Paint for shed composite panels? Price vs vinyl? Panels made for sheds not PT?

Building an 8x12 shed with wood siding panels. When I google things like pressure treated siding panel /t111 etc , at Home depot all I found were Out Of Stock things like:

19/32" thick PT T1-11:
19/32 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft. T1-11 4 in. On-Center Pressure-Treated Plywood-105595 - The Home Depot

.625" thick PT t1-11:
5/8 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft. T1-11 12 in. On-Center Pressure-Treated Plywood-9370052 - The Home Depot

5/8" PT T1-11:
https://www.lowes.com/pd/4-x-8-x-5-8...Siding/3184203


I have a couple lumber yards ~15 minutes away that have PT panels ,or can order them if not, but I'm trying to keep the budget as low as possible.
I think HD/Lowes is about %20 cheaper for similar products, and I read they can special ordered Out Of Stock items.


This one is in stock but is only 0.375" thick but it's only $22 4x8, and is pre-primed and specifically says is good for sheds.
SmartSide 76 Series 48 in. x 96 in. 8 in o.c. Cedar Fiber Panel Siding-25934 - The Home Depot

I don't know what "5/50 Year Limited Warranty" means, maybe if it's painted right it will last at least 50 years, otherwise it's 5 years? I don't think it's pressure treated even though it say "Resists fungal decay and termites". But if painted with a thick amount of good paint and would last ~50 years, that's fine with me PT or not I don't care as long as it lasts.

Usually there's a box in the Item's Specs that says Pressure Treated Yes/No, but that particular product doesn't have that box.

These T1-11s that come up when googling Pressure treated T111, both say 'Pressure Treated' = "No". They're .56" thick but only the $40 pre primed one says 50 year warranty, the $30 unprimed has no warranty.

Plywood Siding Panel DuraTemp Primed 8 IN OC (Common: 19/32 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft.; Actual: 0.563 in. x 48 in. x 96 in.)-871934 - The Home Depot

Plytanium Plywood Siding Panel T1-11 8 IN OC (Common: 19/32 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft.; Actual: 0.563 in. x 48 in. x 96 in.)-113699 - The Home Depot

The first panel I linked, the pre primed $22 one, is 0.375" thick. It doesn't say if I can attach it direct to studs without an OSB/plywood backer or blocking/bracing in the studs.

But this one is only $28 and is 0.315" thick which is thinner than the $22 0.375" panel, but it does say this thinner one is "Strong enough to be nailed directly to stud, making additional sheathing unnecessary in many applications."
LP SmartSide SmartSide 48 in. x 96 in. Strand Panel Siding-27874 - The Home Depot


I'm leaning towards just using the 0.375" $22 panels, but I mean, shouldn't it be PT even if I'm going to paint it? Would it really make a difference if I spend double for thicker and PT panels that aren't even primed. Since the cheaper boards are thin, should I put horizontal blocking between all the wall studs for bracing even though it says 'strong enough to use direct to studs without additional sheathing'?

That's pretty much all I found on HD site. I will check Lowes also but it seems to be the same situation.
Actually just found this $28 panel which is PT and pre primed and 'strong enough for direct to studs"
https://www.lowes.com/pd/SmartSide-3...875-in/3058153

I guess I answered by own question but seeing if the thickness matters so much (if should still block between studs and if thinner panels will rot out faster). And also, the $22 and $28 home depot boards might also be PT like the $28 lowes one even though they don't say it, I can find out.




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One last thing, I didn't really calculate this at all but I'm guessing vinyl siding would be ~%50 more than wood, but what about possibly needing to repaint the wood? I mean, our house is only painted once maybe every 20 years (45 year old house) and looks fine. I think the wood parts are cedar shingles which are protected from soffits but the rest without soffit protection is cement panels that paint still looks fine on.

Estimated cost for Vinyl $700:
$150 OSB behind vinyl including gables. 12x8 shed 7 foot high walls. $12 a board x 12 boards

$75 tyvek over the OSB.

