Bob meets Lance Olson of Louisiana Pacific as LP's Smartside lap siding is installed on a Mashpee house. SmartSide is a treated engineered wood siding made of medium density oriented strand board (MDO) with a textured face that is embossed during manufacture. It's rough, cedar-look texture is intended to mirror recent cladding trends as homebuilders have started to turn boards rough side out to give texture to the facade and also provide a better surface for paint. SmartSide is very affordable and cost effective at about one-half the cost of traditional wood siding. It is engineered for its look and durability, is treated with zinc borate to resist fungal growth and termites, and resin bonded for stability. The manufacturing essentially takes the wood, removes its defects such as knots and splits, then reassembles it as a stronger, more stable product. It is a uniform thickness throughout and comes in 16-foot lengths for quick installation. SmartSide comes with a seven-year total warranty and a 30-year transferable warranty for material and labor. It comes pre-primed from the factory for additional labor savings and has a full line of trim to complete the installation. This New England home is using classic trim designs for corners and windows, with a frieze that extends from the roof line to the window, and window casing on the sides that meet the frieze at the top.

Bob meets painting contractor Brian Giblin at the Florida cottage and discusses prep options on the badly weathered exterior wood siding.

Bob visits Two Harbors, MN where Charles Bradford, VP of manufacturing, takes him on a tour of the plant where Louisiana Pacific manufactures their Smart System brand of exterior trim products.

Here's a new concept in exterior trim work. Pre-engineered lumber has several key features that make it a practical option. It's pre-primed so that it cuts down on paint time. It's treated with EPA approved preservatives, giving it extra resistance to decay and insect damage. Because it's pre-engineered, there are no knotholes or imperfections, and it's easy to cut and drill.

The skin of the modular home is finished with windows from Pella. The Pella double-hung Architect Series six over one design was chosen for the project. The upper window is a simulated divided pane. The muntin bars on both sides of the double pane glass are adhered directly to the glass and additional muntin grills/dividers are installed between the two panes to give the appearance of six individual panes. Most of the modular home pieces will by delivered to the home site without siding, however one section is being sided with a board and batten product from Georgia-Pacific. It reflects an old design where large vertical boards were used to side a building then smaller boards were used to cover the gaps between these. In our application, instead of using vertical boards we are using four by eight sheets of engineered wood siding, which has a thirty-year warranty. Then battens are a product called PrimeTrim, also from Georgia Pacific, that are cut in half and used to simulate the traditional look. Both products come primed from the manufacturer.

Bob Vila tours the modular home project in the Berkshire Hills in Western Massachusetts. Bob reviews the exterior skin products on the house. Starting with the multi-textural roof composed of environmentally friendly composite shingle shakes from Enviroshake, and with center portions constructed from carbonized steel from Englert Roofing. The siding is a Cedar Valley Shingle�s two-by-eight Western Red Cedar shingle panels and a lightweight Cultured Stone treatment from Owens Corning on the lower portion of the home and chimney wrap. Completing the skin are the Pella double-hung Architect Series six-over-one windows and a board and batten look created with Georgia Pacific�s Catawba engineered wood siding. On the back of the home, ChoiceDek from Weyerhaeuser completes the home�s environmentally friendly eye pleasing exterior.

Bob discusses the basics of quality paint with Ron Hudas, product manager for the Bob Vila Signature Collection paint line. The paint being applied has a 20-year warranty, explains Hudas, because the quality of its materials and composition ensure a long service life. High-quality pigments and binders (acrylic latex, in this instance) ensure excellent adhesion, color retention, and breathability. Primer is applied first to seal the surface to be painted. Paint, notes Hudas, should not be applied directly to the wood siding. Applying primer first provides a strong base for the paint to adhere to, and allows it to properly protect and beautify the home's exterior. Paint, Hudas adds, should not penetrate the material but should sit on the surface. Another important element, according to Hudas, is the paint's ability to let moisture from inside the home out. This breathability ensures that moisture will not be trapped in the home's siding.

Bob is back at our urban townhouse. He walks down the side and points out the two-story rear porch that has been recovered with asphalt siding, which, though sturdy, is also ugly. Bob meets with Carlton Bergere who explains the installation of the new vinyl siding on top of the asphalt. First the corner posts are installed so that the siding can be slid in. Then a starter course is put on the wall so that level is maintained. A bottom course of siding is clipped onto the starter course. Wood siding is installed one clapboard at a time, but the vinyl siding goes up much faster since it comes in eight or ten inch widths of three or more clapboards depending on exposure. Vinyl has replaced aluminum siding because of its cheaper price point and its sturdiness. Unlike aluminum, vinyl siding does not dent and it is colored all the way through. The siding is hung for expansion and contraction. When a window transition occurs, the window is first caulked. Then, a j-channel is laid against the casing to receive the siding, which is trimmed to size. The vertical seams overlap so that weather does not penetrate, and the siding is laid in one direction so that the seams cannot be seen from the street.

Bob tours a home in Charleston, South Carolina, with restoration specialist Richard Marks and watches painter David Snyder scrape and sand old wood siding.

Here's another great tip from BobVila.com. It s a great idea to shop for green products. Fortunately, they re becoming easier to find. But don t forget to factor transport into the true cost of what you re buying. Every time a product has to be loaded onto a ship, truck, airplane or train to get to you, fuel is consumed and its carbon footprint gets bigger. If it has to go to Italy to be cut and polished, that stone countertop suddenly gets a lot more expensive for you and the environment even if it was quarried in the next county. Reclaimed wood siding is a great idea, especially if it was taken from a barn down the road. If it had to be shipped across the continent, though, you re better off using lumber that was harvested near you. Look for the stamp of the Forest Stewardship Council to be sure it was sustainably harvested. When it comes to cabinets, doors, hardware and decorative details, never underestimate the power of your local salvage yard. Invest a little paint stripper or brass polish, and you ve got an authentic piece of history that hasn t had to travel far to find a home. By the same token, before you junk that tattered old sofa, find out what your local upholsterer would charge to revive it. Most likely, it ll cost less than buying, packaging and transporting a new one. By employing services and retailers in your community, you re keeping money and jobs local and encouraging wise use of nearby natural resources. Find out more at BobVila.com: The ultimate home improvement web site! BobVila.com 2008