Building Siding Alternatives

Fiber cement siding is one of the better options for siding your home.

Building siding alternatives.

Plywood siding features a rough sawn textured face for a beautiful rustic appearance. Exterior building products aren t 100 percent watertight. Revered for its natural beauty wood can last generations with dedicated maintenance. Stucco the traditional spanish building material is a great option for the exterior siding of your home if you prefer a unique style.

Additives like fiber and acrylic are sometimes added for even more strength. The cost of new siding can vary widely as can the maintenance required for specific materials. For example fiber cement siding is much heavier than traditional siding options and needs some moisture barrier underneath to ensure its waterproof qualities. Fiber cement siding while not inexpensive is a high resale value siding choice that offers equally high aesthetic appeal.

Some of these siding options require more. Like all siding materials some of these low cost alternatives have drawbacks. Offering the look of masonry stucco or wood at a lower cost fiber cement siding has become a popular siding choice for many homeowners. While wood is easy to work with it can be expensive depending on the grade of wood you choose.

It plywood siding is an all wood exterior grade panel. Siding is one of the most important elements of commercial and residential buildings. Six of the best options include fiber cement stucco stone or faux stone brick aluminum and wood. Fiber cement siding is low maintenance non flammable and termite resistant.

From a building supply retailer you should expect to see vinyl material prices of 1 per square foot or even less. Plywood siding is an all wood exterior grade panel. While vinyl siding costs vary you can expect to pay between 2 5 per square foot installed. Very similar to plaster stucco is created from a mixture of lime sand and cement.

Vinyl siding options boast a nearly endless number of colors and styles as well as very low and easy maintenance. It is ideal for siding applications from new home construction utility buildings planters dog houses and other remodeling or do it yourself projects. Available in a range of styles and textures factory painting or finishes are highly recommended. If you ve chosen a style of siding for your home board and batten dutch lap vertical or shake it s time to select the material.

Award winning home renovation expert bob vila outlines some of the upsides and downsides of popular alternatives to vinyl siding on his website. We ll go into more detail for each one below.