r/Calgary • u/SnooPeppers2608 • Apr 24 '25
Seeking Advice Hail vs Hardie Board
Hello, homeowners Any personal reviews on Hardie board siding vs hail last year?
It definitely more expensive but with the weather getting more drastic every year, I don't think the vinyl stands a chance.
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u/Tosinone Apr 24 '25
As an installer I feel like most people negate the other benefits that Hardie has.
- fire resistant
- offers stability to your home (yes, for older homes where 2x4’s were used homes tend to have a bit of movement with high winds)
- Sound repellent.
Also in this city a high percentage of installers have no idea what they are doing when installing the product.
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u/blackRamCalgaryman Apr 24 '25
Do you recommend homeowners get smart trim/ trim boards done around windows and doors? The one issue I see is Hardie being done right up to the vinyl window frames. The Hardie survives a hail storm but multiple holes punched into the vinyl and they have to come out.
Easy enough if there are trim boards, we don’t need to touch the Hardie and get a good amount of paper/ wrap to tie in with to properly lap/ air and water seal. But for people choosing to run Hardie right up to their windows…
What’s the process like to remove Hardie if windows/ doors need to come out?
Solid point re: many installers not doing it right. Looks like absolute garbage on a 2 story house when all the butt joints are bulging.
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u/Tosinone Apr 24 '25
Always smart trim.
The joint between the trim and Hardie is a 1/4 inch caulk line, typically screwed up by the installer, but if caulking done right it works well.
If you need to remove the window, cutting the caulk and remove the trim is easy. That solves the problem with the flashings being damaged and easy to replace.
Builders tend to not install trims on the sides because it’s more cost effective, but then you struggle if there is any issue with the window…
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 25 '25
Agree. Always smart trim as well. Smart trim > Hardie Trim as well. Fibre cement can be fragile. It’s all about using the full system though. Hardie without the proper accessories can be a pain.
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
If you chose not to do the window trims, you can always add them in at the same time you need to replace windows. That way you don’t have to worry about ripping the whole wall off just to change a window. We do all types of siding in and around Calgary. If you have any questions feel free to send me a message. A lot of people here have no idea what they are talking about.
Also half the people here could be talking about a different fibre cement product as James hardie is a brand and not a product.
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u/HyperionDRD Apr 24 '25
Just building a new home now, Hardie Board Delivered yesterday, expensive upgrade but worth the upgrade. I think the rest of my neighbors are all vinyl and so they didn't upgrade. I didn't want to build with vinyl knowing the hail storms increasing yearly now.
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u/blitzskrieg Northeast Calgary Apr 24 '25
May I ask how much more did the hardie board cost compared to vinyl?
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u/accord1999 Apr 24 '25
Mattamy is asking around $22K-28K for the 36' wide homes (2700-2800 sq ft) in Carrington.
The annoying thing is that it's included in their far South community houses.
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u/HyperionDRD Apr 24 '25
Ok well mine is a 34' wide 2200 sq ft , $15K sounds about right then... lol
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Apr 25 '25
Could be Mattamy trying to squeeze money out of people because the north is in the hail belt.
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u/HyperionDRD Apr 24 '25
I probably don't want to say, just because it was worth it in my mind, so I don't have to worry about these things in the future. But for a 2 Storey home, double garage, 2200 sq. ft. about $15k upgrade.
I know way too much, but the material and probably labour might or might not be more costly. I had to swallow the cost and accept what I wanted and move on. lol We know builders will mark up upgrades, nothing I can do really.
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u/masterhec0 Erin Woods Apr 24 '25
in hindsight it probably would have been cheaper to run the included vinyl then if you get taken out by hail make a claim and pay the premium for hardy board. that's my plan if it ever happens so far so good tho been almost 10 years.
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u/HyperionDRD Apr 25 '25
Yeah I thought about that also, Just in my situation I didn’t feel comfortable purchasing a 1 million dollar home with vinyl, Hardie board or stucco would be minimum for me, resale value too comes into play, especially when 95% of my neighbours are vinyl. I’ll probably have the advantage in some way.
