Brushed cedar wood siding shakes or shingles, also referred to as striated cedar shingles or striated red cedar shingle siding.

This article series discusses best practices construction details for building exteriors, including water and air barriers, building flashing products & installation, wood siding material choices & installation, vinyl siding, stucco exteriors, building trim, exterior caulks and sealants, exterior building adhesives, and choices and application of exterior finishes on buildings: paints, stains.

Brushed or Striated Cedar Shingle or Shake Siding

This 1960's ranch home in Dutchess County, New York was sided with brushed cedar shingle siding, producing raised or high-relief wood shingle.

[Click to enlarge any image]

Deep relief vertical-grained cedar shingles, usually bonded to fiberboard, were widely used as house and other building wall siding in North America in th 1960's and 1970s.

Here we describe the wear properties and some inspection and defect details that can help track down building wall leaks. We also discuss the question of repair vs. replacement of the siding.

Often this brushed cedar shingle siding was manufactured as a thin product adhered to or nailed over a fiberboard backer as we illustrate below.

Below: the owners of this home asked us to investigate the cause of a mold odor in the home.

Previously a mold investigator had used thermal scanning (questionable) to assert that the problem was leaky windows.

That finding was treated by spraying fungicide into the wall cavities around the windows.

When the odor persisted we were asked to inspect the building.

Inspecting in the home's basement and paying close attention to water entry signs around the building perimeter as well as near plumbing pipes and fixtures, I soon found leak stains under the subflooring in the house's cantilevered overhang at exterior wall - photo above.

Outside, noting the cedar shingle wear signs illustrated here, we traced the leak to water penetration of the worn, fiberboard-backed brushed cedar shingle siding.

Examples of that cedar shingle siding wear are shown below and include:

• Splits in the cedar shingles
• Cupped and curled shingle
• Exposed fiberboard at shingle butt joints and elsewhere in the shingle panels
• Moderate paint loss
• Bits cedar shingle backer fiberboard on the ground below the cantilevered front wall of the home

You can see that with age, splits or exposure at gaps led to not only curling and damage to the cedar shingles but also to the fiberboard backer.

We found bits of the fiberboard backing falling out from behind the cedar shingles (some call these "shakes" but IMO they're mistaken) on this New York home.

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But more more-common is backer damage and ultimately wall leaks, possibly into the wall interior where it may invite rot, mold, or insect damage as found on the NY home subject of the photos shown here.

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Above: when the cedar shingle siding is thin, splitting, and curled, it's at end of life. Painting or even repair is usually not practical. When this siding is found to be leaking into the wall interior, it's time for replacement.

More-typical paint failure on a brushed wood cedar siding shingle, shown below.

Watch out: re-painting these shingles is difficult and costly as removing old paint without damaging the shingle is just about impossible, while painting over loose, peeling paint gives at best a short-lived paint-job. For those reasons I prefer to use a pigmented stain rather than a conventional paint when preserving brushed wood cedar shingle or shake siding.

The photos below, showing details of the construction of fiberboard-backed brushed cedar shingle siding, were provided courtesy of an anonymous InspectApedia.com reader.

Our reader asked:

In the 1960-1970's there was a fiber board backed cedar siding material that came in panels about 3 feet long that overlapped on the edge and was installed like lap siding.

Can you give me any information about it, like the manufacturer, what it was called, etc? - Anon.

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Above: the fiberboard backing used with thin brushed cedar shingle was typically 1/4 to 5/16" thick and was often bonded directly to the cedar shingle.

The wood grain of the soft cedar shingle was brought to relief by passing the sawn shingle under a coarse wire brush that removed the summer-wood, leaving vertical ridges of the harder grains of the cedar shingles in relief.

As we cite below, the patent for an early version of this fiberboard-backed siding was applied for and assigned to Masonite Corporation but no doubt there were other manufacturers of this siding too.

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OPINION: I and others were not fans of this approach to cedar shingle siding as depending on its water resistance (usually wax impregnated, sometimes asphalt coated)  the fiberboard can still act like a sponge, holding water against the bottom of the shingles (inviting rot). 

