Cedar Shingles FAQs
Q. Should I paint my shingles or leave them natural?Q. If I paint, what is the best and easiest way to accomplish that?
Q. What kind of nails or staples should I use?
Q. What do you put under shingles on roofs or sidewalls?
Q. Why are white cedar shingles superior to red cedar?
Q. How much should it cost to hire a professional to install my shingles?
Q. Should I paint my shingles or leave them natural?
It’s a great question. Here are some considerations. Painting or staining your shingles can help blend into or enhance an existing color scheme. Nobody can argue against the beauty of stained cedar siding. Still, keep in mind that for proper maintenance, it will need re-staining or repainting about every seven years.
Left as is, white cedar shingles age to a mellow, silver-gray patina, much like us. But even better than us, white cedar doesn’t warp, cup or crack with age.
Q. If I paint, what is the best and easiest way to accomplish that?
We recommend Cabot brand paints or stains, and for clear coatings, Sikkens. Coatings should be brushed into the wood grain, whether initially dipped, rolled, or sprayed.
Pre-staining and pre-painting shingles prior to installation is a time-consuming task. It’s best to take on small batches until you get a feel for the work involved.
If pre-staining, plan ahead to devise a drying rack. Clothes lines work well, with clothes-pins to pinch each shingle in place. Drying racks can also be made by gluing strips of rigid foam insulation to plywood backs, then notching them every 2” on an angle. Slip a shingle into each notch, like into teeth of a comb. Lean against a wall to dry.
Q. What kind of nails or staples should I use?
We recommend stainless steel nails and fasteners between 1-¼” and 2” long. Double-dipped galvanized are adequate, too, except in areas near salt water or in severe winds. Cheaper fasteners can lead to premature failure of your project. Inexpensive fasteners simply don’t hold up under stress, and nails that are not of the best quality will bleed a rust line down your beautiful shingle wall or roof. When it comes to fasteners, do not trade quality for some false bargain.
Fastening Tip: If you use air tools to fasten your shingles, avoid any countersinking of the nail or staple from excess air pressure.
Read more about fastener brands in our Shingle Installation Guide.
Q. What do you put under shingles on roofs or sidewalls?
The natural enemies of roofs include acts of God, bugs and mold. We can do our best to protect ourselves against the mighty winds with good fasteners and great shingles. But for bugs and mold, we favor furring strips and either heavy tar paper or our prefered moisture product, Driwall Rainscreen® by Keene. Keene also makes a great underlayment product for roofs, Driwall Complete Drained Roof Vent®. We sell both of these products; just add them to your shingle order. Read more about shingle underlayments in our Shingle Installation Guide.
Q. Why are white cedar shingles superior to red cedar?
There is a scientific explanation for the capacity of white cedar to be true to its strengths generation after generation. Think of it in terms of life force, or vibrancy. White cedar has it. Red cedar is fading.
The red cedar of legend--wonderful, strong and straight--exists today only in protected forests. The red cedar logged today is cut from third, fourth and fifth generation red cedar trees that (well, to put it gently) don’t quite have the strong, true, and noble characteristics of their ancestors.
White cedar, however, has the good genes to stay true to its old growth ancestry. In other words, third, fourth and fifth generation white cedar maintains the attributes of the original forests. View our Comparison Chart.
Q. How much should it cost to hire a professional to install my shingles?
Of course, labor costs vary in different parts of the country. If you hire out the work of siding or roofing your building with cedar, we recommend hiring someone experienced, especially for roofing.
A good way to put the price of installation in perspective is to remember that it takes about two to three hours of labor to install a square of cedar shingles.
Always get recommendations from friends or neighbors, and get several bids before hiring a professional. Check their references, their licensing and bonding.