On Thu, 09 Feb 2006 16:07:25 -0500, wrote:

Having gone through this with a house in Oregon, I would highly
recommend that you stay with genuine Hardie siding.
http://www.jameshardie.com/ They invented it, and are the largest
producer in the world. You are looking at a major expense. You don't
want to risk using an inferior product.

I did not realize they HardiPlank brand was that old. I know the fiber
cement products have been in use for over 100 years and was first
introduced in France. When/where did James Hardi start his company?

There is a lot of historical information on the website I mentioned
above. Here is an excerpt.

The predecessor of these modern companies was established more than
100 years ago, in 1888, when the enterprising young James Hardie left
his family's tannery business in Scotland and immigrated to Melbourne,
Australia, in search of new opportunities. Capitalizing on his
experience, James started business , importing oils and animal hide
tanning products.