandon Whitmore]

If it moved more than that, I'd be pretty impressed.

[John Dirks Jr]

There are some caulking issues at the edges of the boards that I plan to write up. The siding itself is still such that it will shed water which is what it is intended to do.

I'm leaning towards the warpage as being more or less cosmetic. The widened gaps at the undersides of the laps may invite insects to harbor more than the small gaps that are normally in the underside of lap siding. I think I'll mention that.

Are there any other negative implications I am missing?

[John Dirks Jr]

Forget about the siding on the front side. The back side was messed up pretty good. The chimney chase is a rotting mess. The water intrusion made its way to the inside and is rotting the edges of the sub floor.

Pulling the carpet back to peek was a breeze since the carpet tacks just crumbled in their rotted state.

I'll put some pictures up later. Gotta go write the report now.

[John Dirks Jr]

It was pretty nasty in this corner. It bled inside under the carpet.

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[gtblum]

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Were there ruts in the lawn from the caulk truck?

A little caulk and a little paint, makes a carpenter what he ain't.