Use the online James Hardie preferred dealer locator or call customer service at 1-888-JHARDIE for your closest sales representative.

Call customer service at 1-888-JHARDIE for your closest sales representative.

While prices vary from market to market, this is how HardiePlank siding compares in installed price with its competitors:

• More expensive than Vinyl
• Less expensive than Brick
• Equal or less than Hardboard Siding
• Less expensive than Synthetic Stucco

Yes, HardiePlank lap siding must be painted or you may order many James Hardie products with ColorPlus Technology. If painting, 100% acrylic topcoats are recommended. Do not paint when wet. For specific recommendations, please refer to JH Technical Bulletin No. S-100 or refer to paint manufacturers specifications. Back rolling is recommended if the siding is sprayed. Within 180 days for primed product and 90 days for unprimed. DO NOT use stain or oil/alkyd base paints on James Hardie® products.

Silica (SiO²) comprises approximately 75% of the earth's crust and is a common ingredient in most products used in the tile and masonry industry, including cement-based underlayment materials such as HardieBacker cement board. In an intact state, these products do not pose a silica risk. However, when cut, drilled, or abraded during installation, the resulting smaller, silica-containing dust can pose a potential health hazard as inhalation of excessive quantities over an extended duration can cause silicosis, lung-cancer, or other lung-related diseases, potentially leading to death.

To protect workers from potential health effects, OSHA established and enforces a permissible exposure limit (PEL) for respirable silica of 0.100 µg/m³. This PEL is an 8-hour time weighted average and requires the use of special industrial hygiene equipment to measure. Any exposures above this level will mandate the installer to take additional protective measures, potentially including a documented respirator program and medical monitoring.

As safety is paramount, James Hardie always encourages you to take every effort possible to minimize any dust exposure levels. In any situation, properly-fitted NIOSH approved respirators (e.g. N95) can be used in conjunction with the following tools and cutting methods to further limit silica dust exposures, providing a safer workplace.

If additional concern regarding dust exposure levels (or exceeding OSHA´s PEL) exists or the conditions of your jobsite do not allow you to conform to any of the following practices, please contact James Hardie at 1-888-JHARDIE or consult a qualified industrial hygienist. A directory of independent IH consultants can be found at www.aiha.org.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Prior to using any James Hardie® products, all users must read all applicable warnings (including MSDS) and comply with all installation instructions. Failure to do so may result in serious personal injury.

To help you have a safer jobsite, James Hardie has developed the following "tiered" system to help you select the best tools and methods for your given job requirements. This system has been based around exposure testing in what James Hardie believes to be real-world conditions to ensure that you can have a safe jobsite. Note: For maximum protection (lowest respirable dust exposures), James Hardie always recommends using "Best"-level cutting methods where feasible. If you do not adhere to the recommended cutting instructions, please contact James Hardie or consult with a qualified industrial hygienist.

TOOL RATING CATEGORY	CUTTING METHOD	CUTTING RATE¹	VENTILATION
BEST	HANDHELD SHEARS PLATFORM SHEARS SCORE AND SNAP	NO LIMITATIONS	INDOOR / OUTDOOR
BETTER	DUST-REDUCING SAWS WITH HARDIEBLADE™ SAW BLADE COUPLED WITH HEPA VACUUM EXTRACTION	NO LIMITATIONS	OUTDOOR
GOOD	DUST-REDUCING SAWS WITH HARDIEBLADE SAW BLADE	LOW TO MODERATE	OUTDOOR

¹Cutting rate is based on linear feet of material actually being cut

NEVER use high speed power tools (e.g. circular saws, grinders, etc) to cut James Hardie Products indoors as they may generate excessive respirable silica dust

No. Many products in the building industry contain silica including fiber cement. Other products include bricks, concrete, tile, abrasives, grout, thin-set, glass, roofing tiles, gypsum wallboard, joint compound, stucco patch, mortar, and cementitious tile underlayments.

No. The silica in James Hardie products does not pose any danger during handling or to the homeowner once the product is installed. Respirable silica only poses a potential hazard from James Hardie products during certain activities that create dust (e.g., cutting, grinding, drilling, sanding, or otherwise abrading) and only if excessive amounts of respirable silica are present in the user´s immediate breathing area. James Hardie products in their intact state do not emit dust.

No. You should only use shears and the score-and-snap method indoors. If a power saw is needed, all cutting should be done outdoors in a well-ventilated area.

The HardieBlade™ saw blade has been designed specifically for James Hardie fiber cement. Testing to date appears to suggest that a saw blade designed with fewer teeth generally creates larger dust particles (greater than 10 microns in diameter), thereby reducing the amount of smaller, respirable dust generated and reducing the risk for high exposures of respirable silica. On the other side, testing also suggests that masonry-type blades (such as continuous or segmented diamond rim blades) and abrasive blades are designed differently and create more respirable dust. As a rule of thumb, less teeth equates to lower respirable silica exposures.

Our best practices have been designed to help you reduce any hazard risk by utilizing techniques and tools that produce the lowest levels of respirable silica dust without requiring a respirator. However, if you decide to take additional protective measures and use respirators, we require that a NIOSH/MSHA approved respirator with a rating of N95 or better.

It is important to note that OSHA may require a formal respirator program be in place prior to respirator use. A program should include (but is not limited to) training, fit-testing, and medical monitoring. Please consult www.osha.gov to learn more about the requirements for properly implementing a respirator program.

James Hardie as well as the Model Building Codes (IBC, IRC, and UBC) require the use of a water-resistive barrier. It is good building practice.

Yes, you can blind nail HardiePlank siding. This can be done up to 24" on center. Please consult NER-405 Report (Table 2) for complete details. Staples cannot be used.

Please refer to our complete HardiePlank siding installation instructions.

The following are suitable trim products for use with HardiePlank siding:

• Fiber Cement
• Real Wood
• Engineered Wood
• Vinyl
• Coated or Corrosion-Resistant Aluminum

"K" and "R" values are listed in the product brochure and the NER-405 Report (See Table 4).

Yes, please refer to NER-405 Report (Tables 2 & 3) for product application details.

Model Building Codes (UBC, Standard, etc.) require that exterior sidings be installed with a minimum 6'' clearance of soil. This will allow for clearance when soil is back-filled against the foundation and footings.

Any weather-resistant barrier complying with the Model Building Codes (UBC, Standard, etc.) is acceptable.