Wondering if any homeowners here have had experience with various siding options like fiber cement faux wood finish type siding boards, cedar batten board, cedar siding board, or cedar shingles.
My situation is a 1921 craftsman house with very old wooden siding that's outlived it's useful life. There appears to be dry rot in some areas, and to replace it with what was pre existing gets costly but will it be worth it? I'd like to stay in character with the house, but the neighborhood is split between taking an old house and making it look like new construction with vinyl siding (I'd rather not go that way) next to ones that have been historically true (mansard style and craftsman next door have repointed brick).
The style I'm aiming for is to keep it on the rustic side, less fussy. Oriental zen direction could work too. The roof is a steep pitch with a wide dormer (1.5 story), asphalt shingle the previous owner installed is 2 yrs old. I'd have prefered standing seam metal roof in a hunter green & will likely go that way eventually once the asphalt ages and the interior projects are completed. It's got a brick foundation that's barely visible on the sides of the house with textured firebrick chimney on northern exposure. Exterior lighting I'll either go wrought iron or hammered copper (dirk van erp style). Transoms and windows I'm considering some modest stained glass accents. I plan on adding some river stone veneer accents to the front of the house. Perhaps the whole front ground level on the porch, perhaps just vertical cornerstones on the building and the columns holding the porch roof up. The original porch floor needs replacement, and wood lasted well, but I'm open to other options like slate for value/durability. Porch ceiling has beadboard oak holding up well. The front of the house has a western exposure and the winds are prevailing westerly. Rainy Mtn setting on slopes of WV.
I was advised by the local handymen to just cover over the old wood with new vinyl, not bother to remove the old, but I'd like to get access to the plaster walls to inspect the frame more and insulate them better. (I'm also thinking it might be termite food to leave it, and might be better recycled into fencing for the backyard). My ideas for insullation were along the lines of preventive boric acid dusting and blown cellulose or rice hull. The blown synthetic foam concerns me re: outgassing and longevity. Foams I've used on spot projects at my job to close up pipes where insects were a nuisance tended to ATTRACT wasps, & didn't fare well with temp fluctuations by shrinking and getting brittle. To be fair I'll admit these were external exposures. I plan on insulating under the siding with perhaps fan fold, but I need a better R value than 1.5 .
1. longevity of materials- which are better value for siding? Some maint. is ok if it means I can prolong its life indefinately.
2. what order should I be doing the stone work and siding work?
3. is there a website on historic character thats more informative vs the sales pitch for accessories sites I've come across? This was the best I could find with google:
http://starcraftcustombuilders.com/A...sAndCrafts.htm
I'm getting the idea that craftsman was so diverse, that siding options aren't the limited color/material choices that an architectural style like colonial was in new england. WV is neither north nor south nor midwest nor any coast. It's switzerland, being fluent in german, french, russian and italian. melting pot of regional influences as it were.
4. insullation options for better performance?
5. any other suggestions I haven't considered for this project?
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