You need to approach the issue of cladding a wooden house carefully, having carefully planned and thought through the entire process at the stage of developing a private building project. This priority is due to the fact that not only the presentability of the facade, but also the resistance of the building to various external influences (temperature changes, humidity, wind and harsh solar radiation) will depend on the quality of the finishing.
How to sheathe the outside of a wooden house
Advantages and disadvantages of a wooden facade
pros
The following advantages of wood as a material for finishing a house can be highlighted:
- spectacular appearance;
- rich colors of wooden facades;
- environmental safety, as there are no aggressive resins and adhesives;
- strength and resistance to scratches and chips;
- reliability in fastening areas;
- long service life and a wide range of repair options.
Minuses
Wood cladding has the following disadvantages:
- under the influence of UV rays the facade fades;
- not resistant to high humidity and temperature changes;
- difficulties in maintenance and selection of cleaning products.
Typology of log houses: in the paw and in the bowl
We have many companies engaged in the construction of wooden houses, which have united the efforts of many professionals for this purpose. Each of them is ready to provide a whole catalog of houses made of logs of any type, whether cut “in a bowl” or “in a paw”, and it will cost very little.
This is not America or Western Europe, where an ordinary pine log is almost worth its weight in gold. We still make firewood from forests and very good ones...
As mentioned above, there are two types of log house designs: houses built “in a bowl” and “in a paw”. A house cut into pieces turns out to be more spacious and requires less material.
However, if you take into account such a factor as labor costs, savings do not work out, because to process this very “paw” you need a carpenter of a higher qualification.
Types of wood for facade finishing
For a wooden facade, the following types of wood are mainly used:
- oak;
- ash;
- pine;
- cherry;
- alder;
- cedar.
Any of the above options has positive and negative sides, shades and processing technology. If we talk about solid pine, it has bactericidal properties, but only oak can boast of high strength. If the beauty of the facade is important, then you should pay attention to cherry or alder.
Hand painted
For many, updating the façade is an opportunity to show their individuality. The exterior does not have to be boring and restrained. If your soul requires color, brightness and experimentation, it’s time to take up your brushes. As a source of inspiration you can use:
- National painting;
- Geometric and floral patterns;
- Abstract impressionist paintings, etc.
Facade lining
This is one of the most common options. Presented in the form of wooden panels that are inserted into each other using a tongue-and-groove fastening. Installation of the lining occurs very quickly, and the finishing itself is light in weight, so there is no need for additional strengthening of the foundation.
Clapboard facades have high ventilation, which creates a favorable microclimate. In addition, since the decoration looks stylish and modern.
White base
White color both indoors and on the facade looks neat and aesthetically pleasing. The building looks fresh, and the decoration is in harmony with the entire palette of surrounding shades. Often trims, doors, railings and other decorative elements are painted white.
Exteriors look interesting, where white is given not an auxiliary, but a leading role. This option is ideal for houses with few windows; it makes the space brighter and more comfortable.
Snow-white facades become especially harmonious in combination with contrasting dark tiles. Black window frames add style and originality.
Wooden siding on the facade
This is the finishing of wooden facades using panels of metal, vinyl and wood. This design guarantees good insulation and is also environmentally friendly. The main advantages of wood siding are high strength and long service life.
Installing siding is simple, as is repairing it in case of damage. But such cladding is difficult to maintain.
Attention! Every year, wooden panels must be treated with special preparations that protect the material from the influence of external factors, harmful insects and termites.
Dollhouse effect
If you want to add a little magic and spontaneity to the exterior, choose pink, soft blue or purple paint. White frames, platbands, support pillars, and railings will add even more doll-like quality.
Carved roof decorations and patterned balusters on the porch will add lightness. The updates will definitely appeal to its little inhabitants, and sometimes it’s useful for adults to be transported back to childhood.
Arrangement of a ventilated facade
Wooden buildings require high-quality thermal insulation. Since wood has the ability to “breathe” and also give and take away moisture, the best option for cladding is a wooden ventilated façade.
To arrange it, you need to take into account some nuances:
- Take care of additional insulation. Mineral wool thermal insulation material with a thickness of at least 10 cm is suitable.
- Before installation work, you will have to surround the surface of the walls with profile lathing. It will be the frame for the facing material.
- Fix a vapor barrier membrane over everything. It will become a powerful protection against external moisture.
- At the end, the entire structure must be covered with finishing, taking into account the ventilation gap.
