Installation of basement siding do it yourself
When facing the facades of private residential buildings, special attention should be paid to their basement, the decoration of which is used not only for decorative purposes, but also helps protect the walls of the building from mechanical damage. In this case, as a finishing material most often used special facade panels, which builders call the basement siding.
Immediately make a reservation that the installation of basement siding with their own hands can make anyone who is familiar with the basics of finishing work. In the domestic market, this material is represented by vinyl or plastic panels, stylized as a natural (rubble) stone, brick or wood.
The undoubted advantages of the siding panels we are considering include:
- use in their manufacture of the most modern technologies and materials;
- convenience of work with differing ease and simplicity of installation by material;
- attractive appearance of the cladding, providing also the effective protection of the basement of the building from mechanical damage.
Note also that this material does not need care; at the same time, its service life is quite long (at least 50 years).
Preparatory activities
To determine the amount of material needed to finish the basement of the building, it is necessary to make measurements of the total length of the walls on which the panels are supposed to be fixed. In this case, an amendment should be made to possible defects and wastes generated during the fitting of the material at the place of its attachment (they usually do not exceed 10%).
When choosing a decorative pattern panels should be guided only by personal taste. If you wish to adhere to the classical style, preference should be given to panels with a pattern imitating natural stone. Such material looks quite modern and fits well with the surrounding landscape.
Before attaching the basement siding to the facade of the building, it is necessary to properly prepare the walls for finishing, which, as a rule, boils down to removing all the irregularities on them. In the case when the alignment of the surface of the walls is associated with high costs - it would be wiser to use a special batten for fixing the panels.
Arrangement of crates
The crate used for fixing siding can be made from either metal profiles or wooden bars mounted on the walls of the building either vertically or horizontally (if the siding is mounted vertically).
In that case, if wooden crate is used for installing siding sheets, the bars will need to be pre-treated with special protective compounds (antiseptics and fire retardants). In addition, attention should be paid to the uniformity and flatness of the faces of the used block blanks.
The type of fastening of profiles or battens of the batten (vertical or horizontal) is selected depending on the task set before you. If siding blanks are used for cladding the entire surface of the facade - it will be more convenient to work with a vertical crate. When closing only the basement of the building (without regard to the rest of its area) it is recommended to use a horizontal mount.
A characteristic parameter of the prepared frame is the “pitch” of the batten, determined by the distance between its neighboring elements. In any performance, this indicator should be equal to half the length of the used siding blanks.
Installation of panels
Facing work begins with fixing the starting plate, which is installed around the perimeter of the building strictly horizontally. For its proper placement it will be necessary to use the construction level of one type or another.
To fix the strips on the crate, special dowels or self-tapping screws are used with a length of at least 10 cm, located exactly in the middle of the mounting hole. When screwing in fasteners, try not to tighten them all the way, but leave a small gap (about 1 mm), which provides for possible thermal expansion of the material.
Since the basement line is quite often uneven - the panels mounted on it will need to be adjusted (trimmed) so that all the following rows are strictly horizontal. When using a variable height plinth, the start plate is usually not installed, and the panels themselves are fixed directly to the crate. A special masking profile is used to close the edge of the trimmed part of the siding sheet.
According to the installation instructions for siding panels, immediately after fixing the starter rail, you can proceed to the installation of corner cladding elements.
Installation of a solid coating begins, as a rule, from the left corner of the building and is carried out in the following sequence:
- First, the first siding blank is installed on the starting rail, after which it retracts into the left groove of the already fixed corner element.
- After checking for horizontal position, the installed panel is fixed on the crate with the help of special fastening elements included in the finishing set.
- All subsequent siding sheet blanks are installed in exactly the same way.
- The finish plate is mounted on the crate immediately before mounting the last row of panels.
In conclusion, we once again note that the strict adherence to all recommendations given in our article, as well as a careful study of the video accompanying them, will make it possible to give the facade of a newly constructed or updated structure a completely modern and attractive look. In addition, the use of cladding siding will protect the basement of your home from mechanical damage.
Video
Detailed visual instructions on the technology of installation of basement siding can be studied by watching the video:
A photo
