Im going to be siding this project with board and batten siding and am wondering if anyone has tips or advice about potential problems? I will be having a portable mill saw my own lumber so recommended thickness preference is appreciated The block is nudura 6in

If you are talking about the type of board and batten siding that runs vertically, will you have to install horizontal furring strips as nail anchors.  If so, are you concerned with trapping moisture with the horizontal furring strips?

Hello Peter, I'm assuming you will be using screws to attach. You might want to give this some thought. Fine thread (e.g. for steel) will not work well -- you are better off using something like deckmate - and if you use the 3 inch you can hit both the outer web at 1/2 below as well as the inner web section (depending on your board thickness). This will give you something exceeding about 2 times the axial pull out of a 2x4.

I don't have experience with the best thickness of sidiing so will leave that to someone else.

If you use nails to suppliment -- use ringshank nails. They work extremely well but I would use as a "in addition too the screws" because I don't know what the long term effect might be with temperatures flux. Regards.

Anyone else contemplatng board and batten siding might want to consider looking for an ICF product with a horizontal fastening strip to save the trouble of furring it out. They do exist.

You might want to consider using rust proof fasteners in order to avoid rust stains on the wood.  I have had good luck with Maze fasteners with cedar and cypress siding.

Which wood variety do you plan to use?  Cedar and cypress does well.  Do you plan to use a rain screen behind the siding?

Posted By TexasICF on 03 Jan 2011 07:03 PM
If you use nails to suppliment -- use ringshank nails. They work extremely well but I would use as a "in addition too the screws" because I don't know what the long term effect might be with temperatures flux. Regards.

In my one experience of ICF house building I concluded that spiral siding nails are better than ring shank. The rings on ring shank tend to get filled with the material they are passing through, effectively transforming them into quasi smooth shank nails. I used Hardi plank and in the test I did pulling a plank off of a block the spiral nail pulled through the plank long before it came loose out of the web. Ever tried to take a wood pallet apart? Nigh impossible. Pallet nails are spiral. I, and the builder working with me, had absolutely no hesitation in depending on the spiral nails only to hang the Hardiplank. I used BuildBlock ICF and drove the nail into the reinforced sections of the webs. Don't know how much better that was compared to going into the thin part of the web.

Posted By peterswet on 03 Jan 2011 06:52 PM
Im going to be siding this project with board and batten siding and am wondering if anyone has tips or advice about potential problems? I will be having a portable mill saw my own lumber so recommended thickness preference is appreciated The block is nudura 6in

Years ago, when I was still a teen I think, an old friend told me if you do board and batten nail both on one edge only, not both edges. The reason for this is to allow each, particularly the board, to shrink and expand with weather caused humidity changes and be much less likely to crack. How advisable this is I really don't know, but it has merit I believe and worth thinking about.

Alton:
I hadn't thought too much about moisture being trapped, Most B&B siding ive seen is rough surfaced and this leaves a
seam that should allow some air circulation , also Im counting on the small grooves every 2 inch in the nudura to allow some drainage.

I am going to be using spruce ,

Texas:

I hadnt thought about using longer screws to reach the inner web but that sounds like a good idea, I was wondering if the webs can carry the weight of the furring strips and 2 plys of 3/4 lumber . I am considering sawing it at 1/2 in but worry about warpage and checking

Peter