How to Cedar Shingle an Addition to a House
Cedar shingles are a popular siding choice in many parts of the United States. To maintain consistency, if you've added onto a house with cedar shingle siding, you will likely want to also side the new construction in cedar shingles. Installing cedar shingles is relatively simple. You'll want to get shingles that match the dimensions of your existing siding. The addition to be sided should be wrapped in house wrap and then furring strips should be fastened over the framework of the structure. The shingles are individually affixed to the furring strips. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- House wrap
- Siding nails with plastic caps
- Hammer
- Utility knife
- Seam tape
- 1 inch by 4 inch furring strips
- Circular saw
- Corrosion-resistant nails
- Long, thick piece of lumber
- Pencil
- Chalk line
- Level
- Cedar shingles
Instructions
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Preparation
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1
Wrap the addition in a house wrap, such as Tyvek. Apply in overlapping courses starting from the base of the addition and working your way up. Overlap adjacent pieces by at least a wall stud's distance and overlap one course about 12 inches over the course below it. You can cut house wrap with a utility knife. Fasten the product to studs with siding nails fitted with plastic caps. Cover seams with seam tape.
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2
Make a story pole. Take a long, thin strip of wood and set it against your existing siding. Use a pencil to mark the base of each course of shingles. By referring directly to these marks you can maintain consistency when installing new material.
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3
Fasten furring strips to the house. Cut 1 inch by 4 inch boards to fit horizontally across the exterior walls. Refer to your story pole and fasten these furring strips above the exposed portion of each shingle course. Each shingle will be nailed in the area where the shingle course above will cover. This hides the nails and increases the overall water-resistance.
Installing the Shingles
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Fasten your first shingle course. Refer to your story pole, start at one side of the addition and work your way across. Use a level and chalk line to snap a line marking the base of the shingle course. Affix each shingle with 2 corrosion-resistant nails driven into the furring strip. The nails should be 3/4 inch from each edge of the shingle and about 1 inch above exposure line. Shingles are often tapered in thickness; make sure to install them with the thicker end pointed down.
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Leave about 1/8 inch between each shingle to allow for expansion. On your first course, install 2 layers of shingles, with the base line of the second layer falling about 1/2 inch below that of the first. Stagger the seams between the shingle layers. The lowest shingle course is the most susceptible to water damage and this double layer will increase water-resistance.
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Fasten your second course of shingles. Refer to the story pole to determine where the base of these shingles will fall. Stagger seams between shingle courses to increase water-resistance. Trim shingles to fit at the ends by slicing them with a sharp utility knife.
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Lace the corners. On the outside corners where 2 shingles meet, trim one shingle flush with the edge of the house and the adjoining shingle flush with the face of the shingle it meets. Alternate this pattern from one shingle course to the next to increase water-resistance.
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Tips & Warnings
To make things go quicker, after you've snapped a chalk guide line marking the base of each shingle course, tack a strip of wood across this line. Then you can simply rest the base of the shingle on the strip of wood while you fasten it in place.
Matching your new shingle siding to your existing siding can be tough. Washing your old siding with a wood cleaner can remove sun-grayed wood fiber and may help to match the color of the new product. Conversely, letting the new product age and be exposed to sunlight can weather it to match the old product. It may help to stain all the siding with a penetrating oil-based wood stain. This will also provide the shingles with additional water-resistance and protection from ultraviolet (UV) rays. Always test an out of the way area for color before applying stain.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit typical cape cod shingles image by Rob Hill from Fotolia.com
