subject: Why Choose Fiber Cement Siding Over Wood [print this page] Why Choose Fiber Cement Siding Over Wood Why Choose Fiber Cement Siding Over Wood
Fiber cement siding or fiber cement cladding is a building material that is used to cover the exterior of buildings. It offers the appearance of wood and costs just a fragment of that of wood. This green material is easy to maintain and extremely durable and offers resistance against termite and fire.
The ingredients and the process
Fiber cement siding is made from a mixture of cement, sand and cellulose. The cellulose adds strength to the material and prevents it from cracking. This mixture is then subjected to intensive autoclaving. The autoclaving is followed by a high temperature steam curing process. This process ensures strength and dimensional stability. These sheets are made to match the desired thickness and a wood grain is imprinted.
The advantages over wood
The Fiber cement siding is less time intensive. Since the Fiber cement trims are straighter than wood, it consumes less time to bow the trim when aligning it.
The installation cost along with the material and paint is much less than that of wood.
It offers a myriad of choices in shape, texture, profile and color. You could opt for profiles like Dutch, beaded, and traditional and choose from shapes like shingles, half rounds, octagons, and random squares.
Fiber cement sidings hold paint well. On an average they can hold paint for about 7 to 10 years.
Some fiber cement siding companies offers longer warranties on their ability to hold paint, some as long as 50 years.
The sidings are made in a factory and they all follow factory specifications and guidelines ensuring a certain quality and stability. Some factories also provide pre primed Fiber cement siding which protect the siding from moisture.
They do not warp, rot, buckle or fade. They also offer termite and fire resistance.
Fiber cement sidings do not become brittle when frozen or melt when placed near a barbeque.
They also prevent the entry of insects and birds.
Maintenance
The Fiber cement siding are rather easy to maintain. They require very little care to ensure its appearance remains intact.
Use washing powder and a power washer or hose and wash the exterior.
In case the grime is tough use a light wire brush and scrub off the dirt.
Check the caulking after cleaning and replace missing caulk.
