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tudor half timber detailing

| Posted in General Discussion on September 4, 2001 07:24am

*
greetings, i am currently working on a tudor style house in a foggy seaside part of san francisco. various options have been offered to get the ‘half timber look’

1. regular 2x cedar boards, backprimed and installed against the plywood with 30# bldg paper and stucco between the boards. what are my waterproofing issues? will the wood and stucco tend to pull away from one another and cause problems? should i extend the building paper under the wood boards or stop the paper at the boards and install a bithuthene flashing along the edges of the boards?
2. install a scratch and brown coat over the whole building, then install a ‘wood grain’cement board, and then apply a finish coat of stucco flush with and between the cement boards. eventual painting of the cement board could give it the ‘wood’ look.
3.???? any other options???

if anyone has had experience with this, please repond asap. thank you,
stephen

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  1. Frenchy_Dampier | Sep 03, 2001 07:12am | #1

    *
    While I like the look of timberframe, I think those who attempt to get the tudor "look" are like those who put wood grain siding on their cars so they "look" like a woody.
    Having said that, you need to put wood over the stucco. If you try to put it between the boards you will develop a trap for water. Rot will result. If however, you put boards over the stucco water will drain past and not be trapped.
    It will be to your advantage if you back prime & paint all sides of the boards. I personally would use a decay resistant wood.

    1. stephen_glaudemans | Sep 03, 2001 08:57pm | #2

      *hi and thanks for the input, though i'm still a little unclear on the idea. many of the tudors in the immediate area of the project have the stucco flush with the 'half timbers'. perhaps in these cases, the boards are placed on top of the 'scratch coat'.it sounds like you are recommending that a 2x cedar board, fully primed, be secured (w/ stainless steel nails or screws, i presume), to the outside of the stucco finish coat, which would result in the board being 1 1/2 in front of the stucco. and so, i'm still wondering how to get the flush look if possible.p.s. i totally concur on your woody stationwagon analogy. strong neighborhood controls and owners who yearn for yesteryear....

      1. piffin_ | Sep 03, 2001 09:21pm | #3

        *If you use 3/4" cedar instead of 2by's you'll achieve the effect without spending so much on lumber.

        1. Frenchy_Dampier | Sep 04, 2001 02:59am | #4

          *Yes, use 4/4 rather than 2x's (in case you can't read my abreviations use boards that are about 1 inch thick {finished thickness about 3/4 of an inch} instead of two inch thick ones). For a little more "realistic look get a sawmill to saw some curved and bent trees. If you look at the real english tudors they are all made from trees with "charcter" not just dimensional lumber tacked up.

          1. stephen_glaudemans | Sep 04, 2001 06:59am | #5

            *thanks for the input. so, just to understand, you're thinking that the 1x cedar boards (actual thickness - 3/4" as you say) would be secured to the outside of the stucco and hence not flush, or are you suggesting that i apply the 1x board to the outside of the 30# building paper which is on top of the ext. plywood, and if so, is waterproofing along the edge of the wood and stucco an issue?

          2. Frenchy_Dampier | Sep 04, 2001 03:43pm | #6

            *Wood expands at a differant rate than stucco so if you butt the stucco up between the boards the wood will slowly shrink away from the stucco. The gap that results will over time cause rot because water will find a way to get behind the boards and rot out. If however the boards are slightly proud of the stucco water can run behind and run off (i.e. not trapped behind a board) HMMMMmm , not very clear. Here, put a board up to stucco. Now look behind the board or even better poor some water onto the stucco. See how the water runs past the back of the board? If the boards are flush with stucco the resulting gap will over time trap enough water to start decay. If you are very carefull to seal with a good quality caulk every year, every seam, you will delay the rot but sooner or later rot will happen. I mean do you really want to be climbing ladders when your an old man? Or hopeing the kid you pay does a good job?

          3. Ken_Layfield | Sep 04, 2001 07:24pm | #7

            *Stephen, The trick in the stucco and timber look is a half-lap joint edge on the wood. The stucco goes over the wood about 3/4" to 1" on the edges. This prevents water infiltration. Most Tudor style buildings I've worked on the boards were 3/4" to 1" thick, with tar paper, metal mesh and stucco on top.

  2. stephen_glaudemans | Sep 04, 2001 07:24pm | #8

    *
    greetings, i am currently working on a tudor style house in a foggy seaside part of san francisco. various options have been offered to get the 'half timber look'

    1. regular 2x cedar boards, backprimed and installed against the plywood with 30# bldg paper and stucco between the boards. what are my waterproofing issues? will the wood and stucco tend to pull away from one another and cause problems? should i extend the building paper under the wood boards or stop the paper at the boards and install a bithuthene flashing along the edges of the boards?
    2. install a scratch and brown coat over the whole building, then install a 'wood grain'cement board, and then apply a finish coat of stucco flush with and between the cement boards. eventual painting of the cement board could give it the 'wood' look.
    3.???? any other options???

    if anyone has had experience with this, please repond asap. thank you,
    stephen

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