I think the product was developed to permit sale of a thinner brushed cedar shingle (some installers call them "shakes" but as they are so thin I don't) and to substitute a "cheaper" material as part of the product. 

For more than a century people in the wood products industry have sought uses for wood lumber byproduct sawdust and scrap that could be made into something useful. 

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Fiberboard backers for brushed cedar siding are still sold, such as from G&R Cedar, also serving as a spacer.

Brushed (or striated) Cedar Wood Shingle Siding (Sidewall) Resources

Grooved cedar shingles are referred to also as "brushed cedar" or "striated western red cedar" shingles. The cedar singles are wire-brushed by a machine to create raised ribs and recessed grooves occurring vertically on the shingle's outer or exposed surface. Usually the back of the shingle is left smooth-sawn.

Our grooved wood single data is mostly for individual shingles, sold in boxes or bundles sized to cover an wall area as shown in the table below. Some suppliers also provide panels of pre-assembled cedar shingles - not discussed in detail here.

Many other supplies (such as Paneltek Products) provide smooth-sawn cedar or pine wood shingles intended for siding and some usable for roofing.

Wood shingle roofing products are discussed in a separate article series beginning

at WOOD SHAKE & SHINGLE ROOFING

Brushed (Striated) (Grooved) Western Red Cedar Siding Suppliers

• Capitol City Lumber, 4216 Beryl Road Raleigh, NC 2760 USA Tel: 919.832.6492 - illustrated just above
• Direct Cedar and Roofing supplies, 30694 Simpson Rd Unit A, Abbotsford, BC Canada V2T 6C7 Website: https://directcedarsupplies.com/ E-mail: sales@directcedarsupplies.com Tel: 1-877-850-1767
  
  Mailing Address (Canada) Direct Cedar Supplies Ltd. Suite 460, PO Box 8000 Abbotsford, BC Canada V2S 6H1
  
  Mailing Address (US Customers) Direct Cedar Supplies Ltd. 726 Cherry St. Suite 460, PO Box 8000 Sumas, WA USA 98295
• Dreyers Lumber & Hardware Inc., 20 Watchung Avenue, Chatham, NJ 07928 USA Tel: 973-635-5151 Website: https://dreyerslumber.com/ Tel: 732-531-0220 Locations in New York & New Jersey
• Pacific Coast Cedar Products Ltd, supplier of western red cedar products, PO Box 21070 Maple Ridge Square PO Maple Ridge, BC Canada, V2X 1P7 Phone: (604) 467-6988 (CAN) Email: Baldy@pacific-coast.ca
• Ring's End, 181 West Avenue Darien, CT 06820 USA, Tel: 203-655-2525 website: https://www.ringsend.com/contact - Striated western red cedar siding shingles [Source of the cedar single siding coverage table data given below)
• Teal-Jones Group, 17897 Triggs Rd. Surrey, BC V4N 4M8 Canada, Tel: (604) 587-8700 Web: https://tealjones.com/contact/
• Vintage Woodworks, websit: https://www.vintagewoodworks.com/ Tel: 903-202-3184 - Machine Grooved Face wood R&R Cedar Single siding
• Waldun Forest Products, 9393 287th Street, Maple Ridge, BC V2W 1L1 Canada, Website: waldun.com Tel: (888) 587-3565 Email: sales@waldun.com
  
  US Address: P.O. Box 96, Sumas, WA 98295
  

Notes to the table above

• Source: VintageWodworks suppliers and Captol City Lumber, cited just above, 2021/02/11, most grooved cedar shingle supplies use the same coverage data.
• Recommended maximum exposure for single-layer wood shingle siding: 8" maximum exposure
• Recommended maximum exposure for double-course wood single siding: 14" maximum exposure
• Maximum exposure: single course, 8"; double course, 14".
• For typical suppliers 1 box of wood shingles or one bundle will cover 57 sq.ft. at 8" exposure, single layer.
• For typical suppliers 1 box of wood shingles or one bundle will cover 100 sq.ft. per layer, at 14" exposure, but two layers are needed so you could re-state this as covering only 50 sq.ft. - you will need to order double the quantity for the area to be covered when using a double-layer installation.

