At the end of January 2012, CertainTeed announced that the life cycle analysis (LCA) of their fiber cement siding product they call WeatherBoard™ was published through the Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability (BEES) program and conducted by Sustainable Solution Corporation of Royersford, PA. A life cycle analysis studies the environmental and economic impact of a material throughout its life. BEES is the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST) online program that reviews and verifies a product's performance data based on 13 environmental impact categories: global warming potential, acid rain, resource depletion, indoor air quality, solid waste, eutrophication (the unwanted addition of mineral nutrients to the soil and water), ecological oxicity, ozone depletion, and smog. It also allows an economic comparison of using different products. The BEES site is http://ws680.nist.gov/Bees/. WeatherBoard™ has a lower environmental impact than "brick, dryvit outsulation and generic vinyl siding" and the recycled content decreases it "by 24% and 31% for global warming compared to the WeatherBoard™ silica based formula without recycled content" according to the LCA.
One parameter that can be set is the transportation distance from the manufacturing facility to the installation site accounting for the significance of using materials produced locally when possible. WeatherBoard™ is manufactured in Roaring River, NC (Wilkes County), Terra Haute, IN and White City, OR.
WeatherBoard™ siding gets LEED and NAHB credits for more than 30 percent recycled content which also creates better inter-laminar bonding. It is the only fiber cement siding with 3rd party validated LCA. It is low maintenance and durable with the LCA life rated at 50 years. The contents of the siding with recycled content are portland cement, fly ash, silica, wood pulp and water. It is fire-resistant with a Class A flame spread rating, impact-resistant, impervious to wood-boring insects, resists UV rays and will not rot. It is available in laps, panels, shingles and individual shakes, typically installed with galvanized nail fasteners, and "consistently outperforms wood siding." Even some historic districts accept its use because it has such an authentic natural woodgrain appearance. The optional ColorMax® finish is available in 16 solid shades and 6 natural stains or the boards can come primed and be painted any custom colors.
An article on "Fiber-cement siding" by Sal Vaglica in the March 2012 issue of This Old House estimates the cost range for clapboard fiber-cement siding to be from 70 cents to $5.25 per square foot uninstalled depending on finish and where it is sold. "It's the only siding that combines the performance of masonry...with the look of painted wood clapboards, shingles, even stone or brick."
On the NAHB Residentail Advanced Framing Product WeatherBoard™ rating credits are possible in 4 categories, 2-5 for 601.7 site-applied finish materials (ColorMax® finishing system only), 2-6 for 602.8 termite-resistant materials, 2-4 for 604.1 recycled content and 2 for 608.1 indigenous materials.
CertainTeed was founded in 1904 as General Roofing Manufacturing Company and is now a subsidiary of Saimt-Gobain with more than 6,000 employees in the U.S. and Canada. CertainTeed headquarters is in Valley Forge, PA. Their phone number for professionals is 800.233.8990 and for consumers is 800.782.8777.
CertainTeed's website http://www.certainteed.com/products/fiber-cement-siding/siding
suggests12 contractors in the Greenville/Spartanburg area with their contact information and it displays the number of years each one has been working with their fiber cement siding product. The entire 36 page LCA can be read on their site as well as detailed product information and even definitions of green terms.
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