Hi,

Thanks for the info about proper install of exterior casing.

Now I have a couple questions about the proper installation of cedar beveled siding.

I'm installing 1/2 x 6" WRC beveled siding. It's supposed to have about a 4" reveal. I'm installing it rough-side-out and will be finishig it with a Cabot's oil based Solid Color Stain. When I look at the Western Red Cedar Lumber Assoc website, they recommend NOT doing blind nailing. Instead, with 6" boards and a 4" reveal (2" overlap) they recommend nailing about 2 1/4 inches above the bottom edge of each board. The idea is that there will only be one nail across the width of each board. That will allow each board to expand independently with temperature and humidity.

Other people have recommended blind nailing near the top of each board in the overlap area instead.

It seems to me that the WRCLA recommendation will hold the siding more firmly, i.e. securing the siding only at the top will allow the bottoms to flop around and will let wind and wind driven rain in. The problem is, of course, that the nails will show. To help deal with that, I want to use stainless steel nails with a waffle head. They won't show as badly as nails with smooth heads.

So I'm looking for recommendations about the best way to nail the siding and, if it's not blind nailed, the best way to treat the nails.

Thanks
Ken

 

Follow the WRCLA recommendation. And be very careful when driving the nails. You can easily ruin a nice siding job with a bunch of hammer tracks around every nail. Not a job to let a couple 16 yr olds loose on.