DeBord Custom Homes, Inc.
DeBord Custom HomesDavid DeBordPresident of DeBord Custom Homes, Virginia Beach, Va.
Dow Styrofoam Weathermate Plus Housewrap
Dow's Styrofoam Weathermate Plus Housewrap is a non-woven, non-perforated, polyolefin-based housewrap that offers an effective option for builders who prefer to use noninsulating sheathing along with a housewrap. Styrofoam Weathermate Plus is translucent to allow clear view of application surface. Compared with other leading non-woven, non-perforated housewraps, Styrofoam Weathermate Plus offers superior tear resistance and outstanding durability. It can also remain uncovered for up to 120 days. IN MY OWN WORDS "There are a number of house wraps on the market, but our choice has become the Dow Corning product. We have found it to be very wearable in a high-wind, coastal environment. Because of its thickness, it is much more difficult to tear and withstands our Bay side wind factors with high marks. It doesn't shred like another wrap we have used." HB&G offers a variety of architectural columns, railings, posts, balustrade systems, ceiling materials and accessories. Also available are a wide variety of porch products to help builders create the design that best suits a home's style. Best of all, many of HB&G's products require little or no maintenance and come with a lifetime guarantee. The company's PermaCast columns are cast from a proprietary, fiber-reinforced polymer composite with exceptional strength-to-weight characteristics. Requiring minimum maintenance, these columns are weatherproof, insect-proof and highly durable. IN MY OWN WORDS "Our houses in East Beach use a lot of column details that help define the particular characteristics of traditional neighborhood developments. Front porches are a central architectural focal point for many of these homes. For example, a manor home we are currently building features approximately $20,000 of HB&G columns. The house is literally wrapped in columns of various sizes and styles. The main focus is the large fluted columns that define our large, double-wrap-around front porch. The HB&G columns are sturdy and stately and serve our needs very well." James Hardie siding is a low maintenance product that, unlike vinyl, doesn't sacrifice the beauty and character of wood. Available pre-finished with a 15-year paint warranty, James Hardie fiber-cement siding resists rotting or cracking as well as damage from rain, hail and flying debris. Best of all, James Hardie siding is noncombustible and comes with a limited, transferable warranty for up to 50 years. James Hardie is the only manufacturer that maintains a research and development center devoted solely to fiber-cement technology for siding, backerboard and pipe. IN MY OWN WORDS "Hardiplank fiber cement siding is one of the approved exterior finish materials we use in our East Beach, traditional neighborhood development. Hardiplank siding and trim materials give us many of the aesthetic trim details we need with a long-wear characteristic. When used in conjunction with Azek trim materials, we get beautiful and long-lasting exteriors. And they take both hold paint very well." With the look, feel and sound of clear premium lumber, the Azek brand of cellular PVC trimboards is available in standard trimboards, beadboard, cornerboard, sheet sizes and new precision-crafted millwork. Manufactured in a proprietary process, Azek trimboards are consistent and uniform throughout with no voids. Available in premium lengths of 18 or 20 feet, all edges are square and smooth, so joints and corners match easily. Protective packaging applied at the factory helps to ensure that Azek bundles arrive in good condition. IN MY OWN WORDS "When I built my own home on the Chesapeake Bay a few years ago, I wanted it to be as maintenance-free as possible in what is an environmentally hostile setting. Salt water is hard on exterior surfaces. In choosing a cellular PVC material like Azek, I found a material that served all my purposes: It looks, works and holds paint like wood and — best of all — wears well in the salt water environment. I am now building homes in a new traditional neighborhood development called East Beach in Norfolk, Va. We are making ample use of Azek materials in our extensively detailed exterior cornice and porch trim packages." AdvanTech flooring and sheathing panels by Huber Engineered Woods are specifically engineered to provide more water resistance and stability than plywood. AdvanTech VIP is the first structural-use panel with proprietary design capacities that are superior to those of commodity PS-2 panels. AdvanTech sheathing panels are used for roof and wall sheathing as well as sub-flooring in two-layer systems. IN MY OWN WORDS "I have been using AdvanTech tongue-and-groove underlayment for our floor systems for some time. "Because of cost, we recently used a different brand of underlayment and noticed an unusual number of holes in the floor. Following this experience, we returned to the AdvanTech floor system."