HardiPlank and historic districts

The following is from Christopher C. Skelly, Director of Local Government Programs, Massachusetts Historical Commission:

Many local historic district commissions are receiving applications that include fiber cement siding.  Fiber cement siding is a substitute siding that attempts to replicate the texture and profile of wood clapboards or wood shingles.  Sold under trade names such as HardiPlank, it is a paintable product and the manufacturer claims rot resistance and high durability.  In many installations, fiber cement board siding can be considered a closer match than other products such as vinyl or aluminum. 

Concerns about fiber cement siding on historic properties and in historic areas or districts include the out of scale wood texturing on the surface, profiles and shadow lines that do not match traditional wood clapboards and a slight wave to the siding in some installations. 

According to the Secretary of the Interior Standards for Rehabilitation, fiber cement board siding should not be used as the texture is not the same as wood and the material is, quite simply, not wood. 

Secretary of the Interior Standards for Rehabilitation

6. Deteriorated historic features will be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature will match the old in design, color, texture, and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features will be substantiated by documentary and physical evidence.

All of the Secretary of the Interior Standards for Preserving, Rehabilitating, Restoring and Reconstructing can be found at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/standguide/. 

Do you have design guidelines for your local historic district?  Many Historic District Commissions will consider fiber cement products in the local historic district in limited circumstances.  On new construction, this product may be an appropriate option.

However, on historically significant properties, where wood clapboards or shingles are proposed for replacement with fiber cement board siding, local historic district commissions should exercise caution.  Here, it is best to replace unrepairable, deteriorated historic features with the same material. 

It is also best for a historic district commission to take a step back and determine whether the existing wood clapboards must be replaced.  Peeling paint, visible bare wood and limited cracks or rot are not necessarily a reason to remove all the clapboards and start over.  Replacing or repairing broken clapboards, addressing failing paint adhesion and properly preparing and painting a building can have excellent, long lasting results with only some minor paint maintenance needed here and there. 

While wood clapboards are not maintenance free, historic district commissions, homeowners and applicants should not consider fiber cement board siding maintenance free either. 

It is essential that estimates, advice and technical assistance regarding historically significant buildings come from qualified individuals, well experienced with historic buildings.

Christopher C. Skelly

Director of Local Government Programs

Massachusetts Historical Commission 

220 Morrissey Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125