Cedar Shingle Siding Resources & Research

Illustration: modern 3/8" thick fiberboard backer sold by Yankocy (cited below) for use as a backing and spacer behind cedar shake or shingle wall siding.

• Browne, Frederick Lincoln. SOME CAUSES OF BLISTERING AND PEELING OF PAINT ON HOUSE SIDING [PDF] (1953) US FPL
• Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau, EXTERIOR & INTERIOR WALL MANUAL [PDF] (2020) Tel: 604-820-7700 Email: info@cedarbureau.com Website: http://www.cedarbureau.org/
  
  US Address PO Box 1178 Sumas, WA 98295-1178
  
  Canadian Address #2 – 7101 Horne St. Mission, BC V2V 7A2
  
  Excerpts: This manual is intended for use with Western Red Cedar and Alaskan Yellow Cedar shingle and shake applications only.
  
• Cedar Valley Shingle, CARE & MAINTENANCE of CEDAR SHINGLE SIDING MAINTENANCE [PDF] (Tech Bulletin #5 2016) Cedar Valley Shingle Siding Panels, 943 San Felipe Road Hollister, CA 95023 USA Tel: (866) 532-3814 Website: https://cedar-valley.com/ retrieved 2020/06/25 original source: https://cedar-valley.com/wp-content/uploads/CedarValley_cvtb-005-Rev.6-16_Care-Maintenance.pdf
• Cedar Valley Shingle, DAMAGED SHINGLE REPAIR [PDF] Op. Cit. - provides details about replacing individual damaged wood shingles on an exterior wall.
• Cedar Valley Shingle, CEDAR SHINGLE INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS: 1-Course BLIND NAIL Hurricane Nailing [PDF] Op. Cit.
• Dwyer, Jack, Tony Bonura, Arnie Nebelsick, Sam Williams, Christopher G. Hunt, INSTALLATION, CARE, and MAINTENANCE of WOOD SHINGLE SIDING [PDF] (2011) US FPL, USDA,
• Elmer, Weber. "Siding structure." U.S. Patent 3,173,229, issued March 16, 1965.
• Gilmore, William James, Herbert Reeves Sinnard, and Everett Henry Davis. ROOFS and EXTERIOR WALLS of RED CEDAR SHINGLES [PDF] (1940). Oregon State System of Higher Education Federal Cooperative Extension Service Oregon State College Corvallis Extension Bulletin 540 March 1940 - published by US Forest Products Lab.
• Hanlo, C., and A. Luck. DEEP EMBOSSED, SHINGLE LAP SIDING [PDF] U.S. Patent 3,796,586, issued March 12, 1974. Application filed by Masonite Corp.
  Abstract:
  
  A deep embossed, shingle lap siding for building wall and roof structures formed of compressed wood fibers having an uneven, deep embossed surface on one side comprising high and low portions and resembling wood shingles.
  
  A first coating of coloring or tinting agent is applied only on selected portions of said uneven surface and therefater a second coating of coloring or tinting agent is applied over substantially the entire uneven surface, thereby providing an appearance of stained wood shingles.
• Mattes, Lee H. "Building siding units." U.S. Patent 3,703,795, issued November 28, 1972.
• Maunder, Elwood R., Betty E. Mitson, and Paul R. Smith. "Red Cedar Shingles & Shakes: Unique Wood Industry." Journal of Forest History 19, no. 2 (1975): 56-71.
• Messmer, Terry A., and Gerald W. Wiscomb. WOODPECKERS [DAMAGE MANAGEMENT [PDF] Animal Damage Control, Utah State University, Wildlife Damage Management Series, w/ Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, USDA et als, (1998 - 2010) Retrieved 2019 09 27 original source https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3302&context=wild_facpub
• Powter, Andrew. KEEPING WOOD SIDING On HISTORIC BUILDINGS Nuts and Bolts,[PDF] HÉRITAGE 10, no. 4 (2007): 40-47.
• U.S. Forest Products Laboratories, WOOD SIDING - INSTALLING, FINISHING, MAINTAINING [PDF] US FPL 1983, retrieved 2018/12/25, original source: https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/usda/hgb203.pdf
• USDA WOOD SIDING FINISHING MAINTAINING [PDF] United States Department of Agriculture (1975) retrieved 2019/09/27 original source: https://naldc.nal.usda.gov/download/CAT75667271/PDFD SIDING INSTALLING
  