$300 vinyl siding (about $10 per 12' X 10" piece) Meaning roughly 8 pieces per 12 foot side of shed is $160 for the two 12 foot sides. And including the gables on the two shorter 8 foot sides is about another $140

~$ 60 for the 4 vinyl siding outside corners.

~$75 J channel and starter strip.

and then it would look tacky if I didn't cap the fascia with white aluminum trim which would add on another ~ $60 but I might just omit that and just paint the fascia.

~55 vinyl soffit



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VS. Wood estimate (and less work): $450
~$300 $25 per panel pre primed x 12 panels.

~ $30 1"x3" PT as the outside corners

~$10 soffit vents, the soffits I would make free from the 1' scrap rips from the walls being 7' made from 8' panels.


~$120 for paint? ~360 sq foot needs to be painted includes soffits and gables. The ~$25 pre primed composite panel manufacturer recommends Acrylic Latex paint. I assume semi gloss would be preferred which I see with some paints almost doubles the price vs their satin finish.

I'm not sure if I should do two coats or if one thick coat is enough. I'm not sure which paint to use. What if I used that deck restore paint that fills in the rough surface of the panels well? Can you link me some good choices for paints from home depot/lowes?

Just eye balling it from experience, I would think 3 gallons would do one coat for a 12x8 x 7 foot high shed with rough surface panels but I'm not sure. I mean I'm seeing gallons of exterior acrylic latex claiming to cover up to 400 sq ft, but even if my siding panels were smooth surface, I highly doubt 1 gallon would do 1 coat for the entire shed.

And then, no I don't have to worry about painting it like every 5 years right, with the right paint, it should last about 20 years? There's going to also be a gable lookout framed about 1' overhang so at least most straight-down rain won't even hit the siding on the gable sides but most rain isn't straight-down, but still gives some protection.

 

Why (in 50 words or less) do you need pressure treated siding?

 

Won't it outlast the non PT panels?

I did a lot of research on fascia material and read something said non PT pine with tight grain and little to no knots (basically the opposite of dimensional framing 2x4 2x6s etc) will last indefinitely if properly primed painted and then repainted maybe every 2 decades etc.



What about the paint links? My cost estimates of wood vs vinyl are somewhat accurate you would say, and that I don't have to worry that the shed will need repainting in less than 15-20 years if painted properly?

 

Properly painted and maintained, you should get decades of service from spf, hardie planks or hardie panels. Cost estimates are local, so your research is fine. PT cannot be paintes for months after application as it needs to dry out first.

 

As Larry said, PT lumber/plywood needs to dry out before it can be painted while regular lumber/siding can generally be painted immediately. Siding isn't like a deck where moisture can set on it for extended periods. Primer and paint is really all it needs. Haven't you seen houses with 50 yr old siding that is still in decent shape? The main thing is to make sure the bottom of the siding is high enough off the ground that vegetation or rain splashing doesn't keep it wet longer than it should.

Oil base primers do a better job of sealing the siding than latex primers do. Latex house paint is preferred for the top coat. It's best to get at least one coat of primer or paint on the bottom edge of the siding.

 

I know PT needs to dry before painting.

But if you're saying hardie panels marketed for sheds don't really need to be PT and will still last many decades if painted, then good.

But possibly those two $22 and $28 panels from HD are actually PT, like the very similar $28 panels from Lowes that say PT. Maybe I'll email them or just get the ones from Lowes.

My main questions now is, is it going to cost $120-$200 to paint 360 sq ft? Should I do 2 coats even if the label says 1?

I'm ok with paint costing $100 if it even has to.

This $190 5 gallon says Lifetime Warranty and covers 2,000 sq ft and recommends 1 coat. 400 sq ft per gallon. Hardie panels are rough and I want a thick coat, maybe 2 gallons totaling 800 sq ft will do the 360 sq ft shed. Just eye balling it though, I'm thinking 3 gallons for 1 coat.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Valspar-Dur...-fl-oz/3079377

This $100 5 gallon is same brand but lower quality and says 15 year Warranty, covers 2,000 sq ft.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Valspar-Sto...-fl-oz/3339482


I should get semi gloss for best protection and easier to clean, yea?

