Wood & Fiber-Cement Siding Installers in Pittsburgh, PA

Pittsburgh Cedar Siding

When choosing the type of siding you want to have for a new home (or replacement siding for an existing home), there are many factors to consider. It should be durable. Installing siding is a large and expensive operation, so the kind you choose should be built to last. It should function well. There's no point installing siding that doesn't properly protect what is underneath it. Finally, for obvious reasons, you want it to look good.

How well your siding performs these tasks will depend a lot on where you live. In an environment like that of Pittsburgh, cedar siding is a viable choice for those who want both function and good looks for their home's exterior.

What's a Cedar Shake?
A piece of shake siding is an awful lot like a shingle, only it is cut thicker and has a more rustic look. Both shingles and shakes come in varying degrees of quality that are determined by what part of the tree the wood is cut from and the kinds of defects (knots in the wood) that are allowed in it.

Benefits of Cedar Shake Siding
Though more expensive and difficult to maintain than other siding materials, cedar siding has many attributes that make it a good fit for a home in Pittsburgh. Cedar siding contains a naturally occurring chemical that makes it perform well in moist environments (and Pittsburgh is certainly a moist environment). This same chemical also makes it an undesirable place for bugs to hang out (and though it would be difficult to say if Pittsburgh has more or less insect activity than other cities, it would be fair to say that there is no shortage of bugs that call Iron City home).

Cedar shake siding is also, more than many other siding materials, a good insulator. Due to the cell structure of the cedar tree, the shakes and shingles made from its wood make it a good inhibitor of heat transfer. This means that they will help keep hot air in during the winter and keep it out during the summer. Though it probably won't pay for itself from the reduction in heating and cooling bills, cedar cladding will still make a difference in how comfortable your home is to be in.

Aside from the practical reasons to opt for cedar, the most glaring benefit these shakes provide is a unique and distinguished look. In Pittsburgh, cedar shake siding is the premium cladding material for those who want a natural and attractive appearance for their home's exterior. It can be stained and painted, or it can be left as is to weather naturally, creating a very distinctive effect.

Drawbacks of Cedar Siding
Though it is resistant to many of the climate conditions found in Pittsburgh, cedar siding is still wood, and wood will always be a relatively high maintenance material. It cracks, swells, warps, and decomposes. If it's painted, the paint will have its own issues. Choosing to side your home with natural wood is not perfect for everyone, but for some, it's the only way to go. If you're one of those, cedar is probably the best wood you can use for your purposes.

Cedar Shake Siding Prices
To install cedar siding, Pittsburgh residents can expect a bill in the mid to upper four figure range. A particularly large job might even go over $10,000. This price is quite comparable to other forms of siding. The real difference in cost between cedar siding and a material like vinyl comes in the upkeep or longevity. You have to spend money keeping your wood siding very well maintained, or you have to spend money replacing it. Other siding materials tend to last a bit longer with less attention to maintenance. Those other materials, however, can rarely match cedar siding in appearance or added value to the home.

Pittsburgh Hardie Board Siding

Fiber cement siding is sold under a few different names, but the first, and most widely desired, brand goes by the name of Hardie. For those who live in Pittsburgh, Hardie board siding is an excellent choice when it's time to redo the exterior of a home. It is extremely durable and cost-effective, just the way it was designed to be by Australian James Hardie about a century ago.

Hardie Board Siding in Weather Conditions
Pittsburgh is literally full of moisture. In the winter, there is snow, sleet, and freezing rain; in the summer, there are thunder showers and the occasional hail stone. The spring and fall each get their fair share of precipitation, as well, and if that's not enough, there's always the rivers, streams, and fog to keep moisture in the picture. For Pittsburgh, Hardie board siding (also known as Hardie plank) is a near perfect fit because, unlike some other cladding materials, it doesn't retain liquid and is virtually unaffected by moisture.

To further make a case for Hardie plank siding, Pittsburgh's annual temperature variations also leave little impression on the material. While some siding expands and contracts as the seasons change (causing them to split, crack, peel, or, in the case of vinyl, become brittle enough in freezing temperatures to break under pressure), there is no weather condition, at any time of year in Pittsburgh, Hardie siding is not prepared to handle.

Other Benefits
If you're looking for a drawback to Hardie plank siding, Pittsburgh residents will have to go pretty far out of their way to find it. It is unappealing to bugs; insects won't eat it or make a home in it. It is very fire resistant, so it's a safe choice, too. It doesn't rot, degrade, split, dent, crack or bow. Plus, for those who are concerned about the high winter energy costs in Pittsburgh, Hardie plank siding is also a good insulator.

Installation
If there was a drawback to be found for putting Hardie board on your Pittsburgh home, it comes in the installation. Fiber cement siding, though not incredibly difficult to install, really requires a professional hand and a specialized skill set (along with a few special tools). Iron City folks like to get things done on their own, but in this case, the do-it-yourselfers out there are just going to have to take a back seat and let the pros take charge.

Fiber cement requires special attention when it is cut and shaped, as well as when it is installed. It can also take a bit longer to put up than vinyl or aluminum siding (Hardie board averages a little over two weeks to install, while the others can be done in about 2/3 the time).

Hardie Siding Prices
To cover your home with Hardie board siding, Pittsburgh residents should expect to pay a price similar to that of wood siding, which starts at around $6,000 and goes up from there. This makes fiber cement more expensive than aluminum or vinyl, but less costly than brick or stone. Hardie siding will add value to your home that is comparable to other common siding materials, but is less than that of brick. If you own a brick house, siding in general is a less desirable investment than restoring the brick to good condition.

Pittsburgh Cement Siding

Fiber cement siding is growing in popularity all over the country, and for good reason. It is extremely durable, looks great, and can hold up under many different conditions. An excellent choice for Pittsburgh, cement siding is well suited to high humidity, moisture rich environments. It is also resistant to many of the ailments that tend to affect other siding materials.

Benefits of Fiber Cement Siding
While no two households have the exact same needs, all properties in Pittsburgh undoubtedly have to deal with the great span of environmental conditions that area presents. Moisture is, in many capacities, a very harmful factor for a wide variety of building cladding materials. It causes significant damage to wood, can cause some metals to rust, and takes its toll on paint. Even vinyl and aluminum siding can breed moisture problems if water seeps underneath them.

Pittsburgh's combination of high moisture levels, hot summers, and wintertime freezes can really pose a threat to some materials. It is resistant to both m