Is this Hardy plank?

[John Kogel]

I see Hardy plank products almost daily in the new burbs, but it generally looks pretty good, tight and straight.

Not the case here, this cement-based product on a 1998 house yesterday. Anyone recognize it?

What would cause the waves? I suspect they nailed paper and plank over bare studs, maybe? The walls are bone dry, sunny side, so it must be an installation screw up.

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Have added more pics, the website is balky this AM.

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[John Kogel]

Backside of a piece I found in the garage.

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[Matt Fellman]

Looks like Hardi Plank... I see waviness fairly often but usually not that bad. I'd guess it was mis-treated before installation - lying at the curb in a puddle of water, etc. It could also be from improper attachment as you say.

[AHI in AR]

I suspect they've got it applied over a relatively soft foam insulating sheathing and they drew the nails up too tight. Look how the waviness seems worse at the top edge of the boards than at the bottom.

[Bain]

All of the above makes sense, but that excessive rippling is still pretty wacky for fiber-cement siding. It almost looks like vinyl siding that was face nailed.

Expansion and contraction isn't a concern with fiber-cement, is it? What if the siding were installed while it was wicked cold, and it's expanded now that Summer's nearly here?

I predict Chad will illuminate us all . . .

[hausdok]

Hi,

Expansion/contraction is an issue with FC products. They have to be absolutely dry when they are installed and so should the framing be.

We have houses built here during the damp months where the siding looks pretty good. After the studs have dried out for a year the lumber tends to move around and we sometimes see walls that look just like that.

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Robert Jones]

I have never seen Hardi Plank that looked like this. I have seen a wood composite material that resembles this. Does Hardi make a smooth textured siding material? All of the Hardi I have seen, has the wood grain appearance.

[AHI in AR]

I have never seen Hardi Plank that looked like this. I have seen a wood composite material that resembles this. Does Hardi make a smooth textured siding material? All of the Hardi I have seen, has the wood grain appearance.

Hardie does make a smooth product. I have it on my home. (It was a special order, but readily available)

[John Kogel]

I have never seen Hardi Plank that looked like this. I have seen a wood composite material that resembles this. Does Hardi make a smooth textured siding material? All of the Hardi I have seen, has the wood grain appearance.

Hardie does make a smooth product. I have it on my home. (It was a special order, but readily available)

Yes, we see the wide panels on apartment buildings sometimes, they install it vertically with battens over the seams.

Movement of the stud frame it must be, but that seems like odd movement, too.

The ripples line up vertically and they appear to correspond with the stud spacing. Spruce 2X6 framing, most likely. Improper storage before installing would be more random I would think. The fact that they nailed all the bottom corners shows they were struggling with the seams.

It is definitely a concrete base product and no it's not expansion from summer heat. The shady side is also wavy. Check out the weather here, it could be January out there today.[]

In any case, I didn't have much to say about this siding. It is what it is, and it's too late to go after anybody. Bad install, combined with bad luck in choosing the product, maybe.

[John Kogel]

Thanks, everybody. I was ready to call it a wood-fibre product before I actually handled that piece in the garage.

[AHI in AR]

I have never seen Hardi Plank that looked like this. I have seen a wood composite material that resembles this. Does Hardi make a smooth textured siding material? All of the Hardi I have seen, has the wood grain appearance.

Hardie does make a smooth product. I have it on my home. (It was a special order, but readily available)

Yes, we see the wide panels on apartment buildings sometimes, they install it vertically with battens over the seams.

Just to be clear, the smooth product I was referring to is a 7-1/4" horizontal lap designed for a 6" exposure. Other sizes are available.

[inspector57]

I suspect they've got it applied over a relatively soft foam insulating sheathing and they drew the nails up too tight. Look how the waviness seems worse at the top edge of the boards than at the bottom.

I agree. Been there, done that, at least until I figured out what was going on.

Some foam boards are very easily compressed if you are used to framing and switch to hanging siding. Kind of like over driving roofing nails. They should have adjusted the nail gun or got a smaller hammer.

[Bain]

I suspect they've got it applied over a relatively soft foam insulating sheathing and they drew the nails up too tight. Look how the waviness seems worse at the top edge of the boards than at the bottom.

I agree. Been there, done that, at least until I figured out what was going on.

Some foam boards are very easily compressed if you are used to framing and switch to hanging siding. Kind of like over driving roofing nails. They should have adjusted the nail gun or got a smaller hammer.

Like I said, Kevin's explanation makes perfect sense, but I assume if the house is 12 years old, the siding is original. A DIY homeowner may not realize the gun can be adjusted, but what kind of horse's-ass installer doesn't realize his mistake and twist the little thumbscrew to decrease the air pressure?

'Course I'm probably an even bigger horse's ass for asking that question, huh?

[Bill Kibbel]

HardiePlank isn't the only fiber-cement smooth lap siding.

There's CemPlank, CertainTeed WeatherBoard, NichiProducts and MaxiPlank.

[John Kogel]

HardiePlank isn't the only fiber-cement smooth lap siding.

There's CemPlank, CertainTeed WeatherBoard, NichiProducts and MaxiPlank.

Thanks, Bill. I just called it a generic "fibre-cement siding" in my report.

[robert1966]

Looks like a knock off product or one of the older composite boards, anyway it was installed incorrectly and in a hurry. If it is installed correctly the nail heads should not show and the nails should be flush with the surface, no protruding or counter-sunk.

[Marc]

A DIY homeowner may not realize the gun can be adjusted, but what kind of horse's-ass installer doesn't realize his mistake and twist the little thumbscrew to decrease the air pressure?

I know this is a little late but controlling the depth of penetration on nailers by adjusting the air pressure simply doesn't work, unless nailers have changed in the last 5 years. A knot in the wood or varying wood densities both act to throw off the depth. For siding, a nailer with a depth control feature is needed. These are specifically intended for siding installations, and the adjustment is done at the tip.

Marc

[mark parlee]

Late here as well

that is smooth Hardie