Fiber cement for houses that are done with repainting, installed from Chestnut Hill across Newton, Brookline and Boston
James Hardie & Fiber Cement Siding Installation in Boston & Newton
We install James Hardie fiber cement siding on houses in Newton, Boston and the towns around them. HardiePlank, HardieShingle and HardiePanel go on with the gaps, flashing and fasteners the manufacturer calls for, so the boards shed water through a Boston winter. Call or text (857) 245-9588 and we will set up a free estimate.
- HardiePlank, HardieShingle and HardiePanel
- ColorPlus factory finish or primed for field paint
- Installed to the manufacturer's gap, flashing and fastener specs
- Old siding stripped, soft sheathing replaced, new housewrap under every board
- Estimates are free; we answer 8:00 AM – 9:00 PM, seven days a week
HardiePlank, HardieShingle or HardiePanel
HardiePlank is the lap siding most people mean by “Hardie board.” Smooth or wood-grain face, several exposures, so it can match the clapboard on a Newton colonial. HardieShingle comes as straight-edge or staggered-edge panels and gives a Cape-style house the cedar shingle look without cedar’s upkeep. HardiePanel is a flat sheet for board-and-batten gables or a modern addition. All three are Portland cement, sand and cellulose fiber: boards that do not rot, warp or feed insects.
ColorPlus finish or primed for paint
ColorPlus is a factory-baked finish applied before the board ships. The color is even across every board, and cut ends get a matching touch-up before they go on the wall. Primed boards get painted on the wall after installation, which makes sense when you want a color ColorPlus does not offer, or want siding and trim painted by the same crew.
Warranty and certification
The siding carries the manufacturer’s limited warranty. It assumes the boards go on the way the manufacturer specifies: gaps, clearances, flashing, fasteners. That is why the install details below matter more than the name on the box.
Fiber cement vs. vinyl vs. cedar
- Weight. A 12-foot HardiePlank weighs several times what a vinyl panel does. Two people set each board, and the wall needs solid sheathing to nail into.
- Cutting. Vinyl cuts with snips, cedar with any saw. Fiber cement needs shears or a dust-collecting saw, because the dust contains silica.
- Painting. Cedar needs paint every few years. Vinyl fades and cannot be refinished well. Fiber cement holds paint because it does not swell and shrink with moisture.
- Fire and rot. Fiber cement will not ignite and does not rot. Vinyl warps near a grill and hides rot in the sheathing. Cedar burns, and rots behind downspouts and under leaking windows.
- Cold. Vinyl shrinks in a January cold snap and cracks when ice hits it. Fiber cement stays put through freeze and thaw.
- What drives the cost. More labor than vinyl: weight, cutting, flashing, and painting if you choose primed boards. Tear-off, stories, corners, windows and new trim add hours. See how we build a siding estimate.
Install details: gaps, flashing, fasteners
A fiber cement wall is only as good as its flashing. The boards do not move once they are nailed, so every gap and every piece of flashing has to be right before the next course covers it. On every Hardie job we:
- Strip to the sheathing, replace soft sheathing, and hang new housewrap, taped and lapped over the window flashing.
- Keep the bottom course at least 6 inches above grade, and clear of decks, steps and roof shingles by the distance the manufacturer specifies, so snow and splashback cannot wick in.
- Leave the gap the manufacturer specifies where boards meet trim and corner boards, sealed with paintable sealant or covered by a flashing.
- Put joint flashing behind every butt joint, kickout flashing where a roof meets a wall, and Z-flashing over horizontal trim and HardiePanel joints.
- Blind-nail with hot-dipped galvanized or stainless nails, driven snug and not overdriven, so the heads sit under the next course.
- Seal every cut end with primer or ColorPlus touch-up before it goes on.
Gutters, fascia or a window on the same wall fall under our other exterior services.
Repair or replace?
Not every house with a few bad boards needs new siding. One rotted corner, a cracked board under a window, or a course the wind lifted is a siding repair. Replacement with fiber cement makes sense when rot keeps coming back in new places, when old clapboard will not hold another coat of paint, or when vinyl has cracked across whole walls. On the phone we tell you which one you have. See siding replacement, or, to keep the cedar, wood and cedar repair and painting.
How it works
- Text a photo or call. Send pictures of the house to (857) 245-9588. Then we measure every wall and check the sheathing and trim.
- Written estimate. Line by line: product, ColorPlus or primed and painted, housewrap, flashing, trim, tear-off and disposal. Free, no pressure to sign.
- Installation. Strip, repair sheathing, wrap, flash, side, caulk, touch up cut ends, paint if primed.
- Walk-through. We check every clearance and gap with you, haul away the debris, and hand over the manufacturer’s warranty paperwork.
Where we work
Our base is 115 Grove St in Chestnut Hill, the part of Newton that touches Brookline, and Hardie makes the most sense where painted clapboard has stopped holding paint: the pre-war colonials of Newton Centre and Waban, about 5–15 minutes from us, the two-families of Brookline, about 10 minutes, and West Roxbury, about 10–20 minutes, and the capes of Wellesley and Needham, about 15 minutes each. HardieShingle is the natural pick for those capes, while HardiePanel fits the additions and board-and-batten gables around Cambridge, about 20–25 minutes out, and Belmont, about 20–30 minutes. Every town we cover is listed with its drive time on the service area page; to price a Hardie re-side, get a free estimate online, or call or text (857) 245-9588.
Questions homeowners ask
Is James Hardie siding a good fit for a house in Newton or Boston?
Yes. It does not rot, burn or shrink in a cold snap, which covers wet springs, nor'easters and January ice. It is heavy and needs careful flashing, so the result depends on the crew more than on the brand.
Can you put fiber cement over my existing vinyl or clapboard?
No. HardiePlank is nailed into the sheathing and needs a flat, solid backing with fresh housewrap behind it. Old vinyl leaves J-channel and furring strips that would print through the new boards, and old clapboard can hide soft sheathing that only shows once it is off. We strip to the sheathing first, every time.
Should I choose ColorPlus or primed and painted?
ColorPlus gives an even factory color with a touch-up kit for cut ends and no painters on site. Primed boards let you match existing trim exactly or pick any color, and add a full exterior paint job as its own line in the estimate.
Does HardieShingle look like real cedar shingles?
Up close you can tell; from the sidewalk most people cannot. Staggered-edge panels copy hand-split shakes, straight-edge panels a sawn shingle wall. In a local historic district in Newton or Brookline, check with the town's historical commission before you order.
Does switching from clapboard to Hardie siding need a permit in Newton or Boston?
A full re-side in Boston goes under the city's building permit; Newton, Brookline and the other towns issue their own. On a house in a local historic district, a change from wood to fiber cement may need the commission's review, so bring a sample board and the color chip to them before the permit goes in.
Can you repair cracked Hardie siding?
Yes. A board cracked by a ladder or a branch comes out, new joint flashing goes behind it, and the new board goes in with touched-up ends. Single boards and small sections are part of our siding repair work, so you do not need a re-side to fix one wall.
Where we work
Based in Chestnut Hill, we cover Boston and the towns within about 30 miles. First-wave town pages:
Get a free estimate
Tell us what you see on the wall, or just leave a phone number and we will call back. Calls and texts: (857) 245-9588, also on WhatsApp. E-mail: [email protected].
Based at 115 Grove St, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467. Open 8:00 AM – 9:00 PM every day.