Hi
Can Bunnings' fence paling be used to clad an old fibro house? I would not remove the fibro but clad directly onto it. Is there any reason why fence paling cannot be used?
Cheers, John
hi john, i undestand your way of thinking,i also look for cheaper methods when doing things.i think that fence palings may not be the best choice due to their length of 1800 to perhaps 2000mm,you will have a hell of a lot of joins and if the ends are not all sealed correctly you run the risk of them curling or splitting over time,and long term maintainence is going to be a killer.also over time think about all those nail holes ,a lot to fill or a lot to rust.i am guessing that you will stain or oil it to keep the natural wood look which in itself will be very high maintainence to keep it looking good as the years go by.sometimes what seems cheaper,works out a lot dearer in the long term.i also think you will have a few problems overlapping it like weather boards,perhaps a better alternative is pine tongue and groove cladding which isn't over expensive and comes i 6 metre lengths i think so it would be a lot easier to do,just a thought john.look forward to hearing how you get on ,cheers kel
Hi @Hansi,
Thanks for joining in the conversation on Workshop. I hope you get some great advice from community members for this project and many others in the future. I'm sure you will find there are plenty of community members like @kel who are more than happy to share their experience and knowledge. And you'll also find plenty of inspiration for new projects, too. A very warm welcome to you.
Jason
@Hansi,
We had another community member thinking something similar recently only they were wondering if they could use fence palings as a floor.
I wouldn't think its a good idea. Look at the average fence. They don't last too long. It's very cheap, low-quality wood that soon splits and warps. Best to stick to something that is intended for use as cladding.
If I was looking to clad my house, I'd be considering Hardie Scyon. It can look fantastic and I would imagine it would be very durable and low maintenance (the opposite of fence palings!). See http://www.jameshardie.com.au/scyon-advanced-cement-composite/ They have a gallery section on their website where you can see lots of examples of different uses.
BTW, any reason why you want to keep the fibro and clad on top of it?
Thanks very much Marty for your fast response! Yes, I can see what you mean and I guess as far as wood quality goes, you only get what you pay for. As I'm renovating the entire house, inside and out, I was looking for a cheap way to smarten the house up, most other cladding, even recycled, and the Hardy Scyon, are all too expensive. The reason that I would leave the fibro on is that (a) it contains asbestos (90% cement + 10% asbestos) which would cost a lot to have removed, and (b) I felt that with the cladding over the top of the fibro I would have two layers against the weather, etc. Plus, if water did eventually work its way past the cladding, the fibro would still be there to act as a 2nd barrier. Ideally, I would love to have the fibro removed and insulate before the cladding is put on (I have also considered cladding the house with tin, maybe colourbond, but again, too expensive), but as mentioned above, removing that old fibro is a nasty job... maybe I'll go on checking out the prices of various other types of cladding. It may end up that I will have to just paint the house... thanks again for your help, it's much appreciated, cheers, John
Hi Kel... many thanks for your response. As I'm renovating the entire house, inside and out, I was looking for a cheap way to smarten the house up, most other cladding, even recycled, and the Hardy Scyon, are all too expensive. I would leave the fibro on because (a) it contains asbestos (90% cement + 10% asbestos) which would cost a lot to have removed, and (b) I felt that with the cladding over the top of the fibro the cladding would be supported and I would have two layers against the weather, etc. Plus, if water did eventually work its way past the cladding, the fibro would still be there to act as a 2nd barrier. Ideally, I would love to have the fibro removed and insulate before the cladding is put on (I have also considered cladding the house with tin, maybe colourbond, but again, too expensive), but as mentioned above, removing that old fibro is a nasty job... using galvanised nails with a nail gun to attach the cladding should stop the rust, and I hadn't planned on sealing or painting the palings as I like the way they look and age. This is an old house on stumps with a tin roof, it has a lot of character and it's situated up in the Perth hills, so I thought the paling would suit it perfectly, not too neat and smooth as with the pine T&G... I guess that I need to check out prices a bit more before deciding. It may all end up with me having to just paint the house instead... it's a faded and peeling pale yellow at the moment and desperately needs some sort of facelift! Anyway, thanks again for your help, it's much appreciated... cheers, John
Are you able to share a photo of the house? I would think that if you are wanting a relatively cheap and easy way to improve the street appeal of the house then painting would be a great option. You might also be able to do simple things like window furnishings and some planting to make a big difference.
