Our Installs

Wall Assembly

Having spent time working for a building product manufacturer before starting our business, we understand how importance following best practices and local codes are in providing our homeowners with valid warranties and peace of mind.
We follow both manufacturer recommendations and local building code to ensure what goes behind your siding looks just as great long term as the finished product.

We install Tyvek Homewrap as a standard building paper on all of our projects that involve going back to sheathing. And when we install exterior insulation, we always upgrade that building paper to Tyvek Drainwrap as per their recommendations.

Openings like doors and windows get Protecto peel and stick, a non permeable membrane surrounding them for a lasting defence against moisture.

Hardie Siding Products

Trim Tabs

Wherever possible, we install our Hardie Trims (typically installed around doors, windows, and corners) with trim tabs.

These are metal tabs stapled in to the back of Hardie Trim, which are subsequently fastened to the framing. The alternative is to fasten directly through the face of the trims - sometimes necessary, but if done everywhere likely to cause some unsightly nail holes.

Using trim tabs are an option and not required by Hardie, but are a standard for Blue Jay. The additional cost of installing with tabs is well worth the ultra clean finish they help provide.

Custom Gable Js

We make and install custom metal Js for Hardie Planks to tuck into in gable terminations. If that is difficult to understand, check out the picture above. That small, white piece of metal that the siding is terminating into along the soffit line? It’s a small item, but it makes a big difference in the finished look of your gables.

The alternative is having each plank butt directly into the soffit line. Like the trim tabs, doing that detail without the J is still warranted, but is likely to look off in certain areas as irregularities in the soffit line will make a clean aesthetic difficult.

Metal Slip Sheets

Behind each butt joint (where two Hardie planks meet each other on the wall), we install metal slip sheets. The requirement from Hardie here is a 6” square of something that sheds moisture and doesn’t react with the planks.

The standard in metro Edmonton is to simply cut an additional 6” square of the building paper and install it behind the plank. This is a warranted installation, but unfortunately can result in a shabby aesthetic. As the butt joints open up on the wall (as they will do with some frequency with temperature changes), you can see flashes of bright white building paper, or the branding on it.

Alternatively, we install 6” squares of pre-cut, metal slip sheets. Unless we’re installing white siding, we purchase these in a similar or darker shade than the siding you’ve selected so when the siding does open up, all you see is a shadow.

Sturdimount Penetrations

At common penetration areas, such as around your exterior lights and hose bibs, we install Sturdimount penetration mounts. These mounts are gorgeous, pre-built PVC blocks that are self flashed and really clean up the look of areas that can otherwise be eye sores on your home.

Conversely, the traditional Hardie installs in metro Edmonton for penetrations either use lower grade PVC mounts that can trap moisture and are not warranted by Hardie, or are cut on site from Hardie Trim. Both options are less expensive than Sturdimounts, but unfortunately neither give that consistent, ultra-clean finish that Sturdimount provides our installations.

Fasteners

When we install Hardie siding, we expect our installation and the product to last 50+ years on your home. The product itself is warranted by the manufacturer for 30 years non-prorated - so why would you have a contractor put it up with fasteners that hold no warranty, or aren’t expected to last as long as the lifetime of the product?

Our standard fastener for Hardie installations is a stainless steel nail. This is a significant upgrade on the cheap fasteners used by the majority of our competition, and the cost reflects that. As such, we’ve worked with our supplier to bring these in by the pallet for us to keep costs reasonable for our clients - and allows us to confidently tell you that we install only the best siding nails on your home.

Alternatively, we do offer a hot dip galvanized option for a discount to the stainless steel nails. While not as long lasting as our stainless option, these nails do exceed the industry standard. We only purchase hot dipped nails that are backed with warranties. Unfortunately, this is not the case for the average fastener purchased - with the main goal being to purchase the cheapest product possible.