Planken
Planken is a board planed on four sides. Its long edge can be straight (with or without a tongue-and-groove system) or beveled at an angle of 35-70º. This type of cladding board is used both inside and outside. It can be mounted vertically, horizontally or diagonally.
The raw material for the production of planken is pine, spruce, linden, beech, oak, etc. wood. The most durable board is made from larch, but this species is quite hard and therefore difficult to process. In addition, it is by no means cheap.
By the way, planken, in principle, costs more than conventional lining, mainly due to the high labor intensity of production. But these costs are recouped (at least partially) due to the fact that the board does not require mechanical post-processing. After covering, the front surface must be covered with a protective preparation (paint, oil wax or tinted antiseptic) and, in fact, that’s all.
Planken with a locking system is not suitable for cladding facades. Under the influence of atmospheric moisture, wood inevitably swells, and the tenons simply tear the grooves
The width of a standard lamella can be from 7 to 14 cm, and the maximum length reaches 6 m. As for thickness, there are only three options: 1, 1.5 or 2 cm. Obviously, the thickest board should be used for cladding facades.
Features of insulation under a wooden facade
When choosing a thermal insulation material, it is necessary to take into account the fact that pressure surges inside and outside the house lead to heat loss inside the building. Traditional insulation of a wooden facade is mineral wool, which has the following advantages:
- excellent sound and heat insulation;
- does not require auxiliary fixation;
- ease of installation.
No less popular is polystyrene foam. It is resistant to moisture and the influence of harmful microorganisms. The material is used to insulate buildings made of brick and concrete, but it is not suitable for wooden buildings, since it does not guarantee complete ventilation of the building.
You can also use wet cladding of the facade with plaster and mortars using reinforcing mesh. Most often, mineral and acrylic mixtures are used. But they have one significant disadvantage - poor vapor permeability. When choosing plaster, it is necessary to take into account the climatic conditions in a particular region of the country.
Basic requirements for cladding materials
The modern market of construction and finishing materials is able to offer a wide range of products of various types and price categories. Often a person who has recently decided to furnish his new home has many difficulties associated with the correct choice of cladding for a wooden house. Therefore, it is important to know the basic parameters that finishing materials must comply with.
- The cladding of the house must have low thermal conductivity. This will ensure heat retention in winter and prevent rapid increases in indoor temperatures in summer.
- To protect the insulating layers from the accumulation of condensation, the external finish must be vapor-tight. In addition, the sheathing material itself should not absorb or retain moisture; it must be completely moisture resistant.
House covered with siding imitating logs
- Fire resistance, heat resistance, resistance to temperature deformation and the influence of ultraviolet radiation. It is unacceptable to use cladding that can ignite, change shape or other physical characteristics under the influence of the above factors.
Block house: beautiful from the outside, comfortable from the inside
- Inertia. The substance from which the finishing elements are composed should not have a predisposition to enter into various chemical reactions.
- Finally, the material must be protected from microorganisms, insects and rodents.
How to decide on the material for cladding?
DIY facade painting
If moisture penetrates inside the wood, the fibers of the material will expand, and after drying, they will narrow. With such cyclicality, cracks will soon form.
Painting the facade will help preserve the original appearance of the wood. Paint for wooden facades can be of several types:
- oil;
- acrylic;
- alkyd-acrylate;
- varnishes and azures.
The correct choice of color is no less important, since the correctly selected shade not only gives the wood a beautiful appearance, but also protects it from the influence of external factors:
- Bright hues. Makes the material resistant to UV rays.
- Gray tones. They protect the wooden façade from yellowing and preserve the original newness of the coating.
Still lighter shades allow you to visually size the object. This is true when architectural design involves scale and grandeur.
With bright window frames
Windows are traditionally considered the eyes of the house.
Frames, shutters, and slopes give the facade a finished look and make it more neat. Traditionally, window frames are white, less often they leave a wood grain or are darkened. Painting the trims red, purple, yellow is a bold move, but very interesting. At a minimum, the facade will attract the eye.
Where to buy wooden facades?
If you don’t know where to buy wooden facades in Moscow, then you can visit the following construction stores:
- Avanti;
- Kalita;
- Archpanel.
In St. Petersburg, you can purchase finishing materials in the following stores:
- Decode;
- World Profile St. Petersburg;
- Tiss St. Petersburg.
A wooden facade has many advantages compared to its analogues. If installation is done correctly and all care recommendations are followed, the facade will perform all functions and will last for a long time.