@2Belindas might give you some inspiration with their coastal cottage makeovers on the gallery. Here's a few links...
https://www.workshop.com.au/t5/Gallery/Before-and-After-Coastal-Cottage/cnc-p/5044
https://www.workshop.com.au/t5/Gallery/Before-and-After-House-Flip-north-coast-NSW/cns-p/5706
https://www.workshop.com.au/t5/Gallery/Changing-this-House-Colour-Resulted-in-a-Quick-Sale/cns-p/10462
Hi Isobel
Many thanks for your post. Yes, maybe painting the house will end up the easiest solution. There are 2 layers of paint on the house, unfortunately, the top coat is flaking in places and, where it's flaking it comes away easily but, where it's not flaking it's okay, which means that I have these patches that are different levels, if you follow what I mean... the original paint and then the yellow coat. I tried sanding down a small area but it still leaves visible indentations... that is, the difference between the thickness of the 2 coats. Maybe a thick coat of paint would cover those peeled-off areas, I'll have to check what suitable paints Bunnings has in store. I've attached a photo as requested... cheers, John
Thanks Stephen, yes, I think that I'll nip down to Bunnings and have a chat to see what paints they have... I hadn't thought of a textured paint, that sounds as if it would cover a lot of the blemishes, etc.!
Thanks again for your help, cheers, John
Great, let us know how you go @Hansi.
And apologies for the over-eager content filter last night. We try to ensure Workshop is a safe place for all, but it was a bit over zealous on that occasion. Fixed now. 🙂
Hello there
I have just started to clad a fibro house with fence palings. I am using well worn and used ones and careful to get ones that are nice and straight. They are suitably weathered and less likely to warp and bend. Yes they require filling in places with quality product and the gaps between can be filled with Selley's no more gaps in brown. They can be drilled and countersunk to stop them splitting and I've used stainless steel screws. It is still a work in progress as it is labour intensive but thats where the savings are. The wood should be treated with 3 coats of Feast Watson Woodshield oil which penetrates and protects the wood and then if wanted a coat of sating varnish. I have done one section flat with no lapping and am still contemplating lapping the remainder.
I would love to hear from someone as to whether it would be preferable to lap the palings which was how I found this website.
cheers
@cliknot22,
Welcome to Workshop. We're pleased that you found us and look forward to reading more about your projects and plans. I hope one of our helpful community members might be able to assist with your cladding question. Feel free to post whenever you need a hand or have something to share. It might be helpful if you could also post a few photos of your project.
Hi @cliknot22...
Can you tell me if, or what, precautions you are taking about dust from the fibro board? That's if it's the old fibro, of course. I wanted to clad our 1950s fibro house using fence paling but I was advised against nailing, or screwing, into the fibro because of the dust it would create if the fibro cracks. How are you attaching the boards, I would be really interested to know? I was thinking about liquid-nailing battons on the house and attaching the boards to the battons, but I think it might not be strong enough... somewhere there's going to have to be screws or nails used...
Would love to hear, or see some photos, about how you are fixing yours up...
Cheers, Hansi
Great post @TayaRoberts, many thanks for the reminder about the dangers of asbestos.
Grave health hazards are linked to asbestos, which may be in homes built up to 1990. Health hazards may result from exposure to lead-based paints in older materials and copper chromium arsenic (CCA) treated timber. For information on the dangers of asbestos, lead-based paint and CCA treated timber and tips for dealing with these materials, contact your local council’s Environmental Health Officer or click on the links contained on the Health and Safety section of the Bunnings website.
@TayaRoberts
Hi Taya, just thought I would let you know that if you wanted to share your "few handy tricks" you would have at least one avid and grateful reader, namely, ME.
I am really knocked out with your sense of style, I wish I had an ounce of that - is your talent trained or natural?
Hi @Hansi
It sounds like a similar project that was done on our home.
Asbestos sheet cladding external and then the same situation of not removing it.
In the end Colourbond was used as a very quick way to finish off and looks great.
Here is a picture.
All the best with your project.
Regards Rob 👍
Hi Rob
Thanks for your message...yes, the colourbond looks great! Can I just ask you how you attached it if you left the original asbestos in place? I've been trying to think of a way to do this without drilling or nailing. Gluing seems to be an obvious way but the old fibro on our house is very powdery and I fear sticking up pailing with liquid nails will not last. I would like to use tin but then I have the same problem of avoiding disturbing the fibro with nails or screws. I would be really interested to hear how you overcame this problem...
Hi @Hansi - I see you’re still trying to solve your problem. So, I’m assuming that your fibro is possible asbestos, and that’s the reason for avoiding sanding, nailing etc (and quite correctly). I understand your concern about using something like liquid nails, due to the condition of the fibro surface. I wonder whether there is a suitable sealer that could be painted over the surface - something like a sealer binder, which would stabilise the surface and give you a better surface to try a glue on. You might want to research potential adhesives and look beyond liquid nail type glues, towards some of the flexible polyurethane sealants or even silicon (which is an excellent glue). Anyway, I thought I’d just offer a different direction in the hope it might be useful for you, cheers Deb 🙂
Thanks very much for your comments Deb... yes, the house is fibro so it's %90 cement with %10 asbestos, which dates from 1953 so it's old and powdery and would crack very easily. Some sort of strengthening sealant would be good and possibly a more suitable glue other than liquid nails, but I'm still trying to think outside the box and come up with an alternative and ingenious method to attach the pailings, or possibly even tin... it's such a lovely house on the inside but, the outside... yuck!