Luckily I don't have to worry about mud splashing up on the shed or things like green mold growing on it. Otherwise vinyl siding would be more appealing to pressure wash easily.

I'm under the impression vinyl will last 100+ years (regardless that it might fade, it would still do its job and look decent and not crack [sun isn't too hot here in summer to cause warping, and I'd install it correct to allow expansion/contraction, and winter isn't too too bad to cause cracking but it can stay in the 10s Fahrenheit for a while but I don't see anyone's vinyl cracking]).

If I google how many years vinyl siding lasts, I find things saying only 15 years, or 20-40 depending on thickness, but some products says Lifetime Warranty and is transferable to new owners.

I have at least one other shed to build for someone and I don't want to get involved with vinyl siding and tyvek and J channel etc, I want to just put up panels and paint them and say it will last at least probably 20 years before just needing a new coat of paint vs vinyl will cost ~%40 more in materials, ~%30 more work, and still only last about 20-40 years before it can potentially crack. Would you say that's accurate? I read Tyvek has only a 10 year warranty but I think in 50 years it would still be reusable under vinyl if the vinyl cracks and is caught quickly.

 

First you need to apply a primer, which primer to use depends on what siding you use. Generally 2 coats of finish is more durable than one coat. While I have seen exterior finishes last for 20 yrs it is not something I would bank on. 5-10 yrs is a reasonable time frame. A lot depends on the quality of the coating and the weather it is exposed to.

Remember it is just a shed and you don't want to drive the price up more than what the shed is worth.

 

marksr, The panels I linked are pre-primed That saves ~$80 for the cost of primer, plus the work. 'Regular' PT T1-11 isn't primed.

I forgot that I installed about 8 of these ~$28 pre-primed boards on the side of a house's garage last year. The existing ones were up for maybe 8 years. The paint still looked fine as did the undamaged areas, but some areas weren't flashed properly when built. No drip edge for windows, and the bottoms of the panels sat on flashing that was done wrong (block foundation stuck out ~5" more than the stud wall and was flashed with aluminum but the angle in the Z flashing created a pool at the bottom of the boards instead of shedding water away). The boards rotted pretty bad at the windows and bottoms, basically starting growing a fungus, but again, only where they weren't flashed properly.

I rented a breaker and bent new aluminum foundation flashing so it would shed water away, put up drip edge over windows, put new tyvek up, and installed the panels a couple inches above the Z flashing, caulked the horizontal joints and drip edges, and then it was painted.

For the paint, I think I answered my own question. One gallon claims 400 sq ft, but would cover much less for rough surfaced hardie board, but maybe I can get away with just two gallons (800 sq ft claimed for smooth surface) to cover ~360 sq ft and high quality paint cost around $80 (or less if I can find discounted mistake-mixed paint and mix them all together as 1 color


Only thing I'm wondering really is if it's worth it in the long run to spend more on vinyl vs painted wood. I estimated the prices in my first post. The shed will be well above the ground, at least 8" on cinderblocks, possibly ~14" on double cinderblocks.

 

won't let me edit..

Just wanted to add I wish I posted in exterior siding sub section.

 

Why, it is mostly about paint. I really think too much is going on with this. After all, it is a shed, not the Taj Mahal, and switching back and forth with siding will eventually lead to a decision you won't like. Choose one or the other. Vinyl will last a long time. Properly painted wood will last a long time.

 

Personally I don't trust the primer used on preprimed exterior wood. I'm might skip the primer on a low budget job but anything I expect to last long time - I'll field apply a fresh coat of primer first. For a non carpenter, I've built quite a few sheds and never used vinyl siding because of the increased cost. Vinyl will look nice longer with less maintenance. Unless the shed is a good ways from the house I always paint it to match the house.