During our 35 plus years in the remodeling industry, I have talked with thousands of people regarding their home remodeling projects. It seems like every time the conversation has revolved around two very important questions. The first question I hear is, “Will your product protect my home?” and the second is, “Will it look nice?” There can be no argument about this: James Hardie siding and trim protects homes from the elements, and it looks beautiful on all homes.
Siding is exposed to Mother Nature all day, every day, for years. Weather, water, time, fire and pests—all can lead to trouble. That’s why James Hardie’s hardworking products are engineered to stand up beautifully, whatever the elements.
So, how does properly installed James Hardie protect your home? Let us count the ways.
Bad weather can strike at any time. So, James Hardie tests their products to better withstand worst-case scenarios: tornadoes, UV rays, snowstorms, hail, and more. But it’s not only extremes that break down siding—the change of seasons does a number on materials such as vinyl (which may crack in the cold) and wood products (which expand and contract with changes in moisture and humidity). Only James Hardie products are Engineered for Climate®.
Due to its unique composition, James Hardie siding will protect your home for decades without a ton of maintenance, and without losing its luster. Hardie products are composed mainly of Portland cement, ground sand, cellulose fiber and water. This combination allows Hardie to resist the elements and give you years of satisfaction. The cement gives the products their strength and the cellulose fiber helps bind the cement together. Imagine putting a nail through concrete – it would crack eight different ways. But with Hardie’s proprietary process and superior materials, Hardie products are affixed with nails and will stay on your walls – no matter what.
Water can damage your home like nothing else can. It may be gradual, but it is relentless, and can cause siding to swell and crack, lose paint and lead to mold if not properly managed. As products move over time, wind-driven rain finds an easier path to penetrate your building envelope which, in turn, will cause moisture problems. Wood-based siding is particularly susceptible to this, as wood tends to expand, buckle, or crack when exposed to repeated cycles of precipitation and drying.
This is where James Hardie stands out from its competitors. Unlike plastic, metal and wood-based siding, Hardie has very little contraction and expansion. Industry experts rank James Hardie siding best in market for dimensional stability. High dimensional stability in a siding product protects your home as there is less chance of water intrusion due to loosening of individual siding panels or planks.
The property damage from windstorms and tornadoes can be staggering. Due to its impact resistance against hail and windblown debris, fiber-cement siding has been specified by hurricane-zone building codes for building homes in hurricane, tornado and wildfire-prone areas. The key to superior wind resistance does not just lie with the product, however. Proper nailing is vital to long-term performance. That is why it is so important to hire the right contractor.
Woodpeckers and termites (to a lesser extent in the north) are the scourge of many homeowners. Mother Nature’s creatures can wreak havoc on some types of siding, particularly wood and wood-composites. James Hardie siding products resists both these animal infestations with aplomb. We have seen a lot of siding work because woodpeckers had destroyed siding and were driving the homeowners’ cuckoo. Our standard joke at ProRANA is they are called woodpeckers – not fiber cement peckers.
Another added benefit to James Hardie is that it is non-combustible. No building material can guarantee a fireproof home, but having a non-combustible siding affords a lot more protection than plastic, wood or metal. Fire feasts on wood, and it melts vinyl almost instantly. But James Hardie siding will not ignite when exposed to a direct flame, nor will it contribute fuel to a fire. Plastic siding is especially problematic since it becomes toxic when it melts.
Because James Hardie products are non-combustible, many insurance companies offer a discount. We recommend sharing fiber-cement siding’s fire-resistance qualities with your insurance carrier.
A national study conducted annually by Remodeling magazine consistently names fiber cement siding as a top value in home improvement. We are excited to announce that for the 11th year in a row, fiber cement siding is ranked the #1 return on investment of any major exterior remodeling project, delivering a 77.6% ROI.
Real estate professionals will tell you that homes with the best curb appeal sell the fastest, ultimately saving you time and money. Additionally, since fiber cement siding is non-combustible and hail-damage resistant, it can sometimes help reduce home insurance premiums. Ask your agent.
After studying the long-term effects that different climates have on siding, James Hardie created the HardieZone® system, to ensure that you get the right product for your region.
In North Carolina we live in Hardiezone 10. Our region has extreme seasonal temperature variations and year-round precipitation. James Hardie’s HZ10 products are formulated with the highest quality raw materials and proprietary additives to reduce moisture intrusion and resist wet and freezing conditions. This helps prevent James Hardie siding from growing mold, shrinking, swelling and cracking.
James Hardie’s Engineered for Climate® siding and trim products can help you feel confident that you get the best long term performance for our region. Since James Hardie products are created to stand up to the demands of our specific climate, they will look great for years, saving you time and money.
James Hardie has many different product lines to choose from. Whether you live in a mid-century, modern, modified colonial, rambler, Victorian or Mansard style house, Hardie can help you retain the architect’s original vision or you can completely redesign the look of your home to fit your 21st century taste. Please view our siding gallery to get ideas for your home!
You literally have access to thousands of color combinations when you choose James Hardie for your home. Plastic has definite limitations when it comes to colors and metal manufacturers only make so many colors. With James Hardie, you can choose from one of 700 colors (in the Dream collection) and combined with trim choices, you can choose a combination that quite literally no one else in the country has.
James Hardie provides fiber cement products with ColorPlus Technology, a proprietary finish applied inside a controlled factory setting to help eliminate debris and optimize adhesion to give you a lower maintenance solution. This baked-on bond provides a more durable finish and uniform color than a field applied finish. Baked-on ColorPlus Technology has greater resistance to fading, chipping and cracking, meaning less maintenance for you.
James Hardie spends over $20 million dollars annually on research and development and on product innovation. Since 2013, HardiePlank® lap siding has been backed by the coveted Good Housekeeping Seal from the Good Housekeeping Research Institute. For over a century, the Good Housekeeping Seal has been a symbol for reliability that consumers trust when making big decisions, like choosing home siding.
The seal is a sought-after mark of quality and is granted only after a product’s rigorous evaluation. The engineers from the Good Housekeeping Research Institute evaluated HardiePlank lap siding for fade, weather, water, fire resistance and more using state of the art equipment. James Hardie has its own rigorous testing process, but it is always gratifying to get this seal of approval from a third party.
Real estate professionals will tell you that homes with the best curb appeal sell the fastest, ultimately saving you time and money. Additionally, since fiber cement siding is non-combustible and hail-damage resistant, it can sometimes help reduce home insurance premiums. Ask your agent.
For generations, James Hardie has labored to give their customers the very best siding products available on the market. Their unique formulation of the very best materials coupled with their commitment to quality and their focus on their environmental footprint gives you the best new siding product for your home.
That is why ProRANA has always exclusively installed James Hardie siding products. If you want the best products for your home installed by the a prefered James Hardie Installer, you have arrived at your destination.
With our home office centrally in Wake Forest North Carolina we efficiently provide services to the towns. If you live outside one of these towns just let us know.