  Older version of the 1983 guide given just above.
• Verrall, Arthur Frederic. Building decay associated with rain seepage. No. 1356. US Department of Agriculture, 1966.
• Yankocy, Shingle Backer fiber board, used as backer behind cedar sidewall shaneks or shingles, 3/8" x 15" x 48" panels, CONTACT US: 800.367.9265 or 203.261.4955 Yankocy 143 Enterprise Drive Monroe, CT 06468 USA Tel: 203.261.4955 info@yankocy.com

 

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Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2021-02-10 by (mod) - current sources for brushed cedar siding: where to buy striated wood cedar shingles

Croke:

There are many companies who sell sawn cedar shingles and split cedar shakes used in both roofing and siding, but it's a bit tougher to find the older, brushed cedar shingle siding that gives the raised grain shown and discussed here.

We now list some suppliers of machine-grooved or striated cedar shingles located in the U.S. and Canada above on this page.

But the good news is yes, these shingles are still available.

If you search for #1 Striated Red Cedar Shingles you'll see that "Striated cedar shingles " is a synonym for "brushed cedar singles" as I described above

An example supplier is Rings End, Website https://www.ringsend.com/striated-siding-shingles-18-striated
who sell striated cedar shingles - from whom I except text and show the photo shown here.

[Click to enlarge any image]

Excerpt:
Wood shakes and shingles have been used for centuries as roof and sidewall material. Western red cedar is one of the most commonly used wood species used to manufacture wood shakes and shingles.

Since Stave Lake Cedar began in 1938, they’ve been committed to manufacturing the absolute best quality red cedar roofing and siding products. From the simple "Ranch" home to the elaborate "Shingle Style" mansion, shakes and shingles continue to be a mainstay in the design and building industry. Whether your home is covered in shingles, from top to bottom, or you'd like to use them as an accent piece, Ring's End offers many options.

Stave Lake Certi-Groove, Striated (machine grooved) shingles are identical to R&Rs, but have uniform grooves on the face of the shingle. Specified as a sidewall shingle only, our 18" Striated siding shingle covers 100 sq. ft. when installed with a 14" exposure, double coverage, or with a shingle backer. Stocked in both unfinished or primed, these shingles are a beautiful, sustainable siding option.

Thank you for asking a helpful question.

On 2021-02-10 by Caroke

Is anyone still manufacturing these vertical grooved cedar shingle on plywood backing? Or is there a resource for finding them either new or used?

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Continue reading at WOOD SIDING INSTALLATION or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see these

Recommended Articles

• SIDING TYPES, INSTALLATION, DEFECTS - home
• CAULKS & SEALANTS, EXTERIOR
• FLASHING SIDING DETAILS
• HOUSEWRAP INSTALLATION
• PAINT & STAIN GUIDE, EXTERIOR
• RAIN SPLASH-UP SIDING DAMAGE
• SIDING LEAK DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR
• SIDING, WOOD CLEANERS, STAINS, PAINTS
• SIDING, WOOD INSTALLATION
• SIDING WOOD, FAILURES OVER FOAM BOARD
• SIDING WOOD, FLASHING DETAILS
• SIDING, WOOD PRODUCT CHOICES
• SIDING, WOOD PROFILES & SOURCES
• SIDING WOOD SHINGLE BRUSHED CEDAR
• SIDING WOOD SHINGLE INSTALLATION
• STAIN DIAGNOSIS on BUILDING EXTERIORS
• STAINS on RED CEDAR SIDING
• WATER BARRIERS, EXTERIOR BUILDING

Suggested citation for this web page

SIDING WOOD SHINGLE BRUSHED CEDAR at InspectApedia.com - online encyclopedia of building & environmental inspection, testing, diagnosis, repair, & problem prevention advice.

Or see this

INDEX to RELATED ARTICLES: ARTICLE INDEX to BUILDING SIDING

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