All about: External wall cladding

The exterior cladding on a building acts as the outer layer of the house. This layer helps to protect it from the elements. It also "works with other dominant features, such as windows, doors and porches, to define a building’s character." There is more than one kind of external wall cladding that you can use for your house's exterior. This article details on external wall cladding.

Wood

Wood cladding comes in various wood cladding styles: Board and batten, board on board, lap siding, sawn shingles and hand splits shingles, and clapboards. Board and batten cladding was developed in Sweden and Norway. This siding was used in conjunction with square logs that are joined at the corners with dovetailed joints. Lap siding consisted of board so that are 1 inch by 6 inch or 1 inch by 8 inch. The bottom row was kicked out by a block and a spacing block to which each board following was attached. It could also consist of boards with reverse rabbits on top and bottom so that they would lock together when secured to the wall. Sawn shingles were made from cedar and were sawn so that they are cut at a taper so that the bottom is wider at the bottom then at the top. They are secured to the wall with a portion of the shingles exposed beneath each successive layer. Clapboards are long boards cut on a taper and secure to the exterior wall in the same manner of the shingles.

Brick, Stucco, and Stone

Brick is a material that has been been used as exterior cladding for centuries. The older form of brick cladding is solid masonry which is structural as well, while the newer use is "face" bricks, which means that they are used as a façade and are not structural. Stucco is an exterior cladding that is made from water, Portland cement, and sand. It is applied to the walls on top of masonry or metal lathe, in a succession of coats. Stone is a cladding that is now applied like "face" bricks and forms a facade.

Vinyl and Aluminum, Composition Board, and Cement Asbestos

Vinyl and aluminum cladding can be made to look like wood cladding. It is applied in sheets. Composition board is made with wafers of wood that is pressed together. It can also be made to resemble wood siding. Cement asbestos is made of Portland cement, asbestos and sand. It can be kade to look like other materials as well.