How to Design With Siding & Planks

Consider a board and batten design. Use 4-by-8-foot plywood panels, either with a smooth surface or a rough finish to resemble cedar, or rectangular wood planks available in a variety of attractive woods. Install these vertically, with 1-by-2-inch battens or covering boards over the seams between panels or planks. Get these styles in metal, vinyl or cement fiber if desired.

Choose a clapboard style, with horizontal planks overlapping from top to bottom, for a traditional look. This was a common design in America's early days. Use wood planks designed for this purpose or new cement fiber boards, which look and install like wood but are made of cement, sand, some kind of fiber and other additives. Metal or vinyl panels made to closely resemble clapboard are an alternative.

Vary the clapboard theme with some type of specialty siding, milled so each board looks as if it was actually two or more boards. Install these with a tongue-and-groove connection; one board's top fits into an opening in the bottom of the next board. Use these horizontally in most cases, but consider a vertical pattern for some purposes or to contrast with other siding elements like brick or stone. These specialty styles also are available in metal and vinyl.

Mix styles and materials for variety. Put vertical plywood board and batten on a second story over a porch or one-story addition, with horizontal clapboard on the ground floor. Vary this pattern by using board and batten for the ends of a house wall, with a clapboard insert in the center. Use a rough cedar plywood facing and a smooth clapboard for textural variety.