Oy! I don't know what to do about siding...

I recently bought a vacation cottage on a lake and I'm proceeding with plans to replace the windows & siding before winter hits. This house is part whole-log -- with 1/2 being newer frame addition. It's currently sided with aluminum (tired & beat looking). I was proceeding with plans to re-side with vinyl cedar-look lap siding with cedar-look shakes on the gables...until I started to add up all the material costs

This 650sf house has passed $7000 just for the siding & corners. I haven't even figured out the starter strips & trim yet! I just called a local lumber yard to ask about natural-edge cedar siding and I'd be at about $4000 to side with the real stuff. + stain of course.

Anybody else been faced with the dilemma of high cost/low maintenance/fake vs. lower cost/higher maintenance/real? Any suggestions on what to choose?

 

Even at the higher cost, I'd go with vinyl - I just hate the maintenance real wood outside requires.

 

My parents went with the wood look vinyl siding on their house. Unless you are close to the siding, not many people notice it is not real.
I wish I had a picture of their house from the lake on this computer.

Real wood would look better up close, but then you're spending your time maintaining the cottage, instead of enjoying it.

 

By the time i added in the cost of the vinyl trim i was looking at $9000! I'm not paying that for faux wood. I didn't know i had stumbled on the Cadillac of sidings at Menards.

 

If you want to go cheap, why not consider siding it with exterior T-111, covered with a good grade of stucco between vinyl batten strips covering the seams? Would give it a nice Tudor look, and probably cost well under $2000. Done right, it would last for years without requiring a lot of work to keep it tuned up.

 

I would go with the wood all day and twice on Sunday. It's cedar, and naturally self-preserving,

Just go easy on thee finishes. Stain and preservative, not paint.

 

I know real wood means extra work but this is a small single-story cottage that I would be able to stain almost entirely standing on the ground. And if I cover the gables in something more low-maintenance I would never need a ladder.

I found this image on eBay while Googling for images of natural-edge cedar siding:



As nice as the Novik vinyl product I was considering, it just can't come close to that--not even at 2.5X the cost. I'm sure that rustic appearance would turn off many people but I love it.