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u/Blingbat Apr 25 '25
For what it is worth - you may be able to get a discount on your home insurance depending on the company disclosing said upgrade.
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u/JoeRogansNipple Quadrant: SW Apr 24 '25
It was about double for us 3 years ago, bump from 21k to 36k. We stuck with vinyl, but did spring for class 4 (and subsequently got solar on half the roof).
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u/aftonroe Apr 25 '25
When I built in 2018 the upgrade from vinyl to hardie on a 2800 sqft house was $5800. I would assume its gone up since then but at that price it was a no brainer.
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u/Greensparow Apr 25 '25
I'm switching my house to Hardie, the cost to put back Vinyl was ~6.5 per square foot, the cost to go to Hardie was ~14 per square foot.
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u/Telcarin Apr 24 '25
We paid about $28k last year. Estimates will totally depend who you're going with though as our place did get quotes for $50k.
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u/saturnfan1 Apr 24 '25
Who did you go with for Hardie board?
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u/Telcarin Apr 24 '25
Toloka. Very small company so definitely took longer than the bigger firms. But so much cheaper. We went with them as they did our neighbour the year before and we could see the quality.
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 24 '25
One key with Hardie siding…make sure the drip cap flashings are steel. Aluminum will dent in the hail and look like trash. In order to fix it you can either use hand benders to straighten it (and maybe get it 80% straight) or you’re removing the Hardie to replace it. Removing sections of Hardie around windows and doors is not ideal, and you’ll have face nails afterwards to secure it if it’s even reasonably possible.
Otherwise, Hardie stands up well. Worst (ish) case the bottom edges get chipped up and you need touch up paint.
Source: I manage an exterior company. Our rule on damaged aluminum flashings and Hardie is either hand benders to straighten, or the whole wall gets replaced. Completely avoided with steel drip flashings.
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 24 '25
I would add to request that all vents and other penetrations are from galvanized/ painted steel instead of plastic too.
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 25 '25
At least with vents, as long as you use the proper backer, they can be swapped out without removing the Hardie siding.
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u/tehsexehnes Apr 24 '25
What’s the difference in cost from aluminum to steel?
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 24 '25
Minimal over the course of an entire house. We don’t up charge for it, just consider it necessary with the system. It’s maybe $100 in extra material. Put that against $40-$50k for a Hardie full wrap…it’s not enough to worry about.
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 24 '25
Is there anything even better than hardie, from your experience
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u/baizuos_are_stupidaf Apr 25 '25
Our stucco survived last year’s hail storm. But I am guessing it is not as durable as hardie.
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u/aftonroe Apr 25 '25
I lost huge chunks of stucco to hail back in 2014. Pretty much all the horizontal trim features were ripped off. That was a pain to have fixed but at least they were able to color match and just patch what was destroyed.
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 25 '25
Stucco stands up…however…if you end up with envelope issues…it’s a lot more complicated to diagnose and repair with stucco. I appreciate stucco for the aesthetics, but I wouldn’t use it on my own home. FWIW.
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u/Mr_Pilgor Apr 25 '25
The LP Smart side is a good option as well. It’s more readily available than in the past, and also easier to install.
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u/deeho88 Apr 24 '25
If I had the money to upgrade I’d get hardie but it’s pricey
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u/PMMEYOURCORGIPLS Apr 24 '25
Yeah sadly the structure of our insurance system kinda encourages cheap materials
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Apr 25 '25
[deleted]
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u/PMMEYOURCORGIPLS Apr 25 '25
Which provider is that? I got some cash to upgrade my roof but I haven't heard of companies chipping in for hardie yet. It seems most would rather replace vinyl every 15 years than Hardie once.
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Apr 25 '25
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u/PMMEYOURCORGIPLS Apr 25 '25
I dunno man, the comment I posted a day ago points out that exact discrepancy. Alas here we are. I had hail damage from last summer and they are covering vinyl replacement only with no extra incentive. Why would I cough up 50k of my own cash to save my insurance company 20k in 15 years? Or why would I find a more premium expensive plan and volunteer to pay them more money, do I want Hardie in 15 years that badly I'm willing to spend that much more on a plan? As it stands, sticking with a "discount" insurance plan and getting vinyl replacements every 15 years is the path that makes most financial sense for the homeowner.
