Super durable poly-ash siding! Cedar killer?

Matt and Wade talk about this awesome product from Duration that is made from recycled material, mimics the look of wood, but has almost none of the downsides.

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[johnpapineau]

I put this on a new home 3 years ago, and mitered the outside corners….
Absolutely looks amazing!
The home is a real show piece…..
Not many crews will take the time to miter corners.

[WallStreetBeggar]

One of my biggest issue with Boral or Polyash products are that they are hard but brittle, and while I love it's crisp and sharp corners, they do chip easily. It's a decent options especially to match historical looks, but I does have a bit of downside.

They go through saw blades because it's like cutting an abrasive, the dust is a fine powder so you want to wear a mask (it taste like calcium powder, super bitter if you walk into a mist of dust on accident), and it does clog up dust collection if you use it. We have a lot of Victorian homes here, and we used Boral products a lot, and it's nice but it doesn't wear well because of the chipping and you can grind into it with your nails. I personally don't mind the cladding, I typically avoid using it for my outside corners. If you do, you have to condition your clients that it will not age well if you have a lot of foot traffic in the area.

You have flaws with cedar and redwood too, they're soft and no matter how you prime it you run the risk of tannin staining painted work. Pre-primed pine is just a cheap product that works and doesn't work. If you get hit with a lot of wind driven rain, pre-prime pine is just not a very weather resistive product regardless of priming.

Hardie is a bit more economical for lapped siding. Polyash is much nicer when it comes to squared channel, shiplap, v-groove, etc, there's just more options available for that kind of traditional look. Since our projects are painted, we typically use Hardie Trimboards for corners and trim and Polyash/Boral for the face. The Hardie tirmboards are are far more durable.

[creechmeister]

Cool stuff, but their beveled lap siding boards are quite literally 10x the price of hardie. Love the truExterior trim but the siding price is just insanity. 83 dollars a board was the quote I got in south louisiana for the beveled vs 8 for hardie in the exact same size. I can't quite justify spending 40k in materials when i could spend 3800 on hardie fiber cement.

[AdityaMehendale]

What are the drawbacks? No engineering discussion can be complete without an exhaustive list of drawbacks, so that the user can weigh their tradeoffs. E.g.:
- Cost?
- Fragility/brittleness?
- 2nd/3rd-source availability?
- What is the "Poly" in poly-ash? Does it affect -->
- Fire-resistance?
- Outgassing/ plasticizers?
- Recyclability?
- ease of repair?
- Breathability?
- What is the "Ash" in poly-ash? Does it affect -->
- Health hazards during construction?
- Staining? (resistance to-)
- Hazards during demolition?
- Hazards in event of fire?
- Mass & weight of the cladding?

I am wary of any exposition where only the positives are touted.

[axeldread]

Cool. Perfect timing as we consider siding the house.

[erinkennedy]

Boral use to make make these clapboards, they were great and very cheap at about 1.00lf. I believe duration is milling these clapboards out of Boral trim boards. I ended up milling my own. Saved about 10, 000 siding my house. took less than a day with a jig on the band saw and a power feed.

[hilux]

There’s pros and cons of every product, I’ve heard some people cursing the boral siding. Personally I kinda like real cedar. Slate is a great cladding material. And can never go wrong with brick houses.

[turboquartz]

i’ve used boral a lot. it has its benefits but some things to keep in mind. Keep it away from high traffic areas. it’s brittle and rubs scrapes moving items and scuffs digg into the material. I suggest not to use it on garage door trim, front door door trims and other areas similar. I found Azek or similar holds better in these areas and paints very well.

Also keep in mind painters charge more to paint it. It absorbs quite a bit and could require an additional coat.

[fattyfat-fat]

Herezz the thang!! In a wildfire prone area, like NW Montana, whatz needed is lotz of fireproofing. Siding included. What do you recommend to keep burning embers from burning a home down - especially over ICF? Cement board? By whom? Come on, give us some juice!! The climate is only going to get hotter, drier, and fires bigger!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[lhw]

Had to pull the SDS sheet to find out what this stuff is made of:
- Coal Fly Ash
- Fiberglass
- Polyurethane
Not exactly the ECO choice.

[freiahuk]

the spruce cladder we use here, easily lasts 80years when done correct, and the right maintenance, we have pretty high quality standars on wood materials in my country

[Ohio]

Matt. As always great info in the latest and greatest in our industry!. As you could imagine we listen to the build show driving between jobs. Suggestion. Please include price comparables. Why? It takes a lot of precious time to compare and contrast pricing. If you have the contractor right in front of you just ask him. I'm sure he has run the numbers. Thanks again. Happy Easter! Respectfully, Ken

[johndeggendorf]

I’ve used both Boral & cedar on my house. When Boral disappeared I switched to Cedar. It’s lighter, it doesn’t snap in half when one man carries it, you can therefore work faster, and it will last 100 years plus if maintained. Way less money!!! However, the Boral is FIREPROOF, which may be important for some people. ✌️🍷🎩🎩🎩

[djnusme]

I'm a big fan of Boral – it works great to match the look of wood without movement of PVC and it take paint great! What are you using for soffit vent with Boral? I'm trying to find a better product than the standard/chintzy aluminum strip venting.

[jeffreyfontenot]

Is this subject to reservoir siding code changes?

[shubinternet]

So, what s the fire resistance of this product versus Hardie fiber cement?

[WaltWW]

Cutting this product onsite just contaminates the soil around the house and the environment with micro plastics and heavy metals from the ash.

[noncorporeal]

This is Boral true exterior material milled.

[colbullsigh]

How does this product compare in ease of installation and in duration to HardyBoard or HardyPlank?

[jedsudweeks]

How does this product hold up to a gas grill next to a wall on a back deck? The "poly" part of the name seems to indicate some plastic content....Is it fire resistant like Hardie siding?