Top-of-the-Line Trim

Mar 12, 2019

When it comes to exterior trim our priority is getting you the best for the money. We want to encourage you to run away from a company that has painted wood (pine) trim on their buildings. When water penetrates the paint on pine-based trim it will cause the trim to swell slightly and slowly but surely it will rot and fall off of your building. Three types of trim that we would recommend for your storage shed would be PVC (Azek brand), Fiber cement (James Hardie brand), or Engineered wood-fiber trim (LP SmartSide Trim)

Helmuth Builders has chosen to go with LP SmartSide Trim. Here’s why:

PVC trim tends to be much more expensive which would drive up the cost of our sheds. PVC trim may last longer than other products (as PVC should) but it won’t have the same amount of internal strength and you would probably find it sagging much quicker than other types of trim.

Fiber Cement is not a bad option. However, fiber cement is simply too heavy to use on our siding.  It is also very expensive and has a tendency to crack – thus we have chosen to avoid it.

That leaves us with LP SmartSide trim, an engineered wood-fiber trim. The short story is that we have found SmartSide trim to be durable internally and externally as well as water resistant. It look classy with a wood grained texture on the outside and we make sure to coat it with plenty of water proof paint barriers for added protection. If you want the long story, keep reading.

 

What is LP SmartSide? 

LP SmartSide trim and siding products are made with treated engineered wood. They give you the look of real wood without many of the problems commonly associated with untreated wood. LP’s zinc borate based smart guard treatment is infused into the wood for exceptional protection against fungal decay and termite damage. In fact. LP SmartSide products are so durable they’re backed by one of the best warranties in the industry. The LP SmartSide 5/50 year limited warranty. It offers a full five-year labor and material placement feature and a 50 year prorated warranty on the product. For complete warranty details visit www.lpsmartside.com.

 

Engineered to impress.

LP SmartSide products have been successfully used for over 20 years and it is easy to see why the brand is one of the fastest-growing brands of siding/trim materials in the United States. They have redefined traditional building materials with treated engineered wood products that are designed to offer game-changing durability, beauty and workability. LP is also a building industry leader in a category that is shaping the way homes, outdoor building structures and light commercial properties are being built. All LP® SmartSide® products are treated to the core through our proprietary SmartGuard® process. With four components of protection, the SmartGuard process adds strength and helps LP SmartSide products withstand impacts, freeze-thaw cycles, high humidity, fungal decay and more. See more about how LP SmartSide is made here.

 

 

LP® SmartSide® products are available in two similar types of engineered wood substrates to achieve distinctly different looks. Both strand and fiber substrates incorporate our proprietary SmartGuard® process to enhance strength and offer protection against termites and fungal decay. However, strand substrates are better suited to create deep wood-grain textures, and fiber substrates are ideal for smooth finishes. We at Helmuth Builders use the Strand substrate which gives our customers the natural wood-grain texture that is usually preferred.

 

Our trim comes to us pre-primed and ready for paint. We put two coats of paint on the three exposed sides of the trim. This means that all four sides of your trim are covered and weather tight.

 

Let’s Review.

Strand Substrate • Treated with the SmartGuard process • Best substrate for deep cedar-grain texture • Excellent resistance to warping, splitting and cupping • Offers superior impact resistance • LP’s 5/50 year limited warranty* Fiber Substrate • Treated with the SmartGuard process • Best substrate for a smooth finish • Excellent resistance to warping, splitting and cupping • Superb design versatility

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