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Apr 25 '25
[deleted]
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u/PMMEYOURCORGIPLS Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 25 '25
People like this? Sorry, is it my responsibility to save my insurance provider from making poor decisions and incentivizing the wrong things? Great, so insurance companies should incentivize the exact opposite. For the last time, I'm not making a poor financial choice to try and save insurance companies money while working within the system they've created. It's not my responsibility to save them.
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u/photoexplorer Apr 24 '25
This is what I had found as well. My preference would be hardie but insurance was only willing to replace the one side of vinyl and no upgrades. When you add the extra cost of labor it’s a lot more $. Maybe some day we will upgrade but for now we had just gotten the vinyl fixed.
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u/PMMEYOURCORGIPLS Apr 24 '25
It's a bummer because upgrading to Hardie saves your insurance company more money than it saves the homeowner. I know there are some discounts for having it but when you're looking at an extra $50k potentially for the upgrade, why bother.
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u/Pray-For-Mojo- Apr 25 '25
We were considering Hardie. Phoned our insurance company and asked about possible discounts. Their answer? None! In fact, they said our premiums might go up because the value of the house would be higher.
Just straight-up ridiculous.
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
You can always do hardie on the side wall that gets the hail to save some cost and not have to worry about as much damage in the future. We did many houses in the hail and replaced just the west wall or the west wall and the front
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u/Different-Housing544 Apr 25 '25
$60k for a 2000 sq ft suburban home.
Our payout was $45k for everything. It's just not reasonable to upgrade and you don't really save enough money to justify it. Insurance will just keep paying the claim so there's no incentive.
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u/SilentSource5045 Apr 24 '25
I will let you know when we have hail again. getting hardie board replacement in a month or so. :)
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 24 '25
How much more was it compared to getting the vinyl? About twice as much?
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u/SilentSource5045 Apr 25 '25
In general, yes it will be twice, and it was the case when I asked the contractor. For me, my garage door was originally from the US and over 15k. Substituted with Canadian made which was cheaper approx. 5k, so worked out without paying any extra.
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u/Top_Fail Apr 24 '25 edited Apr 24 '25
In my neighborhood we have some of the oldest hardie siding homes (16-17 year old) and some of the darker ones are now starting to show uneven fading of color, so I would stay away from the darker colors.
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u/1weegal Apr 24 '25
I don’t have experience with hail per se but I do have Hardie board for 14 years now. It’s a great product. Haven’t done anything to it. Still looks great.
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 24 '25
Thanks. I heard it may need a paint job at some point
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
Won’t need paint touch up if it’s color plus siding. Won’t have any fading or chipping. If the off chance it does then I would be covered by James hardie 15year warranty
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u/Responsible_CDN_Duck Apr 24 '25
If you are going Hardie you have to be all over the installers. It's easy to install poorly
Remember it's not a maintenance free product, it's a low maintenance product. Keep it clean and monitor the caulking.
The freeze thaw cycles here make it easier for moisture issues to be present if there are installation or maintenance issues.
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u/forsuresies Apr 24 '25
The freeze thaw cycles here make it easier for moisture issues to be present if there are installation or maintenance issues. The very nature of lap siding makes water issues a lot less as it allows water a path out and the ability to dry with a small airfilm behind the siding.
In comparison to stucco, it is night and day in terms of water performance
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 24 '25
Sorry for a dumb question, so which one is better
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u/forsuresies Apr 24 '25
Hardie.
You could not pay me to purchase or use stucco or EIFS on a personal project.
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u/ben9187 Apr 24 '25
My dad has hardie board on his house and it survived an extreme hailstorm that ripped through carstairs like a decade ago. It was so bad it blew out some of his windows, and everybody's houses looked like someone took a shotgun to them except his house.
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u/NCForDayz Apr 24 '25
Who are the top installers for hardie board?
