Exterior cladding (facade) with gaps

[Queen15]

Hello

I have a good friend who is having problems with his facade. It's vertical paneling but it's very "thin," only 12 mm. A standard exterior panel is 22 mm according to my experience.

Anyway, the paneling has started to warp, creating a significant gap in many places between the outer board and the one underneath (it's a lock panel). You can see under the outer board, and the gap is probably a centimeter.

This can't be good, I think. Rainwater obviously gets in behind the panel.

I have never seen this phenomenon and think it's because the paneling is so thin. Sure, wood moves all the time but I haven't seen boards warp like this.

Would you buy a bunch of new boards of the same thin dimension, or buy 22 millimeter ones and replace the entire wall? It's mainly one side of the house (the south side) that has this problem. The other sides look great.

 

[ricebridge]

If there are gaps that big, it's probably time to take down the entire facade and make sure there are no moisture damages that you otherwise risk building in. Leakage has the annoying tendency that it never seems to appear where it has occurred and vice versa, if you know what I mean.

I agree that 12mm is on the thin side. You would have needed to screw it on so it sits properly, not nail it.

 

[stugfar]

Sounds undeniably thin... I would say thicker cover boards. It's not visible that the underlying ones are 12 mm. At the same time, I don't think there's any danger if a little water gets behind the cover boards. It's not a waterproof layer in the sense that water is prohibited. It depends, of course, on what's behind, but if it's an air gap and then something that the water just runs down on, then it's not a big deal if there are some gaps due to warping cover boards.

 

[Queen15]

Yes, it feels very thin and not so robust. Boards have also cracked. That can, of course, happen even with 22 mm but 12 mm must crack more easily.

I will suggest replacing the entire southern side of the house. The other sides have no problems at all, and it is certainly no coincidence that it's just the southern side. It would mean having a different panel on one side of the house, but that might be manageable...it's not justified to replace all the paneling when it's like new on the other sides. Possibly it has been replaced on the other sides? He hasn't owned the house for more than a few years and doesn't have all the history.

 

[stugfar]

Yes, the southern sides have a difficult existence. I would probably also have taken it one side at a time. Two in a million will see it. Surprises rarely tend to be benign but rather lead to more work and/or expenses.

A disadvantage due to gaping covers right now could be that it might become tempting insect hideouts behind the cover boards.

 

[fribygg]

Why not just help to drive in the nail if the friend is bothered by the gaping panel?

 

[tergo]

or buy 22 millimeters and replace the entire wall. It is mainly one side of the house (the south side) that has this problem. The other sides look great.

YES

 

[Queen15]

Yes, maybe it's possible to try hammering the nails in further. I thought the gaps were too large, but that's obviously the first thing to try. How silly of me not to think of that. They might have just "crept out" without it being visible on the outside 🙈

I also thought that the thin panel, only 12 mm, is at risk of cracking if you "force back" boards that have warped.

 

[ricebridge]

It's worth a try. Screw instead of nail, and it will hold better.

 

[fribygg]

It's worth a try. Screw instead of nail so it holds better.

Don't screw (unnecessarily) it's unnecessarily expensive and harder to hammer in if needed. If the facade were screwed and started to gap and crack, it would be much more difficult to fix than if it were typically attached with wire nails.

 

[ricebridge]

Don't screw (unnecessarily), it is unnecessarily expensive and harder to tap in if needed. If the facade were screwed and began to gap and crack, it would be significantly more difficult to fix than if it is fastened with thread nails as usual.

Yes, there we have different opinions and perhaps experiences.

The whole point of screwing is that it shouldn't creep out and consequently need to be tapped in. My experience with thread nails, however, is that they have a highly irritating habit of creeping out here and there in outdoor constructions, so I try to avoid nails as much as possible.

But that's for the TS to decide.

 

[fribygg]

Yes, we have different opinions and perhaps experiences.

The whole point of screwing is that it shouldn’t back out and consequently need to be hammered in. My experience with wire nails, however, is that they have a very annoying habit of backing out here and there in outdoor constructions, so I try to avoid nails as much as possible.

But that’s for TS to decide.

How do you deal with a screwed board on an oil-painted facade that needs to be replaced after say, 50 or 100 years? How do you remove the torx screw if you use such?
If you think about the slotted screw on a corner bracket on a window, you usually have to remove it with force, but who screws facades with slotted screws?

 

[ricebridge]

How do you think about a screwed board on an oil-painted facade that needs to be replaced after, say, 50 or 100 years, how do you get loose the Torx screw if you use that kind?
If you think of the slot screw on a corner brace on a window, you usually have to remove it with force, but who screws the facade with a slot screw?

Normally, you might not use screws, but in this case, it's not normal, is it? Here there is only half as thin a facade to attach to as usual, and it also has to be forced into place. Then it can be justified to use screws here and there.

However, I don't know where you got slot screws from. Torx or cross is what I use. Slot screws are a hassle.

The idea that something has always been done a certain way is not, in itself, a reason not to try doing it differently.

But as I said, we have different opinions on the matter, and now we have presented our respective arguments. Then it's up to TS to decide. For my part, I don't want to get into an eternal debate about screws or nails and sidetrack the thread, so I will end this part of the discussion on my side.

However, as I've said, I would use screws. Stainless ones.

 

[Queen15]

When we removed the panels that were in the worst condition, it turned out to be a type of panel I hadn't seen before. It is 22 mm "in the middle" but about 2 cm on each side is 12 mm. So the 12 mm part is the visible one. I now understand why the boards have such a tendency to warp so much.

This discovery made us not see the same "danger" with the gaps. Well, it's not pretty, but at least it’s not open behind as the thicker part covers it. It's hard to explain, and I haven't found any such panel when googling, so I don't know what it's called.

We replaced the worst boards, and the rest will stay. It was not possible to screw them in more; they have warped too much.

Thanks for all the tips and advice 😊

 

[tergo]

When we took off the planks that were the worst, it turned out to be a type of panel I hadn't seen before. It is 22 mm "in the middle" but about 2 cm on each side is 12 mm. So it's the 12 mm part that's visible. Now I understand why the boards have such a tendency to bend so much.

LB hus ?