Home Exterior Lap Siding Installation

Staple a layer of house wrap or roofing felt over the wall sheathing. Install rows, starting at the bottom edge of the wall and overlapping higher rows by a few inches. Staple this weather barrier in place with a pneumatic stapler, one staple every 12 inches. Use a string level and chalk line to mark a line along one inch up from the bottom of the foundation.

Cut a 2 -inch strip from the bottom of a plank of your siding material with the circular saw. Make enough of these pieces to fill the wall, side to side, in one row along the chalk line. Nail or screw this strip in place, with its bottom edge on the chalk line. Use one fastener every 12 inches, 1 1/2-inch roofing nails, or 1 5/8 treated deck screws work well. Use a hammer for nails and a drill for screws. Predrill holes for fasteners if you are installing concrete siding.

Measure the wall height at either corner from the foundation top to the eaves. Cut corner trim to fit. Use a circular saw with a blade appropriate for the material of your lap siding. Check with the maker for specifics. Nail or screw these pieces to the wall along both vertical edges, one fastener every eight inches. Cut end trim to fit along the top of the wall and install it under the eaves, with the open channel facing down, to catch the top of last row of siding.

Install the first full row of siding with its bottom edge flush with the bottom edge of this starter strip and its end tucked into the open channel along the side of the corner trim. Install your fasteners along the top edge, no closer than one inch from the top and no farther down than two inches. Use one fastener every 12 inches. Butt each piece up to the piece before, cutting the last piece to fit, so that it butts up to the piece before, with the far end tucked into the open channel on the corner trim.

Measure down from the top edge of the first row and use a chalk line to mark a line horizontally across the siding. Install the next row with its bottom on this line. Fasten it in the same way as the first row. Measure and cut pieces to fit around windows and doors with a jig saw. Continue adding full height rows of siding as far as possible. Measure and cut pieces to fill the top row so that they overlap the last full row and fit into the channel of the end trim. Nail through the face just under the end trim to fasten the last row in place.