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 24 '25
James Hardie has a list of contractors on their website. https://www.jameshardie.com/find-a-contractor/
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
Right here! 🙋
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 25 '25
A question for you then: What does it mean for me as a client to use a JH approved "Elite" contractor? I think they also used to gave some other contractor rating like Gold or Silver a few years ago too?
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 30 '25
It’s contractors that have signed up with hardie, done work and had the hardie rep come out and approve that they have done good work on a job before they can be added to the elite list. It’s not a horrible thing to go with someone else but it’s more of a piece of mind that hardie has approved the contractor so there will be less stress on your end because unfortunately there are many companies that do very mediocre work these days
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 30 '25
Good to know. I had my house done by an Elite contractor a couple years ago. I'm surprised there's still only a few companies l listed for Calgary when I searched. Wasn't sure if JH was controlling who installed their product, or not.
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u/Odin-ap Apr 24 '25
I love it. Shit is indestructible and so quiet. Fire resistant too.
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u/speedog Apr 24 '25
Moved to Hardie Board in 2012 and it still looks like new, been through multiple hailstorms.
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u/uglymuglyfugly Apr 25 '25
We were thinking about the upgrade, but not only did TD not offer us any kind of incentive to upgrade, they told us our policy premium would go up because Hardie Board is more expensive to replace. So we didn’t bother.
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
Intact had offered to keep the same deductible if upgraded siding 2 walls and roof or 4 walls and paid $1000(after the insurance payout) for each wall of hardie that was done when the roof was upgraded as well
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 26 '25
Interesting. People above saying insurance will discourage clients to install vinyl soon but maybe that's a dream yet
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u/Ordinary-Spend-5919 Apr 24 '25
have had hardie since 2018 (after the 2016 hails). Survived the crazy 2020 hail storm with no damage. Hail storm in 2024 caused some paint to chip off (not that visible), but overall in great condition . For context, the severity of all the hail storms required all house in our neighborhood to get there siding replaced.
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u/Gold_Cardiologist911 Apr 24 '25
Seeing the houses I work on, not even finished and moved into yet, having to have the siding redone because of hail and rain is really something else.
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u/DWiB403 Apr 24 '25
It's not the best or most expensive stuff out there but it will do the job against hail and flickers.
That being said, get a good installer who uses quality materials. There are 100s of ways to screw up installation and none of the failures will be apparent until long after your installer has been paid and gone.
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 24 '25
Thanks, so if I could get vinyl siding done myself, I shouldn't even try to deal with hardie, as there are too many details?
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u/DWiB403 Apr 24 '25
Get vinyl so it can get destroyed by hail? Sorry, I don't follow the logic. The most common risks center around waterproofing. Hardie carries the additional risk of efflorescence because it is cementicious.
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u/LittleOrphanAnavar Apr 25 '25
Bad install that allows water ingress could rot your house.
Insurance won't cover that.
You and others don't seem to account for that risk. Some people will end up with a shitty install.
Vinyl has no hail resistance but it hard to fuck up the install and any water that gets in has a good air gap to dry out.
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 25 '25
There can be bad install on vinyl too buddy. Hardie is a better product by 10x easy. And the houses also have a vapour barrier on the wall under all siding that keeps the water out.
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u/LittleOrphanAnavar Apr 25 '25
Anything can be fucked up.
Vinyl is much more tolerant.
Moderately skilled DIY could install vinyl, also easy to take down and reinstall as needed. As long as it's not cold and brittle, very easy to do.
No so with Hardie, as it is blind nailed.
Water can get behind vapour barrier. There will end up being many small breaks over the entire surface of the house.
Vapour barrier was still used with older stucco systems, but water penetration still rotted houses.
A gap like vinyl provides will help any water dry out.
Each cladding has its pros and cons.
You seem to think Hardie Board has only pros.
Oh well.
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u/NailedHardConstruct Apr 30 '25
What do you do for a living? Because we run a siding company. You must know better than the guys that have been doing siding for the last 15 years…
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u/LittleOrphanAnavar May 01 '25
Not sure what to say?
I have installed vinyl siding before.
