Anyone have/had cedar shakes on their house?

[snoopy30]

DH & I are building a house and the architect has come up w/ a design that uses cedar shakes (in place of siding).

Anyone have any experience with cedar? Is it more maintanence?

TIA!

[ManteoChik]

I really don't have any advice, but in my area (beaches of NC) this is VERY common and a lot of the homes directly on the ocean have cedar shakes. From what I've noticed they hold up very well in extream weather conditions since we live in an area where we are hit with hurricanes every year we also have very strong winds, ect.. Not to mention being constantly exposed to salt air.

[Sin Nombre]

I don't have cedar shakes, but I sure wish I did. They just get better and better with age, many of them eventually turning a beautiful silvery color after decades of wear. Think Nantucket.

I'd imagine little to no maintenance is required, as they are intended to show wear.

[LeslieR]

We have them, but we just bought this house, so I don't know much about the wear and tear or maintenance. I personally prefer the look of vinyl, but that's probably just because it's what I'm used to. I do know that there are a few shakes that we need to replace because they are rotting. The house is 34 years old and I'm pretty sure the cedar shakes are original to the house, so I guess that's a pretty good testament right there!

[boilermaker]

Our neighbors have them and the only thing I would caution you on is if different sides get much different weather exposure, the house can look "off". The backside of the neighbor's house is very weathered while the front and sides is not, so it looks a little odd.

[suzubeane]

It's true that they can weather unevenly; it depends on a lot of things about your site and your location.

In your shoes, I'd ask (if you haven't done so already) why your architect is recommending these, and how he/she thinks they'll weather and what kind of maintenance they'll need. Also, ask him/her what specifically about your design lends itself to cedar shakes. (the last two homes I worked on used them - one was a major addition to an historic shingle style cottage, and the other is a new shingle style home. As you might imagine, neither would have looked right without the shingles!)

Has your architect shown you pictures of what he/she is emulating in your design? If not, that might help you make up your mind.

[Ericka_Jarett]

This site has a brochure on care and maintenance: http://www.cedarbureau.org/installation/care-maintenance.htm