Are you in the middle of researching products and materials for your new home or renovation? Have you thought about your exterior cladding options?
Double brick is without a doubt the most common building method here in Perth but cladding should not be overlooked as a way to increase the aesthetics and appeal of your home. Cladding is lightweight, quick and easy to install, extremely durable for Australian conditions and elevates the character and appeal of your home in a way that simply can’t be achieved with a brick finish.
And the best thing about cladding… There is a wide range of styles and designs that can be applied in various ways to give your home a unique feel. Even the ideas we go through in this article in no means exhaustive of your exterior cladding options.
What exterior cladding options are available?
Before we begin to run through the design options and ways you can use cladding, let’s talk about the styles and types available on the market. We give a brief overview of all the house cladding available over in our blog here, but as a recap, anything material that is weather resistant and durable could arguably be used as cladding for your home.
Cladding materials can consist of timber, aluminium, steel and compressed cement sheeting. Even bricks are classed as cladding when applied as a veneer. When considering your exterior cladding options, any one of these materials could be taken into account.
However, the most common and widely used wall cladding used for home exteriors, excluding brick veneer, is weatherboard. And weatherboards are popular for good reason. Weatherboards are:
- Lightweight
- Quick to install
- Durable (perfect for Australian conditions)
- Low maintenance
- Cost-effective in comparison to double brick
- Available in a wide range of profiles and styles
- Can be painted any colour
- And provides a beautiful finish that gives your home character that can’t be achieved with brick.
Some weatherboard cladding options on the market today even boast a ‘better than zero carbon footprint’ and achieve GreenTag Platinum Certification. This means that the product is sustainably sourced and produced.
Weathertex is one of those options. Made from a combination of hardwood timber and paraffin wax, Weathertex contains no chemicals within the product, is long-wearing and looks amazing on the home.
Some other more specific cladding options that we use and recommend include:
BGC Innova – With options included pre-finished cladding and finish onsite products. BGC Innova has fibre cement cladding options that can produce a beautiful facade for your home.
NewTechWood – This is also a composite wood cladding. Ideal for those who want a wood finish. NewTechWood wall cladding is a fully finished product that requires no painting or oiling. Simply apply and you’re done.
And we can’t forget exterior cladding options produced by James Hardie, who offers up a wide range of designs, styles and profiles.
If you have a particular design aesthetic you want to achieve for your home, you’re bound to find a suitable solution in one of these products.
Weatherboard cladding styles and designs?
Now that we’ve gone over the options of cladding available, let’s talk about the designs and styles you can create from cladding. There are a lot.
Of course, most cladding options available can be installed either horizontally or vertically, so the way you install it can make a difference to the look and feel of your home. You can also install it horizontally and vertically on the same dwelling just to mix it up a little.
A great example of this is shown by James Hardie here on Houzz. Painting the cladding in different colours can also add to the appeal of the home.
Exterior house cladding also looks great when paired with other exterior materials. Adding a stacked stone or brick feature to the base of your exterior walls and cladding the top half can give your home a beach / Hamptons home feel, a heritage look or a traditional vibe depending on the colours and materials you choose.
Other features you add to the home’s exterior can also complement the cladding and elevate the style and feel. Adding fretwork to your verandahs, porches and balconies for example can completely change the look of your home. Choosing more ornate balustrading or opting for a more streamlined railing can make a difference.
And that’s the great thing about cladding. Not only is it highly adaptable on its own for creating a look for your home, but it can be incorporated with so many other materials to give your home a timeless style that is harder to achieve with brickwork alone.
What about cladding profiles? There are more than a few. Many of the cladding options available on the market come in an array of profiles that you can choose from. To give you an idea, Hardie Plank Weatherboard comes in both a smooth and wood grain texture. Primeline Weatherboard also comes in three different profiles.
And let’s not forget the endless choices when it comes to colours. Some cladding is already pre-finished in a particular colour or finish. The composite cladding from NewTechWood is an example of this, But there are plenty of options that allow you to paint them in the colour of your choosing.
We could talk all day about the benefits of cladding as an exterior option for your home, but we think you get it. The great thing about cladding is that it can work pretty much alongside all materials and look great. It’s highly flexible and adaptable, not to mention durable. You can’t overlook it when weighing up your options for a classic finish to the exterior of your home.
How to incorporate cladding into your renovation?
What about using cladding in a renovation? It’s definitely achievable. And an option that can not only change the look of your home but also save you money in the process.
Timber frame cladded renovations are ideal for when you are adding a second story or an addition to an existing home. Having a brick first floor and a cladded second floor works well to both cut down your costs for renovating and it adds interest to the exterior appeal of your home.
A timber framed cladded addition to your home can also complement the existing structure as well as provide you with extra space that’s constructed in less time.
Thinking more of changing the entire look of your home by cladding completely over your brick? This has become a popular renovation choice for Perth homeowners as a cost-effective way to modernise your home. The images below show a brick home that has been completely covered with cladding. You cannot even tell it hides brick underneath.
What exterior cladding options would you like in your home?
We can’t talk highly enough about the benefits of exterior house cladding and how amazing it can look when installed correctly. Whether you are building a new custom home or renovating an existing home. Why not consider your exterior cladding options and think about incorporating some of the cladding we’ve gone over in this article?
As Perth’s leading timber frame and cladding home specialists. We can walk you through your exterior cladding options and talk about how we can produce a beautiful unique cladded home for you on your budget.
Give Brendan and the Blue Strike team a call today and let’s go over the details.