Final result
The flexibility of the corners of vinyl and metal siding makes it easy to use these materials in the process of finishing obtuse and sharp corners of buildings. To cover an obtuse corner, the profile is pressed down, and when working with an acute corner, it is narrowed.
Internal corner
Installation and fastening of the H-profile, which is used for horizontal joining of sheathing elements, is similar to the process of installing corner strips. In this case, an important rule should be observed: the starting strips must be adjacent to the profile, and not vice versa. In addition, when covering with siding, you can do without the H-profile altogether if you arrange the strips overlapping.
The process of installing rows of siding panels occurs according to the following algorithm.
- The first strip is inserted into the grooves of the corner or H-profile, after which it is snapped into the starting lock.
- Fastening to the frame should be done using self-tapping screws exactly in the center of the nail holes. Remember that you cannot screw the siding tightly; you need to leave free space for thermal expansion.
- All subsequent tiers, except the top one, are mounted in the same way.
Siding panels are simply inserted into the H-profile maintaining a gap of 5-6 mm
At the final stage of wall cladding, the top plank is mounted, after which the distance from it to the lock of the penultimate tier is measured. Next, the finishing panel is bent so that its width corresponds to the measured distance, and inserted into the lock.
The process of external cladding with PVC panels is essentially similar to the installation of siding trim discussed above. It uses an identical system of locks and clutches, which may vary only slightly depending on the manufacturer of materials.
Let's hope that our instructions and tips for finishing wooden houses helped you clarify the understanding of the features of this process and made it easier to implement your plans and creative ideas.
Country style wood trim
To learn more about rustic wood façade finishing, check out this article! We also recommend reading about installing window siding strips.
Photos of new designs of wooden facades
Block house
This type of cladding can be recommended to those who want to give an unassuming “frame” the appearance of a real log house. The imitation is achieved thanks to the rounded shape of the front surface. When joined, such boards form a surface reminiscent of a log house wall.
One wide groove or several narrow ones can be cut on the back side of the block house. They are needed, firstly, to relieve the internal stresses of the wood, and secondly, to ventilate the space under the cladding.
The length of the board is from 1.5 to 6 m. The thickness “at the crest of the wave” varies from 2 to 4.5 cm, and the width from 9.6 to 19 cm. The impressive dimensions provide the block house with strength and durability. This type of cladding can last for decades. Of course, if it is made conscientiously.
The quality of a block house (as well as other lumber) is regulated by two standards - Russian GOST 8242-88 and European DIN 68126/86. But there is also a simplified market classification.
Grade "A"
should not have any defects other than healthy, fused knots and roughness on the underside of the lamella.
Variety "AB"
tolerates dark but well-adhering knots, as well as minor cracks and machining defects.
Grade "C"
- lumber of the lowest quality. In this case, both falling knots and deep cracks are acceptable. It is highly undesirable to use such a board for exterior decoration. In the difficult climate of central Russia, it will not last long.
Imitation of timber
We are talking about a board with chamfers beveled at an angle of 40º and a tongue-and-groove locking system. In fact, this is another type of lining, differing from its ancestor only in the shape of the edge and size. The thickness of the product varies from 1.8 to 4 cm, the width is 11-20 cm, and the length reaches 6 m.
Important!
For exterior decoration, you should choose the most massive imitation of timber - at least 2.5 cm thick and 15 cm wide. The length should be such that one lamella is enough for the entire wall. If the facade is long and 6 m is not enough, the joints that arise during the cladding process should be covered with wooden planks.
And this is not a matter of aesthetics. The fact is that the ends of the boards are most vulnerable to changes in temperature, humidity and other aggressive climatic phenomena. If they are not protected, the wood will quickly begin to dry out and crack. Imitation timber is made mainly from softwood boards - pine and spruce. Luxury cladding is made from larch wood
Budget renovation of a non-residential building
A few years ago, the building looked very deplorable: the owners took old furniture and abandoned building materials there.
After the family began to grow and expand, it was decided to transform the abandoned building into a home suitable for recreation and living. The owners performed all the work on their own. We started by replacing windows and painting, then erected partitions, dividing the area into 5 rooms.
The walls were leveled and primed, and covered with wallpaper. The owner lined one of the surfaces with gypsum tiles made by herself. The owners also replaced the wiring, updated the wood floors and painted the ceilings. The old furniture, which had been waiting in the wings for a long time, was restored.
They decided to replace the porch with a spacious terrace: the owner built it himself, as well as a table and bench. Now you can relax and gather for family gatherings inside. Now the dacha is a source of pride for the owners.