Thanks again for your advice, it's much appreciated!
@Bundaboy
oh thank you so much! no formal training just love renovating, grew up with my parents renoing every house and my dad is a high end cabinet maker (so is my brother) and my uncle a builder so i have learnt a lot just from watching them and a whole lot more from trial and error I am a fashion designer (bridal gowns) so am an artistic person and was an arts student at school and would have loved to have done architecture or something along those lines also so its just a love i have
what tips and tricks where you after sorry its been a while since i logged on 🙂
That's great, learning by doing is a great way, but you also obviously have an "eye" for it.
Oh, you mentioned in your first message in this thread that you had developed some "handy tricks" regarding using fence palings for various projects.
@Bundaboyoh yes that's right
well the biggest tip i have that was learned the hard way was how much shrinkage is involved with fence pailings as they are sold as a wet product. buy the pailing plus excess you need about two months out from needing them and store them in a dry warm place spaced
out to dry out and acclimatize to your environment this will help stop gaps forming down the track
i have a few times left them outside over 6 months to pre weather to help in achieving a reclaimed look they grey off nicely over time and can be sanded back to give a multi tonal look for that reclaimed effect, another great way of doing this is to go to town with some old paint in varying colours then sand back this look s so good but a lot off work as the paint can be a real bugger to remove.. go lightly you will be surprised how much it adheres and how much sand paper and hours you will need to get it back to a rough reclaimed look
fence pailing look wicked as a cheaper alternative to the ship lap look you just space them out with a slight shadow line between each board then go back with gap filler to seal
i have used fence pailings for barn doors, outdoor lounge, house siding (in an alfresco indoor outdoor area) as an alternative to ship lap for interior cladding, to clad my outdoor kitchen (still on this project so no pics as yet) as feature wall and cabinet doors in our 'mancave' as bench tops on a display cabinet .. needless to say i love them haha with the right prep and finish they come up amazing i get asked about them all the time. sanded til smooth/filled/stained/sealed they are soo hardy and look amazing i will see if i can find the project pics i have mentioned above to show you below
used as wall cladding feature and stained japanese blackused as barn door in japanese blackwall cladding and benchtop in japanese black stainbarn door tv cabinet doors/benchtop and feature wall in mulit coloured paint and stain sanded back and sealedfeature wall in mulit coloured paint and stain sanded back and sealedout door lounge from exposed fence pailings and palletsfence pailing 'shiplap' feature wall paintedfence pailing 'shiplap' feature wall paintedfence pailing 'shiplap' feature roof panelfence pailing 'shiplap' feature wall painted (left side) alfresco dining area
we have completely gutted our entire place and started again (almost three years in the making) it was an 80's fibro house converted into two apartments top and bottom which we have returned into one house) but the light is at the end of the tunnel. the laundry and second bath are gutted and on the way back and then the kitchen and the inside is almost complete (bar the main bath but that will be the very last to be updated as its not to bad for the moment) so yes a LOT of work hahaha
so i use new treated pine boards any that get bows i straighten out with weights (we have a home gym with plenty of weights at my disposal haha)
those pics are only a drop in the ocean of the 26 rooms/outdoor areas either done or still to complete which included a bump out addition of a third lounge storage room and new laundry
I tried a small wall section of external fence palings last year, but as Taya mentioned - shrinkage was a problem.
Is that picture before or after said shrinkage? It certainly looks great to me there.
Hi there. This is my first time on Workshop & this post caught my eye. I have the same issue. Part of my house is fibro or board & the rest is cladding. I asked a builder (two, in fact) about this & the first said "clad over the top" & the second, who is admittedly devoted to building exteriors, explained, with the first builder, keen to listen, that the cladding used has a 30 year warranty. In order to ensure the warranty is met, the old fibro or board should be removed. This makes it more expensive but in the long run, should there by any issues such as leaking from a storm, the warranty is in place. I don't fully remember the name of the cladding we already have, but I think it was called Jacksons or Johnsons? Either way, I can get back to you with the name of the builder and any further advice.
Many thanks for joining in the discussion and sharing your experiences @melissa07. It's fantastic to have you as a Workshop member. We look forward to reading more about your projects and plans.
Feel free to post whenever you need a hand or have something to share. We trust that you'll receive loads of helpful information, advice and inspiration for projects around the house and garden from our amazing members, and look forward to your contributions.
Thanks again,
No you should not use palings as cladding. Palings are from cheaper, external cuts of wood
