I am building a modern home. The plan calls for rainscreen, Hardipanel cut to 4x3'4" and Fryreglet flashings. I became aware of Paperstone and Ecoclad exterior panels but the cost of $10-$15 psf is beyond me. Is there anything that falls pricewise between cement board and these exotics? I'd prefer an exterior that does not need to be painted.

From the Hardipanel installation instructions:

James Hardie products must be painted within 180

days for primed product and 90 days for unprimed.

100% acrylic topcoats are recommended.

 

Even if you are getting the prefinished stuff.  It will require painting eventually as it is warranted 15 years.  You may be gone from the place, but someone is going to have to paint it.

Brick or stone would provide less maintenance.

It cost that much for siding? I can get a nice brick veneer installed for ~$4/sq ft here in Arkansas. No paint required.

The breakdown for the brick veneer cost here is ~$420/1000 for King Size brick (4.80 bricks / sq ft) including delivery and ~$400/1000 to have them installed. That's $0.82/brick times 4.8 bricks/sq ft = $3.94/sq ft.

It costs that much for those two products. Either would be stunning and their green credentials are impressive. Hardipanel is only around $1.00 psf for the sheets + some unknown amount for flashings and installation.

Be careful with Hardi "Panel" as it can trap moisture between the framing and panel. Check the perm rating. If moisture gets behind the panel, it needs a way out and can cause rot/mold.

That's why the plans call out for rainscreen. It has channels in the fiber that wick the water to the bottom where it can escape. We use RainDrop behind our concrete log siding.

Hardipanel, fryreglet flashings, rainscreen strapping materials = $10,000 for 2,600 sq ft = $3.85 psf
Labour including pre-painting = $28,500 = $10.96 p s f
Total installed price = $38,500 = $14.81 psf

The price difference for more exotic panels seems relatively minor beside all of that expensive flashing and labour.

I looked a Hardipanel products and, after costing it out as above, ended up using Trespa over Vaproshield. Not cheap, but no painting.

jimchoff, how is Trespa mounted?

Have you considered Nichiha? That is what I plan to use. Our local lumberyard is a dealer. I believe it is a Japanese company, but the product is made in the USA.

The panels are a full 1/2 inch thick...really nice shadowline. You would think this would make for a heavier wall, but because the lap is less than with Hardi, is actually comes out less, and project cost is less. Check your local wind loads, though. The lap might need to be increased in areas of high wind.

http://www.nichiha.com/

Jelly, I am mounting it on SIP walls: -SIP's -Staple up Vaproshield Wallshield (I am using black) -Cover horizontal panel gap areas with 6" strips of Wallshield, applied with spray adhesive. -Vertical battens of 3'x3/4' ply wrapped with Wallshield and back stapled, then nailed. -Trespa panels screwed to battens with color matched SS Torx head screws. We are cutting these in a pattern that matches floor to ceiling windows at an entry area, so a number of horizontal cuts.- I am using a Festool pluge saw/guide rail system for cuts. A standard table saw will not do it.

You can actually use a product called Miracle Coat. It averages anywhere from $3.00 - $5.00 per sft. It is very hardy and you do not have to paint it. The different styles can be seen on their website.

Pics, jimchoff, we need to see pics! :)

I can post some pics of he constrution thus far. I am not mounting Trespa until late March, in the trim phase.

what about mgo board? cost less than cement board, also fireproof, termite proof and mould prood

We are trying avoid having an exposed screw on the surface of our boards; the only options I see are two:

Trespa recommends an aluminum substrate system but it is complicated and extremely expensive - the Trespa product is thicker than Hardie so they can screw it from the rear then attach it to the aluminum substrate system.
OR
Eastern Architectural Products offers a Fiber Cement Product that they say you can glue to a wood substrate with a glue (from 3M) - which doesn't offer to many options for removing it for any reason (repair or maintenance).

Is anyone else doing something different?

I did dri-design at over $30 a square foot installed, does that make you feel better?

If you dont want to paint, you need to look at metal but a two coat factory prefinish over a hardi or nichia should last for a long time.