Hardie Plank siding Cedarmill vs Smooth - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

rhonda1077 · 02-22-2009, 02:07 AM

I have posted an exterior front and back photo if that helps - the front is currently hoarded up so that they can pour the veranda and steps - from which one can enjoy the frozen tundra LOL it is winter here in Alberta

It seems like the cedarmill wood grain Hardie is the most popular and I have only seen the sample box available in the cedarmill as well. Is there any particular reasons to install the smooth vs the wood grain from an installation perspective? Also architectually is there a reason to select one vs the other - the home is a walk out bungalow with a combination of seaside/cape cod and heritage or craftsman style.

The reason I say this is that the roof pitch is 8/12 with front and back gables having Hardie straight edge shingle and triangular gable braces and a covered front porch with white pillars, architecturals in the area require white shadow bands, window trims, garage doors and rounded columns, grills in upper parts of windows.

The color on the exterior will be the countryland red with autumn tan on the shakes. Any help with this would be appreciated - there is nothing on Hardie's site stating why or when to use one vs the other. Is one style used on Estate vs mid range homes more often? I noticed that the newer Artisan series of Hardie is all smooth finish. Thanks for any input.

John Bissell · 02-22-2009, 08:27 AM

I just installed the cedarmill on my house. If you could post a pic of the house it would help though.

rojigga · 02-22-2009, 02:07 PM

It is just a matter of personal preference. Either product installs the same and the overall finished product at 30'-40' away will look the same. Cedarmill is an attempt at looking like real wood. It might hide dirt a bit better too.

I did a house a little while ago in countrylane red cedarmill; looks pretty good.

rhonda1077 · 02-23-2009, 01:02 AM

Thanks John I just added the front and back photos to my post if you want to take a look, R

tomstruble · 02-23-2009, 08:23 AM

i find that the matte finish seems show minor surface scratches from moving the panel around during install more

rojigga · 02-23-2009, 10:00 PM

Wow that house looks like a walk in the park. Except maybe that gable-fest in the front.... but it's all cut-off. Nice

Out-Sider · 02-24-2009, 11:41 PM

I install HardiePlank on a lot of my jobs (in NW Washington) - and nearly all of them are the cedarmill. That is on a whole range of homes from small to large custom ones. The smooth siding ends up looking more like cedar on old homes that has several coats of paint on it and shows no woodgrain. I've found that the smooth seems to match up best on historic homes or homes wanting an "old" look. In my opinion, the smooth will show the seams a little more too.
I agree with the other comment though - from a distance they won't look different.