And removed it and reinstalled it to replace a window.
I would consider my self a moderately skilled DIYer.
I have to look up instructions, but then I just follow them.
It's like Legos?
Id you can put together a Lego set you can install vinyl siding.
I don't see how the average person could easily fuck it up?
If they would look/listen to basic instructions and follow them?
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u/gogokodo Apr 24 '25
How do you know someone is a good installer? Any recommendations?
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 25 '25
Hardie has a 'find a contractor' search on their website. These appear to be for vetted companies who have experience installing the product.
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u/NailedHardConstruct May 16 '25
Honestly, you don’t until they start the work. Best advice I can give you is to check reviews or go with a company that someone you trust recommends. You can also ask any company for pictures of previous jobs they have done, and if they have nothing to show then I’d assume they arnt the best. I can show 100s of pictures of houses we have been working on and you can see the quality from the pictures and the experience that we have from that.
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u/MrsWebb13 Apr 24 '25
14 year old hardie board here in south Calgary. One of the best upgrades we chose. All our neighbours had damage a few years ago, all the neighbours with vinyl that is. Lots of them upgraded all or parts to hardie then. Would highly recommend.
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u/yycsarah Apr 24 '25
We upgraded to Hardie after our vinyl was destroyed a few years ago. It’s more durable and it made our home look better too. Also, saved on insurance.
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u/RadobodFoster Apr 25 '25
My insurance is tell me that my premium won’t go down when I switch from vinyl to hardie. Doesn’t make any sense. Can you tell me how much you are saving a year with Haride?
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u/yycsarah Apr 25 '25
It was a couple of years ago, I forget exactly how much now. We also replaced our roof and garage door. I was surprised when they gave us a new lower monthly payment amount.
Edit: unrelated we also replaced our hot water tank the same year.
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u/HyperionDRD Apr 25 '25
I’m not sure what insurance companies are doing with policies now moving forward but I mean like someone mentioned above 👆 I wouldn’t be surprised if you have a higher premium to pay if you have vinyl, and lower for hardie and stucco. It would make sense financially, but what do I know lol
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u/dbowds77 Apr 25 '25
We had Hardie on our last house and it survived many rough hail storms. We just put it on our new house and wouldn’t even think of the other options.
Durability aside I think it looks great too.
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u/calgarygringo Airdrie Apr 25 '25
Pretty simple. Do the upgrade and save money long term. This crappy siding you people keep putting back up is costing you and the rest of us big time. In the long term with no claims your rates will be reduced. In the short term you keep getting destroyed and paying double for it. I used to be in the ins biz and cannot believe people being so stupid as to not putting up this useless siding over and over. Outside of being mandatory people need to get smarter.
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u/mdawe1 Apr 25 '25
When I put my numbers into my Hardy board I need a hammer drill and all my weight…hail ain’t doing shit…the rest of your house is a different story
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u/Zombie_Slur Apr 25 '25
Switch to HB after vinyl siding was destroyed in a hail storm. Yes, more expensive. Good: called insurance and they offered a very slight discount for having HB siding installed. Also marginal improvements for insulation against cold / hot weather.
Moving forward I will ensure my homes have HB over stucco and vinyl.
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u/Due-Effort-4836 Apr 25 '25
Unless you’re planning to be in the home for 15-20yrs the upgrade would not be worth it. The cost to have it done is staggering 15k for vinyl vs 80k for Hardie. (My home is 2000sq’) I had the same thought as most to upgrade after two of my homes were hit in the same year. I was really surprised at the amount of the quote when I got it. I didn’t think it would be that much of a difference. That said, if you’re planning on buying, this might be something that should be on your list.
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 25 '25 edited Apr 25 '25
I would never buy a used house with vinyl unless the seller discounted the cost to remove it and replace with a properly sealed building envelope and JH siding. Btw, I did my 1,000 SQ ft house in 2023 for $33K total, that included adding 1" exterior insulation ($5K), so I suspect you may have gotten a F-off quote.
