One of the very upscale neo traditional neighborhoods here has relented and now allows hardie plank siding, but only if its the new thicker Artisan type. Their relenting and changing the rules (old rule was no hardie plank as the shadow line was too thin (!!!)(????).
But after 10 years or so many of the expensive homes started having wood plank wood rot problems, and the owners complained when faced with big buck repairs.
I ran into a builder today and he said the upcharge from regular Hardie to the thicker one was $9000 per house (his estimate) and he was not going to build there (he does not build wood plank houses)
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What!?
I guess it takes twice the crew with bigger nail guns and hammers. You have to buy special shears too!
I agree with them about the shadow line thing, but the thicker Hardie must weight two tons, given the old stuff weighs a ton. I don't blame the builders for not wanting to use it.
Too bad there's no hardboard made with a reliable reputation, as that would give you the durability of Hardie (absent the fireproof aspect) with the shadow line they want and less weight/easier install than standard Hardie.
Dan, Those are exactly the characteristics that I read about for Microposite. Thicker reveal, lighter weight, and no toxic dust. Supposedly cut and shaped with standard woodworking tools.But you can't find it anywhere, at least out here, no one has heard of it or actually seen an installation. Supposedly it is being marketed back east. John
Yeah, I've read (here, mostly) of several new hardboard-like products, but none have very broad distribution, and none have any sort of a track record. Basically, from about 1990 (after Masonite and a few other better manufacturers got out of the business) until early this decade the only hardboard siding made was the cheap sith, so it's starting from scratch.
As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz
builder said the artisan cost 2 1/2 x regular Hardie???