On May 8, 9:05*am, KC wrote:
On May 7, 3:50*pm, wrote:



My house has plywood siding. *It's that reverse board and batten look
stuff in 4x8 sheets. *One of the problems it has is that on an
addition it was run all the way down to the ground. *Unsurprisingly,
the siding wicked water over the years and is rotting and falling
apart along the ground line.

I've dug out the dirt and cleared away the foundation in these areas.
Now I need to repair it. *I could replace every siding panel, but that
would be a lot of work and expense. *What I was thinking instead was
to cut off the bottom 12" of the siding with my circ saw. *Then stick
some z-flashing up there, nail it in through the siding panels, and
then stick a piece of 5/8" 1x12 hardiboard (or equivalent) under the
flashing.

Does this sound like a reasonable plan? *Should I be caulking any of
these joints? *I was thinking it at least makes sense to try and caulk
along the back bottom of the hardiboard where it meets the slab so
that space is as closed up as possible. *This way I replace the rotten
stuff, and put back in place something that won't rot.

Thanks for considering my plan.

Oh, to cut the siding off I figured I'd nail a 2x4 to the wall to act
as a guide for my circ saw. *Other ideas welcome.

No, you need to rethink your plan. *Hardiboard wicks water also and
cannot be installed within 4" of ground or any horizontal surface.
Think PVC lumber instead. *But there again PVC is 3/4" and your
existing paneling is probably narrower than that. *As far as I can
find they do not make z-flashing to fit over 3/4" boards so you will
have to find someone with a metal brake to custom bend you some z-
flashing.

Interesting. I didn't realize hardiboard would wick water. There's
no way I can get 4" above the ground with anything unless I dig out
half my backyard (right now there are areas where it's about 1" at
best).

I had considered PVC but didn't find any that was 5/8" as you
suspected. If I went with 3/4" PVC could I just caulk where it meets
the siding instead of using a flashing? Also, I presume the
hardiboard would last a lot longer than the plywood siding did, right?