How To Nail Lap Siding
Simply go outside grab the lower edges of a siding course and try to slide it back and forth photo 1.
How to nail lap siding. Where possible the bottom of the board that is placed across the top of the windows should coincide with the window cap. For best aesthetics nail heads should be touched up to color match. For each method drive two 2 in 5 1 cm nails or screws straight through the board and into the center of each stud. Nail or screw the shiplap to the wall.
Pick out stainless steel or hot dipped galvanized nails size 6d 1 1 2 inch long siding nails and 2 inch long siding nails in the quantity you need for your project. Fasteners are hidden by the course above blind nailing nails are driven through the sheathing into the studs. If two boards meet at the same stud place the first piece halfway onto the stud and nail. On thick profiles of siding nails may be hidden meaning they are driven into the upper portion of a board so they are covered by the lower part of the board above it.
Cut and place boards to stagger cut ends from row to row. If the hardiplank is being installed on a building in a humid climate or near the ocean or any large body of water the stainless steel nails are the first choice. Bevel siding should be face nailed to studs with 1 1 4 inch penetration into solid wood using one nail per piece spaced at a maximum of 24 inches on center. For siding up to 6 inches wide use one nail one inch up from the lap.
Most lap siding is beveled meaning that the bottom edge is thicker than the top. You can do this using a hammer a compressed air nail gun or a screw gun. Face nail with two nails per piece for 8 inches patterns and wider keeping nails 2 1 2 to 3 inches apart to allow for dimensional movement without splitting. The problem should be easy to diagnose.
Start the next piece on the. Place nail just above the overlap. Learn how to nail hardieplank lap siding with this instructional video from james hardie. For this reason manufacturers design it to hang loosely on the nails rather than to be tightly nailed like wood siding.
1 blind nailing measurements keep nails 3 8 in. If you are using a pneumatic nail gun be sure that the pressure of the nail gun is set to sink the nails flush with the surface of the wood. Nails for blind nailing should be between 1 in. From ends of boards.
Vinyl siding tends to expand and contract considerably with temperature changes. From the top of the board. Allow a 1 8 inch expansion gap between pieces if the siding is air or kiln dried. As its name lap implies an upper siding board laps over the board below it by 1 to 2 inches.
Repeat until wall is complete.