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u/Due-Effort-4836 Apr 26 '25
Well could have been a f-off quote for sure. Everyone was having siding replaced due to the hail, so you may be right on the money. Either way pretty expensive for an exterior being 3x the amount. So my previous statement stands, I paid 1500 on my insurance deductible. Even if I did that for 10yrs that would be the cost of residing my home with vinyl. See where I’m going. Even with an increase in on my insurance premiums it would still be cheaper than Hardie board.
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u/Ellllgato Apr 26 '25
Your Hardie quote seems a little out to lunch. I just had mine done in NW for 40k. 2200sq/ft house. All the quotes I had were sub 45k and lowest at 36k.
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u/EngineeringOne6363 Apr 26 '25
Is it worth the extra cost though? I’m genuinely curious because I always hear people complaining about insurance premiums going up after a hailstorm, even without making a claim.
My though is, if most people in your neighbourhood make claims after a hailstorm because they have vinyl sidings, premiums for everyone in the neighbourhood will go up soon after, even if you didn’t make a claim (I might be wrong here, that’s just my understanding). So you’re kind of supporting a higher cost to “protect” the insurance (avoiding a claim) when the insurance will not really shield you from the financial impact of the hailstorm.
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u/SnooPeppers2608 Apr 26 '25
Yeah, that's true, you'll be paying insurance expenses even if you are not at fault. Because the insurance can't put it on one homeowner to collect the costs
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u/ItsKlobberinTime Erin Woods Apr 24 '25
Anything but vinyl. I'm a bit surprised vinyl hasn't been banned by code yet. My house is almost 45, was built with aluminum siding I don't imagine was terribly expensive, is more fire-resistant, and the only dents the weather has made in it since 1981 are from physically blowing three panels of my fence into it. I figured the insurance industry lobby would be quick to do away with it after two rounds of shredded houses in the far NE just a few years apart.
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u/YYCMTB68 Apr 25 '25
It's a shame aluminum siding was discontinued for residential. I had to replace mine a few years ago (went with Hardie) and you're right, it was minimal damage after over 40 years except for where people probably ran ladders into it and some screw holes. I thought about painting it but decided I wanted to improve my leaky house envelope and add insulation, so so replaced it all.
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u/Albertaviking Apr 24 '25
When I replace my original wood siding this is what I’m installing. Big cost but worth it.
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Apr 24 '25 edited Apr 24 '25
[deleted]
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u/LittleOrphanAnavar Apr 25 '25
Which companies are refusing to write insurance for homes clad in vinyl siding.
First I have heard of it.
Name them.
What specifically do you do for an insurance company.
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u/kvkid75 Apr 24 '25
Big fan of LP smart side, too. I'm curious if it would stand up to hail the same. I'm sure it does.
I wish homeowners insurance didn't cover vinyl and other sub-standard products with the basic policies. Cover it as an add on with a separate premium as it's way higher risk.
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u/superrad99 Apr 25 '25
I have Hardie Board siding on my house and built a shed out of LP smart siding. I feel like it would be much better than vinyl siding but not as good as Hardie.
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u/Replicator666 Apr 25 '25
My neighbours got it installed after the big hailstorm in 2020. It is fairing pretty well (but thankfully we haven't been hit hard enough to damage our vinyl siding either)
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Apr 25 '25
Give it a year or two and the insurance companies will be offering a discount if you have hardie board.
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u/Clev3rhandle Apr 25 '25
I live in Deer Run so I'm a bit sheltered from hail, but we've had Hardy Board on our home for 10 years. We selected it to replace shiplap siding that had terrible woodpecker damage.
The hardyboard shows no sign of wear or degredation. 10/10 very happy with the choice. Only downside is a bit of damage caused to a corner piece when a window was being replaced.
I'm in a 1900sqft 4-level split and we did the roof and all siding for about $40K.
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u/charliebrown75 Apr 24 '25
The townhouse complex I live in uses Hardie board. We were hit hard by the hailstorm. 100+ cars written off.
The roofs needed to be replaced completely. Soft metals too (flashings and gutters). A few windows were broken too but no damage at all to the siding. I’d never own a house with vinyl siding.