Need some siding help

[ohsoloco]

Sometime in the next year or so I will have to put new siding on my house.  I'd really like to go with board and batten that I cut on the mill, but I've run into a problem I can't quite figure out.  Right now the original masonite siding is on the house, which isn't very thick.  By the time I put the 1" boards and then  the battens on the house I'll be out past the windows and doors.  

Question is, how can I "build out" the existing windows and doors to accomodate for the thicker siding?  I don't have a clue  :-/

[Timberwerks]

First strip off the old Masonite and then trim your windows and doors with 5/4 stock or thicker if needed. Do you have brickmould on your doors and windows now?

Dale

[florida]

Get the Masonite off.  You don't want to spend your time and money putting top quality siding over that stuff.  Masonite is real bad about absorbing water and rotting. Pull it off, invest in a roll of Tyvek housewrap and then install your siding. Your house will be more comfortable and you'll never have to do it again. You may have to replace your trim with 5/4 but you may as well do it right and do it once.

[ohsoloco]

Yeah, the masonite is definitely coming off.  It's already starting to rot (and there's a few holes too) where there was some water damage.  There was a leak where the vent goes through the roof.  That's another thing that bothers me, they have a 3" vent on the waste stack...I get lots of whiffs of my septic if the wind is just right     Isn't 1-1/2" adequate?

Right now the trim around the windows and doors is just some kind of moulding...should this come off, then put the thicker stuff in place of it?  I was planning on just using rough cut lumber for the trim as well.  I've never done anything like this, so any suggestions are appreciated.  

[Tom_Averwater]

The 3" stack is usually plumbing code. During the winter frost forms on the inside of the pipe from the warm moist air coming out. If it was smaller the pipe might freeze over and the stink would go into the house.  Tom

[Timberwerks]

Yes, go ahead and remove your present trim and replace with your rough sawn 5/4 stock. Be carefull removing the old trim so you don't split the jambs. Newer windows and doors have the brickmould applied with staples so that makes things a little trickier. If you doors and windows are older units they are most likely just faced nailed and the trim will pull off pretty easy. Start with a door or window in a less visable location to experiment with. This way if there is any damage while in the learning process it will be a less noticable repair when the job is completed.

Dale

[Keitho]

Definitely do not decrease the size of your plumbing vent pipe. If you do you may find a new array of problems to deal with. Your smell is probably coming from a downdraft on your roof which is bringing the smell of the septic with in to the ground area. Your plumbing vent should actually work like a chimney & draft up & out. Yours sounds like it is drafting up, out & down. Sometimes you can extend your plumbing vent a little higher & this may take the odor to another area outside where you may not notice it. Your downdraft is either coming from the wind dropping over some trees, cliffs or whatever & hitting your roof area & taking the septic smell to the ground with it or the wind is coming over your roof, following the pitch of your roof, curving downward & taking the septic smell to an area were that you use. Good luck with remedies.        

[Timberwerks]

One thing I forgot to mention. If your windows and doors are only held in place via the brickmould run a few nails into the jambs before removing the old moulding. Without actually being able to see the windows myself  I can't say for sure how they are installed. Two or three nails on each window jam side should do the trick and four to six nails down the door jambs. Pre drill before doing this so you can avoid splitting the jambs or bowing them. I'd use a  2 1/2" finish nail.

Dale

[Furby]

Unless they changed it in the last couple of years, around here code is 1 1/2" for vent. The warm air coming out WON'T let frost build up. Having to large of vent will allow the air to cool and frost a little bit.
You may want to ask around on the local code for your vent.

Get up on the roof and take a good smell of that vent. I bet it don't smell like you think it does. It sounds to me like either you or one of your neighbors has a bit of a leach field leak and that's what you smell when the wind is just right.

My 2 cents! ;)

[karl]

If your windows now have brickmould- it is already 1 1/8 to 1 1/4 thick. With the masonite gone you should have enough thickness for 1" boards- just bevel the ends of yur battens where they hit the casings.
Ditto on the vent DO NOT decrease the size. There are charcoal filters available that can take care of some of the odor, I'd try extending it first.

