This is the look we were going for

Hi Chris! Good thing your builder gave you a heads up on the maintenance costs of real cedar siding. While it has some natural resistance to insects and weathering, it does require upkeep. Here's a link to a wood lookalike siding company which has a wide variety of products. http://www.woodtone.com/products/RusticSeries-family.htm

See what you think. I think you can order samples, too.

I would never recommend a vinyl siding product. But definitely a cement siding like Harrington recs above or something similar will be low maintenance if you can find the look you want.

What sort of scary maintenance did he mention? It will need to be repainted or stained over time, but cedar lasts a loooooong time (most of the cedar siding on my home is more than 100 years old and in very good condition) and I've never seen vinyl that didn't look like vinyl...

Since the cedar would be on some higher elevations any maintenance would be hard to do ourselves. I think that's why he is telling us to keep our options open to other materials.

Skip vinyl all day and everyday - never. Go with cement board siding - I put it up 10 years ago and the only thing I've don't is power wash the spider webs off at the end of the summer.

Oh and I forgot to mention, I had cedar siding - it was AWFUL. Perhaps what a they made 100 years ago was acceptable but mine had to be totally replaced after 30 years.

By the way, I went to the climate-shield website and the photo the other poster put up is real wood siding, it is NOT vinyl siding.

Here is the photo of the siding with the detailed note.

Ive never dealt with cement siding, what makes it so great compared to vinyl?

Chris, I knew nothing about it before I set out to replace my cedar siding. If you look in my idea book, you will see the before and after of my house including the cement board siding. My funniest story about cement board siding was my beautiful red head - the woodpecker who would start pounding on the side of my house for 3 months every spring at the first light. He did it ONCE after the cement board was installed and has never been back. So no more damage by birds, carpenter bees, wasps, etc.

Next, the maintenance is nothing compared to cedar or vinyl. My cement board doesn't grow mold like my neighbors vinyl, it doesn't get hail damage like my neighbors vinyl. My insurance rates on my. Homeowners are less than vinyl. I can paint cement board, can't change the color of vinyl easily or permanently. The life span of cement board over vinyl is double. Cement board can be pressed to look like wood siding that was painted. The thermal/energy efficiency is higher with cement board - if your state has energy credits you may qualify. And lastly, I don't work for a cement board company, i am in health care.

Forgot on other important consideration- your resale value. It is higher with cement board. Just check with your Realtor.

Use IPE siding never vinyl the IPE has that same look as cedar a lot less upkeep and the only material other than cedar that will give the look you want

That's nice stuff, Patricia. I had never seen it before.

OP, Vinyl isn't a good idea for many reasons. But the biggest issue is moisture, as it doesn't breath at all. We don't see it much in the PNW. But it is used in CA and we saw a lot of water/moisture damage issues because of it.

Chris O. Here are pictures of the cedar-look siding from that website I noted above. First one is classic horizontal siding, the second is classic board and batten siding. These are not wood, they are cement fiberboard. PS I'm not in the siding industry!

These are all wonderful suggestions. Does anyone know about costs for these alternative sidings (cement board, IPE siding) compared to purchasing grade A cedar? More $, less? Worried about the budget

I think IPE is comparable to clear cedar siding , IMO nothing looks like wood more than real wood .

Oh, I agree with Patricia that there's nothing like real wood. It's beautiful and once upon a time would have been the only choice.

Now, it's nice to have alternatives when budget or maintenance or even ecological concerns are a factor.

Chris, here's a (small) picture of that wood-like siding with grey on the rest of the house.

IPE is also called IRON wood because it doesn't burn, rot, or is subject to insect damage, etc. I have an IPE deck. One thing to consider about IPE is that it also doesn't take stain so it will turn a natural silver color over time. I have tried to oil it, but it simply washes off because the wood is so dense. The OP's are correct, nothing is as beautiful as wood, however, the maintenance of wood over cement board is greater. Plan on having someone having to treat the siding ever couple of years along with that expense. Since the siding is high up & not at eye level one of the alternatives may achieve the same thing without the headaches.

Great chart bellburmaggie! I'm saving that thing.

What makes it so great compared to vinyl? Cement siding looks a lot better. It would be my first choice if your budget allows.

Everything is great compared to vinyl, actually. Or did I already say that? ;)

@Chris O -- what did you end up going with and how do you like it?

Yeah, Chris O. Tell us how it came out and show us a picture!

Hello! At the end of the month we hit the one year mark on our home. We ended up going with grade B cedar and gray vinyl. These weren’t our first choices but it still looks beautiful. The black windows were a must have for me.

So striking Chris! I love the color blocking and the black window frames just make it! Good choice. The grade B cedar adds so much texture and animation to the siding. A good cedar choice. Aren't you glad that's all decided and done! Best Wishes!

Can you tell us which company you went with to provide the wood look siding you used_

Looks great! I'm looking for a similar look for our new construction and budget is a bid consideration. Can you tell us what companies the vinyl siding and cedar are from?

Renoga H, you can find Class B cedar siding in most lumberyards (not big box stores). You might want to take a look at bellburgmaggie's cost comparison chart above and some of the comments from people who have had vinyl to see if you really want it for your house. Unless you go straight to top of the line vinyl, and depending on your area's weather, it can be a problematic choice.

Thank you for your advice. I’m so torn on what to do for exterior. Some major unforeseen expenses hit us right before and at the start of construction and now I’m trying to budget accordingly. I live on the east coast, will vinyl exterior cause mold to grow in my interior walls? I thought most of America uses vinyl siding? I definitely don’t want issues down the road because I chose vinyl exterior! I saw the price comparison chart above but it’s from years ago, are those prices still about the same now?

My contractor said stucco will cost me about $10-11 square ft installed and vinyl will cost me $4 a sq ft installed. I’d love to do fiber cement if it’s within my budget. I got a quote for one that was $8 a square ft for material only. Can anyone recommend any brands that are good quality, look nice and budget friendly? The company listed in the post above carries a line that is too rustic looking for me. I want something more modern and clean looking.

Hello Chris, this is Tom out in CA. What color "Grey" did you use on your exterior? And did you go with the cedar planks, or are those some sort of composite/vinyl/cement cedar look-alike planks? I wish to do the same look, my cedar will be easily accessable no more that 4 ft above the ground in a horizontal placement with the gap between the board-look. Thanks, hope youre still monitoring this..