Any recommendations for companies in the Cambridge/Newmarket area that fit plastic cladding? I know it's nasty stuff, but not as bad as what's currently on the house. I've had a look at some prices and it's quite cheap, but fitting it seems to be way beyond my minimal DIY skills.
TIA Robert
Don't know a fitter because I'm not in the area, but as far as it being "nasty stuff", I fitted plastic cladding to my first little house, sometime between
1970 - 1977 and it looks as good today as the day I fitted it and the house looks far better than the remainder in the terrace, which are painted and in various states of disrepair. I'm not though saying it's appropriate everywhere !Andy C
Just leave a bit of space for expansion gaps, and if it's the kind with pre-cut slots for nails then try to put the nails in the middle of the slots to allow a bit of movement.
Overlap panels by 2-3 inches so moisture doesn't get in.
For cutting the channel stuff around doors, windows etc. just cut so you end up with little tabs at eitch end of the top section which can be folded down over the sides, and cut the sides with tabs at the bottom which get folded under any lower horizontal run.
I fitted some to the timber gable wall of an attached garage last year. Fairly easy to do even with all the angles involved. Just cut & nailed in place.
I guess fitting to a house front would involve battens with the uPVC nailed to that. Wickes do a good ideas leaflet with useful information
Replacement depends on the condition of the wood - it's worth replacing if it's going to fall apart within the next few years, I reckon. It seems typical, at least on older builds, to leave the soffits and gutter boards just as painted wood rather than cladding those too - but there are exceptions and cladding material is sold designed for that purpose (at least this side of the Pond). Personally I like having them as wood, and I suppose that if they're sealed at the joints and the painting's kept up with they'll last for years.
Over here (timber-framed houses, mostly) there's normally a moisture barrier fitted between the cladding and the wood underneath - but I'm not sure if that's normal to install if putting cladding on a wooden frame over brick (yes, it'll protect the wood, but also seems expensive given that the brick itself keeps moisture out of the house anyway).
cheers
Jules
The stuff I used was like shiplap, in long lengths, not panels.
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