Repairing Old Wood Siding

Repairing wood siding is integral to owning a home with wood siding.

Repairing old wood siding.

Carefully use a pry bar to remove the siding. Many people delay getting new wood siding when one or two boards are rotted out because it can be hard to match new materials to the wood species and the same look of the existing siding. First to help avoid any future insect damage back prime the cedar with oil based primer image 1. In most cases it s necessary to remove more than just the damaged wood to make the repair less obvious.

Water splashes up from the ground frequently soaking the vulnerable bottom edges. Here are the step by step procedures as discussed in our painting and stripping old wood siding overview page. How to repair wood siding. Score the calk on the edges as the ends split easily.

But without proper attention isolated areas can begin rotting in only a few years especially near the foundation. Before the siding can go up 1x4 starter strips of treated lumber should be nailed to the sill where the lower most course of siding will go up image 2. When hardboard siding is installed and maintained correctly it can hold up for 30 or 40 years. We used cedar siding to replace the rotted clapboards.

Instead you can size the replacement using the old clapboard as a template a simple technique that virtually guarantees a tight fit on the first try. Overlap the boards so each row of new siding has the same reveal as the old siding. The most important step of any wood siding repair is the final process of weatherproofing the repair area with paint or another type of sealant and caulk. That s because the end seams on wood lap siding are staggered across the wall and have to be made at wall stud locations.

Remove the old siding. Siding repair is best done with hand tools with one exception. Besides prying out the rotten wood you may need to cut adjacent boards back a stud or two in either direction. Power tools are out for this job.

To install the replacement siding start at the bottom and work your way up. Though wood siding is very strong a sufficient physical impact can split and crack it. Painting and repairing old wood siding step by step. If you have woodworking skills you can tackle small repairs by duplicating the way the siding is.

You can use a tape measure to mark the reveal of each piece of replacement siding or make a spacer gauge from two blocks of wood screwed together. Expert advice on how to repair and replace wood siding including how to fix holes repairing warped wood and replacing wood siding shingles and boards. However by waiting to replace the one or two rotten boards this problem can lead to more significant damage in time.