[pasbuild]

In my area the code reads nothing less then 3" for a plumbing vent were it goes through the roof.  What U don't want to do is reduce the pipe size and reduce the volume of air to the drainage system.

[ohsoloco]

Thanks for all the help so far    This is the only time I've ever seen a 3" plumbing vent, all the other ones in the area are no more than 1-1/2".  I was just wondering about this since all of my waste lines are the old ABS (most of the joints leak), and I have to replace it all anyway.  I'll check the code, or just leave the vent the way it is.

Furby, I took a good whiff of that vent when I put the cap on my flue    That is exactly what I'm smelling.  I can see the gas coming out of it on cold days, and it gets blown down where I can smell it.  The previous owner had an extension on the vent that was a couple feet long, but I pulled it off cuz it looked funny....it's going back on, better to look funny than smell funny  :D

This house was built around 1971, and the windows are the double hung type that you can't remove (with springs inside), and the screens and storm windows in the same unit.  I'm worried about the sill of the window...how do I extend this?  The siding already runs out to (and in some cases just covers up) the drip edge.  

I haven't torn any siding off yet, but I'm not sure what the sheathing situation is either.  From looking at the damaged part, I don't see any  :-/  So if I have to put sheathing up, this will increase the thickness by another 3/4 to 1" depending if I use boards or plywood.  Is sheathing enough to nail my boards to   ???  As you can tell, I'm very new to working on the outside of a house.  

[Timberwerks]

Your sill should be ok. If not you can add on an extension with treated lumber, construction adhesive and exterior deck screws. You shoud also have sheathing, I'd be very surprised if you don't. Then again I'm not familiar with your area and codes at that time. The ideal thing to do is nail your new siding through the sheathing and into a stud. If that isn't possible I suggest using a ring shanked nail if you can only fasten into sheathing. You local home center or library should also have books on hand to help you out.

Dale

[ohsoloco]

This place was built around the same time my parents built their house.  They're very similar ('cept mine's much smaller)...solid oak floors, masonite siding, electric baseboard heat, and on an' on...luckily my dad used copper and cast iron waste lines though  ;)  He said that on his house, the only place there's plywood sheathing is on the corners, and there's some black stuff (that's what he said) in between  ???  Not exactly sure what he's talkin' about.  But since I'll be running vertical siding, there will obviously be lots of places I can't hit a stud  :-/

[Timberwerks]

The black stuff is a fiber board. If you do not have blown in insulation you could pull it of and replace it with osb or cdx that is the same thickness. Pulling it off will be tedious because it likes to break off in small pieces. What you could also do is run horizantal nailers every 16" or 24". These would be 3/4" thick and 1 1/2"-2" wide and of solid wood. Before installing snap some lines on the fiber board and cut out a recess for your nailers. Be carefull and adjust your saw blade to just cut through the fiber board. The nailers should now sit flush with the sheathing or just a 1/4" above depending on you sheathing thickness. Having the horizntal nailers will give you great nailing area for vertical siding.

Dale

[ScottAR]

Black board,  impregnated sheathing, Celotex is a name brand.  

[ohsoloco]

Dale, thanks for all the help.  How about if I throw a siding party and y'all come over to help  ;)  Oh, wait, I still need to get the logs and mill the siding  :-/

[Timberwerks]

Good luck with your project. I have several lined up for here as well. First is converting the attic to an office for my wife. After that bathroom remodel. Then in the spring I will be building a new shop here. Looks like some busy times ahead for both of us.

Dale

[ohsoloco]

I also need to put a new roof on the house in the next year or so, and I hit a soft spot when I was up there a month ago  :(  Just sent about 700 bd. ft. of oak and walnut to the kiln yesterday.  I'd like to build some walnut furniture for the spare bedroom to make it my office/library.  As much as I'd love to make built-ins, ya never know when you'll need another bedroom  :D