A little construction advice please?

[Dave Bagwill]

I'm going to paint the cowboy barn, but I've got a lot of repair work and such to do first.

The pix attached show one small section of the barn, that gets all the weather and full sun for much of the day. I want to replace the wood around the windows.

I'd like advice on what kind/grade of wood to purchase, and the economical way to have it cut, etc. for me to haul it home and then cut it to size.

The current wood is 3/4" thick but I cannot tell what it is - it's very old, there is some dry rot, it needs to be replaced.

Any advice you can give will surely be welcomed. Thanks.

BTW - I will be painting the new wood a 'barn white' and the rest of the barn - surprise!! - 'barn red'.

[GlennH]

It's hard to tell from the picture, but that looks a little like a modified shiplap. Very nice material.

I'm familiar with a version of this "novelty siding" popular in the 1950s. It's excellent solid stuff and is still available. Usually you will find local pine, spruce or hemlock available; any of them would be fine to use where you are intending to paint the siding. Here's a pic illustrating a cross section. Credit is to Drum's Sawmill, in the url of the photo.



I think the easiest way to get your answer would be to remove a section of the siding and take it to a lumberyard or better yet, a local sawmill. Even if it is a bit different from the illustration, a local sawmill might be willing to mill you up a small quantity. You may be pleasantly surprised by the cost, as this would not require much in the way of setup. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[Dave Bagwill]

Thanks Glenn! Very interesting.

[ken cierp]

Try and get Western Red Cedar, Douglas Fir or Redwood all hold up to the weather better than spruce or pine.

The trim on the right in the pic above looks like Doug Fir to me.

[RexZim]

If you want to stay true to the building's roots I would go with what Ken suggests, however if you are looking for a product that won't look the same as what you've got now a few years down the road I would suggest you see if your local Lowe's or Home Depot has Hardiplank in the shiplap style. Hardiplank is a cement-based fiber board that is virtually impervious to rot and the like.

The problem you are likely going to encounter with the replacement of the shiplap is that there is very little consistency from one manufacturer to another in terms of the width of the plank and even the depth of the dado. I am currently working on a Habitat restoration project where each and every plank is virtually having to be custom made to fit the board that is next to it. If you are not replacing the whole section of shiplap that is a reason to NOT go with Hardiplank as cutting dadoes and the like in that stuff will wear out your blades quickly. If you do use Hardiplank make sure you use a good dust mask when you cut.

As far as transporting is concerned, I have Lowe's make a cut at a length to will work on my project and leave me a bit of slop. They charge nothing for that service and it allows you to buy 12 foot boards but only have to transport shorter lengths.

Hope that is somewhat helpful.

[Dave Bagwill]

Good stuff, thanks Rex!