RAINSCREEN SIDING SYSTEM

A Rainscreen siding system refers to the style of installation and fastening of the siding material to the structure. Rainscreen siding systems have an air gap between the siding material and the structure itself. This air gap is typically in the range of 3/4" and offers numerous benefits including thermal insulation and moisture stability of the siding boards - which is particularly important when using high density hardwoods such as Ipe, Batu and Cumaru. In modern rainscreen siding systems attached with clips, there is an additional air gap between the actual siding boards themselves; the gap is very small typically around 1/16" - and it is completely invisible when looking at the finished rainscreen system after installation.

Rainscreen siding systems have been around for centuries. Amazingly, some of these all wood structures which were designed and built in the 12th century in Norway and are still standing today. The key design principal is much the same then as it is with modern Rainscreen siding systems today: there is an air gap between the structure and wood siding boards. This both protects the structure underneath and it keeps the outer cladding boards perfectly stable because there is airflow or ventilation on the outside and behind the wood siding boards.

Air is allowed to circulate around the perimeter of every individual piece of the wood siding. Regardless of whether the air is moist or dry it stil circulates and flows evenly around the boards. The gap between boards is about 1/8" and is completely hidden from view. Most rainscreen systems keep the boards about 3/4" off the wall.

Keeping the humidity levels consistent on both sides of the individual wood siding boards helps to keep them stable and prevents cupping or warping of the clap boards. It should also be noted that both hardwood and softwood will still expand or swell when the material is exposed to higher average humidity levels and that the boards will shrink when exposed to drier lower humidity levels. The movement can be addressed in the clip design and is precisely the reason that we designed our own patented rainscreen clip system.

In each of the three directions, longitudinal, radial and tangential, sawn lumber behaves differently with respect to changes in humidity or moisture content. In the longitudinal direction, wood is very stable exhibiting practically no movement whatsoever with changes in moisture content. In the radial direction, from the center of the tree to the bark, wood moves about half as much as it does in the tangential direction, along the growth rings of the tree. Wood is the most stable when the growth rings are oriented in the same direction as the thickness of the piece - this is commonly referred to as vertical grain or quartersawn lumber. The largest amount of movement by percentage is therefore isolated to the smallest dimension, the thickness.