Mount Vernon One Product, One Standard
Homeowners in Mount Vernon sometimes ask why we don't offer a menu of siding brands the way some contractors do — LP SmartSide here, vinyl there, maybe some Cemplank or Allura if that's what a customer requests. The honest answer is that we made a decision years ago to install only James Hardie fiber cement siding, on every home, every time. This page explains the reasoning, not to talk down other products, but so you understand what you're actually getting when you hire us.
Why Skagit County Siding Takes a Beating
Mount Vernon sits close enough to Puget Sound and the Skagit River delta that homes deal with salt-laden air, long stretches of driving rain off the water, and a moss season that can run eight or nine months out of the year on north-facing walls and shaded lots. That combination is hard on siding in ways that don't show up right away. Moisture gets into seams and fastener holes, moss holds dampness against the wall assembly, and cheaper coatings chalk or fade faster under the freeze-thaw cycles we get in the Skagit Valley winters. We've spent enough years re-siding homes in this county to know which products age well here and which ones need constant attention.
What James Hardie Actually Is
James Hardie siding is fiber cement — a blend of Portland cement, sand, and cellulose fibers pressed and cured into planks, panels, and trim boards. It's not plastic, and it's not wood. That matters in three specific ways for a house in this climate:
- It's non-combustible. Fiber cement doesn't feed a fire the way wood-based or foam-core products can, which matters for insurance conversations as much as safety.
- It doesn't rot or delaminate from moisture the way wood-based siding can. Constant rain and coastal humidity are exactly the conditions that break down organic siding materials over time.
- It holds paint and factory finish far longer than wood or vinyl because the material itself is dimensionally stable — it doesn't expand and contract with moisture the way wood fibers do.
The HZ5 Line: Built for Where We Live
James Hardie engineers different product formulations for different climate zones. In Mount Vernon, we install their HZ5 line, engineered specifically for regions with significant moisture exposure and freeze-thaw cycling — which describes most of Western Washington. It's a different manufacturing spec than what gets shipped to drier, warmer parts of the country, and it's one more reason we don't substitute a generic fiber cement product for it.
ColorPlus Technology
Most of the Hardie siding we install uses their factory-applied ColorPlus finish rather than field painting. The finish is baked on in a controlled environment through multiple coats, which gives it better adhesion and UV resistance than a site-applied paint job typically achieves — especially important on a coastal-influenced job site where weather windows for painting are unpredictable. It also means better color consistency across the whole house and touch-up paint that's formulated to match.
The Warranty Backing It Up
James Hardie backs its siding with a transferable limited warranty, and the ColorPlus finish carries its own separate finish warranty. Warranty terms and coverage details vary by product line, so we walk through the specifics for your project rather than quoting generic numbers — but the structure itself is worth noting: it's a manufacturer standing behind both the substrate and the finish, and it transfers to a new owner if you sell the house, which matters for resale.
Correct Installation Is Not Optional
Fiber cement siding performs the way it's supposed to only when it's installed to Hardie's published specifications — proper clearances above grade and roof lines, correct fastener placement, sealed joints and butt seams, and flashing details that actually shed water instead of trapping it. A lot of the horror stories people hear about fiber cement siding trace back to installation shortcuts, not the material itself. We train to the manufacturer's spec because in a climate like ours, the margin for error is smaller than it looks.
Why We Don't Offer Alternatives
We get asked about LP SmartSide, vinyl, cedar, and other fiber cement brands fairly often. Each has legitimate uses somewhere. But we're a small local crew, not a big-box operation, and stocking one product line lets us install it right every single time instead of being average at five different systems. After years of tear-offs and repair calls in Skagit County, James Hardie is the product we're willing to put our name behind.
Colors and Styles Available
Hardie's lineup covers most architectural styles you'll see around Mount Vernon — lap siding in several reveal widths, vertical board-and-batten, shingle-style panels, and matching trim boards. ColorPlus offers a curated palette designed to hold up outdoors long-term, and the material can also be field-painted if you want a custom color down the road.
If you're planning a siding project in Mount Vernon or elsewhere in Skagit County and want to understand your real options, we're happy to walk your property, look at sun and moisture exposure, and talk through what James Hardie would look like on your home. Reach out for a free, no-pressure estimate — no obligation, just straight answers.