# fiber cement siding



## smeagol (May 13, 2008)

Do you always have to splice on a stud when blindnailing this product? Does the hardiboard brand come in 12'ers? Thanks


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## carpentershane (Feb 9, 2009)

hardiplank siding does indeed come in 12" pieces. And yes you do need to seam the sidind on a stud. They do market an aluminum off stud flashing that allows you to splice off the stud, although I have never used it. http://www.prosidingaccessories.com/cement-osj.html

A good siding practice is to use junction flashing behind butt joints in the field, you can make your own or order them from prosidingaccessories. 

Here is a link to the best installation practices for Hardiplank siding... It is broken down into regions. I also would encourage you to read the manufacturers installation instructions- it'll keep you out of trouble.

http://www.jameshardie.com/builder/bestPractices.shtml


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## carpentershane (Feb 9, 2009)

They are also a few tools that greatly aid in efficiency in the installation of fiber cement siding... One of them are siding reveal gauges http://www.sidingmastertool.com/ (some people snap lines for the tops of courses but this can get you in trouble as the width of the planks can vary.) Another is geckos which I use as a third and 4th hand http://www.hardwaresalesinc.com/Accessories/Shears/Gauges/PacTool-SA903-Gecko-Gauge-p4556133.html

The geckos are supposed to be used as a siding gauge but I have had alot better success using them to hold the siding piece up and using the siding master to set the reveal.


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## woodworkbykirk (Sep 17, 2008)

always strap over the studs and break the joints ther, however if you run into an odd length wall and you need to break a course where their isnt a stud you can just scab a 12" piece of straping on the wall

generally just use tyvek "dollar bills" simply cut a 8" length of the roll and cut squares that go behind the joint and lap just over the last course


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## smeagol (May 13, 2008)

thanks so much! Do you leave a 1/8" gap in the butt joint and caulk later?


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## carpentershane (Feb 9, 2009)

Hardie recommends a 1/8" gap from siding to trim, but no gap between butt joints. I worked for a company though that we took a 6d hand drive sider and gapped between butt joints though. As to caulking Hardie does not recommend the use of caulk on field joints. Because of this I use joint flashing behind the field joints, pin the corners of the abutting pieces (no shear, just aesthetics, it keeps the siding corners down and lined up) and caulk it with a 50 year elastomeric caulk.


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## nailkiller1 (Jan 15, 2009)

I do not even try to splice on the stud to brittle to nail that close to end
i splice anywhere I put a piece of tin behind about 6" wide
and high enough to go under above lap
I then caulk behind and between pieces
then I face nail joint thru tin leaving nail away from end a little 
between the nail through tin and caulk behind stays together nice
I have not seen any blind nailed joints stay together very well
hope this makes sense good luck


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## gman1985 (Oct 5, 2008)

for flashing you also can use roofing step flashing


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

these work great:thumbsup:


http://www.shop.bearcubproducts.com...3F9E03CCABC07D03BFB.qscstrfrnt03?productId=13


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## KennMacMoragh (Sep 16, 2008)

It installs basically the same as any siding, except that it's a pain to carry and it breaks easy. It should splice over a stud as with any siding, but if it doesn't it's not that big of a deal. If your splice misses, you can go inside and clinch the nails if you're worried.


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