Guides: how an exterior goes together, and how to buy one.

Reference material we would hand a builder on the first day: what holds water out, what closes the top of a wall, and what to look for in a quote.

Envelope systems
What a rainscreen cavity does
A gap behind the cladding is not a detail — it is the part of the wall that lets it dry. What it does, and the three ways it stops working.
Read the guide
Siding
Choosing a fibre cement board
Thickness, fixing pattern, movement joints and the finish. Four things that decide whether a fibre cement elevation still looks right in ten years.
Read the guide
Soffit and fascia
Soffit, fascia and the gutter
The eave is where the roof, the wall and the drainage meet. Three components, one junction, and the place a lot of water damage starts.
Read the guide
Working with a contractor
Reading a siding quote
Six questions that separate a price you can compare from a number that will move once the scaffold is up.
Read the guide

Site notes and trade notes, as they happen.