Concrete Spalling Behind Siding

What causes spalling and how to prevent it.

Concrete spalling behind siding.

7 inch wide smooth lap siding primed about 1 50 per square foot picking the right siding for your house is a delicate balancing act between good looks durability maintenance and affordability. James hardie recommends that a slip sheet joint flashing is installed behind each butt joint in the siding. Editorial advisor mike guertin replies. This is a 6 wide piece of weather resistive material to make sure that no water gets through.

By the diy experts of the family handyman magazine get rid of concrete spalling by resurfacing the concrete if your driveway surface has spalling concrete the most likely cause is an installation mistake. Concrete spalling commonly known as concrete cancer is an eye sore and has the potential to be an extreme hazard. Over the course of a winter or over the course of years as the internal pressure rises and falls it stresses the surface layer of the concrete which leads to spalling. Spalling tends to be most common in cold climates when de icing chemicals are applied or when seasonal freeze thaw cycles damage the concrete.

Spalling that occurs in a concrete driveway or sidewalk typically happens because the weather changed during the hardening process or something else occurred to prevent the concrete from finishing its curing. 5 contractors might make the mistake of adding too much water but frankly most don t make mixing errors. The problem is called concrete spalling and here s how to fix it without replacing the entire driveway. You are right to be concerned about placing the new concrete step in direct contact with the fiber cement trim or most siding and trim materials for that matter.

Hardieplank lap exterior siding is engineered for climate and designed to hold up to the changing weather conditions in the environment where it is installed. Most contractors will remember to do this but some of them try to save a buck by cutting squares of building paper for. Spalling concrete can look like round or oval depressions along surfaces or joints. Spalling of concrete slab due to corrosion left untreated and exposed to the elements will cause extensive structural damage and may cause it to break away from the façade potentially injuring the public and damaging property.

Fire exposure due to which free water in concrete change to stem and create internal expansive pressure in concrete consequently spall off concrete. Concrete absorbs and holds water and most siding and trim materials including fiber cement aren t rated for contact with concrete.