# Rough sawn oak on cabin w/no battens?



## JohnP (Sep 1, 2010)

I've got a bunch of rough sawn oak and trying to figure out how best to use it on our cabin. Cabin is sheathed in plywood right now. The oak is all different widths ranging from 4-8". 

I've seen houses/cabins wrapped in boards, rough sawn or otherwise with no battens. Question is. What do they put behind it. Something has to keep the wind and rain out and most buildings are studded vertically but most I've seen are sheathed vertically also. So I'm guessing it's sheathed in plywood and then the boards. Tar paper in between to shed water. Seems like moisture would still linger on the back of boards making them rot prematurely. Maybe they're reversed and the battens go on first? Does oak just last so long so that no one worries about moisture lingering where boards are lapped? 

Horizontal nailers with tar paper over?


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## 7thswan (Nov 18, 2008)

Tyveck, housewrap.


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## nc_mtn (Nov 24, 2007)

I've seen it done with tar/felt paper (like for roofing) on the plywood, then the oak nailed on top. How green is the oak? The greener they are, the more they'll shrink. You could always coat the backside of the boards with some paint/stain to keep moisture from soaking in if you wanted. But only if it's been air dried well, or however you want to dry it. 

Oak will last a while, especially if you coated it (even a clear stain if you wanted to keep the "natural" look). The key would be to keep running water off. If you have water that leaks from the gutter, and is pouring down the side, then you'll have issues.


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## JohnP (Sep 1, 2010)

Problem with house wrap is it's white (at least any I've seen, plus printing) and would be seen between the boards.
This is used oak from an old rough sawn framed stick built house so probably no worries on shrinkage. I would do board n batten if I had lots of wide boards but I don't.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

7thswan said:


> Tyveck, housewrap.


Avoid Tyvek....it's junk.

I used it under board & batten white pine, and removing the siding years later, found the house wrap had fallen to pieces.

Use 30# tar paper. I've removed siding from 100 year old houses, and it looks like the day it went up.


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## wharton (Oct 9, 2011)

TnAndy said:


> Avoid Tyvek....it's junk.
> 
> I used it under board & batten white pine, and removing the siding years later, found the house wrap had fallen to pieces.
> 
> Use 30# tar paper. I've removed siding from 100 year old houses, and it looks like the day it went up.


 Just curious, are you sure that it was Tyvek brand wrap? I use it all the time, and have seen it exposed, after pulling siding, on homes from the eighties, and it looks good. the reason I ask about the specific brand is that there are a bunch of generic, or low priced imitators that I wouldn't nail on an outhouse, if I got it the stuff for free. There are all kind of "micro-perforated" and woven plastic plastic wraps that are junk, don't breathe, and rot apart. As for tarpaper, you are correct, it will last a long time. The issue is that it is now pretty brittle. and doesn't fold like the older stuff did. I have seen cases where it cracks at corners, allows water in, and really rots the corner framing quickly, and severely.


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## TNHermit (Jul 14, 2005)

If you use Bituthane under the oak at the breaks you shouldn't have any problems. Put it up in 6-8 strips. then nail the edge. Watch so you get the grain right so when it dries it will pull away in the center. Other wise it will pull away on the edge. 1x8 would be about as wide as i would go. Also you should use white oak if you can. Red is porous and will rot from behind. White oak will last for a long long time. One thing about Bituthane you only get one chance to lay it flat. Once it sticks your screwed and got a butt load of work to get it off, Peel and apply as you go.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

wharton said:


> Just curious, are you sure that it was Tyvek brand wrap?



Yep....Dupont TM brand Tyvek. Supposed to have been the "cats meow"....paid a lot per roll. Really strong stuff then, no way you could tear it by hand. 25 years later, it had the consistency of Kleenex.....those pieces you could still find big enough to tear.

What really ticks me off is I bricked about half the exterior, and no way to get back in there to replace it.

Grrrrrrrr.....


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## wharton (Oct 9, 2011)

TnAndy said:


> Yep....Dupont TM brand Tyvek. Supposed to have been the "cats meow"....paid a lot per roll. Really strong stuff then, no way you could tear it by hand. 25 years later, it had the consistency of Kleenex.....those pieces you could still find big enough to tear.
> 
> What really ticks me off is I bricked about half the exterior, and no way to get back in there to replace it.
> 
> Grrrrrrrr.....


 WOW, interesting and depressing. I just cleaned up one of my jobs after the roofers left. I can't imagine that 15lb "felt" would be any better at this point. The stuff has gone from being extremely durable, and obviously an asphault coated felt product, to unrecognizable garbage. It is acutually brittle. You can't fold it or tear it, it just shatters. I guess the best solution would be 30 lb felt, then ice and water shield over the corners. Who knows? Not only are most building products total crap anymore, but the last few months have brought mind blowing price increases on a lot of them. Who ever thought that shingles would be $100/sq. or that 7/16th OSB would run $13.50 a sheet? My installed sheetrock costs are now 35% higher than they were a few months back. Strange time indeed.


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## HuskyBoris (Feb 14, 2013)

interesting on the tyvek,I have seen it left exposed for long periods of time (years ) but you do bring up and interesting point about tarpaper,when I re-sided my house with T 111 type siding I removed the old shingle style siding there was tarpaper underneath and it looked like new.
of course stupid me thinking tyvek only started to remove it to realize that underneath it was in terrific shape so I stopped,put the old back on and sheeted over it.
I am not sure when it was put on ,best I can date the structure as a house is 1910,before that it was a barn of somesort.I wouldn't hesitate to use tarpaper even though the modern stuff is thinner I think it would be sufficient and more cost effective


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## Post_Oakie (Aug 20, 2012)

Heavy roofing felt has worked well for us over the last 30-odd years. What is the downside of adding battons? They are fairly inexpensive and quick to put up. You can buy wider 1" thick boards and run them through a table saw. You might be able to get some oak at a local sawmill. I run a portable sawmill, and cut a lot of boards & bats, though mostly for barns. In fact, I'm thinking about re-siding our home this summer so that I can sell the original siding as weathered oak.


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## RonM (Jan 6, 2008)

A guy once gave me this hint for paneling over drywall (inside) take brown liquid shoepolish and dab alongside the sheet then put up the next sheet and it will eliminate seeing thru the seperation to the white background..... Might work on the outside as well, except your gaps are not 4 ft apart like paneli ng, will take a lot more polish.. give it a shot, see how it works.......


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## Gray Wolf (Jan 25, 2013)

Older houses were not as airtight as newer ones are. I wonder if a more modern house constructed with tarpaper wrap would have moisture problems inside?


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## Johnny Dolittle (Nov 25, 2007)

FYI 
Boards used for outside sheeting will last much longer nailed in a vertical position rather than horizontal.

I have a bandsaw mill and a wood shop. With a daddo blade on a table saw you can easily do a ship-lap ..... however you need to calculate the amount of lap to make depending on wood specie, moisture content and width of boards.

Also there is a modified ship-lap I call a reverse batten.


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## Johnny Dolittle (Nov 25, 2007)

Gray Wolf said:


> Older houses were not as airtight as newer ones are. I wonder if a more modern house constructed with tarpaper wrap would have moisture problems inside?


Exterior walls should only have one vapor barrier (IMO)


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