Rick from Grand Bend, Ontario writes: "I need advice on how to strap a block wall for board and batten. The wall is 10 ft. high, and I am wondering how many straps I will need?"Too few straps and the boards will warp, too many and you are wasting your energy and perhaps blocking ventilation behi...
There is probably no place in the world that gets tougher siding exposure than in Newfoundland and it may surprise you that wood clapboard siding is still the dominant siding on the Island. But it does require maintenance and occasional repair or replacement. Aiden Duff showed us how it is done...
All siding gets dirty, but cedar siding, often used in humid parts of the country, has more of a tendency than other siding to support the growth of mould and mildew. Unless it is really bad, cleaning is basically done in the same manner as for aluminium or vinyl siding, with much the same produ...
One of our viewers had left masking tape on the aluminum siding around a window far too long and it didn't want to come off without scraping, like you can see in the photo. Any oil, even vegetable oil, will serve to soften the old glue and allow removal, but the most efficient remover we fou...
Todd from Manuels NFLD looked under his siding and discovered that the nails holding the siding were rusting away.In very damp climates, like Canada's two coastal regions, walls tend to get wet, and stay wet. In other areas of the country, the climate gives them more of a chance to dry out. Tod...
This is actually a mechanical problem, not a staining problem. Microscopic particles of white pigment have flowed down the wall with the rain and lodged into the pores of the brick. Acid will not change their colour nor dislodge them. They have to be removed mechanically. Brushes tend to not ...
Robert from Riverview, N.B. writes:The problem relates to what appears to be mould or mildew on one exterior end of my house, showing up in what appears to be small black spots peeking through the white paint. I have been told that improper ventilation can contribute to such a situation if, i...
Yes, but maybe not good enough.Sheathing paper is designed to keep outside water and wind out of the walls but to let inside vapour breath out (like your skin does for your body). Over the years, manufacturers have made the traditional sheathing or building paper stronger, but at the same tim...
We talked on the phone with Al from Victoria, British Columbia who has streaks staining his wooden siding. He cleans them off, but they keep coming back.I think I can safely say that most stains come from too much moisture getting behind the siding and either pushing through the wood and ext...
The siding on a shed will potentially take more abuse than siding on a house -- the first couple of feet of the side of the house is usually concrete foundation, but the shed goes right down close to the ground, and gets hit upon by bicycles, shovels, lawnmowers and everything else that moves in ...
