Ferndale Board & Batten in a Neighborhood That Sits Right on the Water
Board and batten has a particular look — tall, clean vertical lines broken by narrow battens over each seam — that suits the mix of craftsman cottages, updated bungalows, and newer builds you find around Fairhaven. It reads as classic Pacific Northwest coastal architecture, which is part of why we get asked about it so often out here. But the style choice is only half the conversation. The other half is what this specific stretch of Whatcom County coastline does to exterior materials over time, and whether the siding underneath that vertical pattern is actually built to take it.
This page is about that second half: what correct board and batten installation looks like for a home in Fairhaven specifically, why we install it in James Hardie fiber cement and nothing else, and what you should expect from a crew that's done this work up and down this coastline before.
What Fairhaven's Climate Actually Does to Siding
Being close to the water changes the math on exterior materials. Three things matter most here:
Salt air
Airborne salt from the bay doesn't just sit on the surface — it works into fasteners, trim joints, and any exposed cut edge. Over years, salt exposure accelerates corrosion in anything less than a fully corrosion-resistant fastener, and it can degrade paint and finish coatings faster than the same product would wear a few miles inland.
Driving rain
Storms off the water don't fall straight down — wind-driven rain hits walls at an angle and finds its way behind poorly flashed seams, gaps at trim, and anywhere the water-resistive barrier wasn't detailed correctly. Vertical siding styles like board and batten have more seams per square foot than a horizontal lap pattern, which means more places for a sloppy install to go wrong.
A long moss season
Shaded walls, north-facing elevations, and anywhere airflow is restricted behind the siding stay damp for extended stretches through fall, winter, and spring. That's exactly the environment moss and algae need. Siding that can't dry out between rain events, or that traps moisture behind it, will grow moss at the joints and battens faster than siding that's properly vented and finished.
None of this is unique to any one house in Fairhaven — it's a function of sitting this close to Bellingham Bay and getting the full weather pattern that comes with it. It just means the margin for installation error is smaller here than it would be for the same house set back from the water.
Why We Only Install James Hardie for This
Board and batten can be built out of a few different materials, and we get asked why we standardized on James Hardie fiber cement instead of offering options. The short answer: fiber cement handles the three problems above better than the alternatives, and James Hardie's engineered product lines are built specifically for climates like this one.
- It doesn't rot. Fiber cement isn't wood, so the moisture that gets past any siding system eventually doesn't turn into soft, rotting boards the way cedar can.
- It's dimensionally stable. It doesn't swell and shrink with humidity swings the way engineered wood products can, which matters at every batten seam.
- The finish is factory-applied. James Hardie's ColorPlus finish is baked on under controlled conditions, not brushed on a job site, and it's backed by its own warranty against fading and peeling — a real advantage in a climate that's hard on field-applied paint.
- It's non-combustible. Fiber cement won't contribute fuel to a fire, which matters more every year given regional wildfire smoke and ember exposure even this far west.
- It's engineered for wet, cold climates. James Hardie makes climate-specific product formulations, and the versions specified for the Pacific Northwest are built with our rain and humidity pattern in mind rather than a one-size-fits-all national spec.
We don't install vinyl, LP SmartSide, primed spruce, or cedar board and batten. It's not that those products have no merit — cedar looks good and vinyl is cheap, for example — but each carries a real-world trade-off (rot risk, moisture sensitivity, field-finish maintenance, or a shorter service life in a marine climate) that we're not willing to put our name behind on a Fairhaven home. James Hardie is what we've standardized on because it's what holds up here.
How Board & Batten Compares by Material
| Factor | James Hardie Fiber Cement | Cedar (Real Wood) | Engineered Wood (LP-type) | Vinyl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt air / corrosion resistance | Strong — non-organic, factory finish | Moderate — finish wears, grain absorbs salt | Moderate — coating is the weak point | Strong material, but fasteners/trim still corrode |
| Moss/algae resistance | Good when installed with proper ventilation | Poor — organic material feeds growth | Fair — depends on coating condition | Fair — moss grows on surface film, not the panel |
| Moisture/rot risk | Very low — non-combustible, non-organic | High if finish fails | Moderate — swells if edges are exposed | Low, but traps moisture behind it if not vented |
| Ongoing maintenance | Low — factory finish, occasional wash | High — refinishing on a repeat cycle | Moderate — repaint and edge-sealing over time | Low, but can crack/fade and isn't repairable in place |
| Fire resistance | Non-combustible | Combustible | Combustible | Melts/deforms under heat |
| Typical warranty structure | Long, transferable factory warranty | None from a "manufacturer" — it's raw material | Manufacturer warranty, often condition-heavy | Manufacturer warranty, often prorated |
What a Correct Board & Batten Install Actually Involves
The style is simple to picture, but a durable board and batten job is more technical than it looks, especially on a house exposed to driving rain. What we hold to on every project:
The drainage plane comes first
Before any siding goes up, the wall needs a proper weather-resistive barrier and, in most cases, a rain screen gap — vertical furring strips that hold the siding off the sheathing so water that does get behind it can drain and the wall can actually dry. Skipping this is the single most common shortcut we see in board and batten installs, and it's the one most likely to cause moss and rot problems down the line in a wet climate.
Fasteners matter more here than most places
Given the salt air, we use corrosion-resistant fasteners rated for the exposure, placed and spaced to James Hardie's fastening requirements — not whatever was fastest to shoot.
Flashing at every horizontal break
Window heads, trim boards, and any horizontal transition need flashing detailed to shed water outward, not just caulk. Caulk is a supplement to good flashing, never a substitute for it.
Batten placement and seam coverage
Battens need to land squarely over the underlying panel seams with consistent reveal, both for the look and because that seam is where water pressure concentrates during a wind-driven storm.
Field cuts get sealed
Any cut edge on a fiber cement panel needs to be treated per manufacturer spec before it's closed up, so the cut edge doesn't become the one unprotected point on an otherwise weather-tight wall.
Our Process for Fairhaven Homes
- On-site walkthrough. We look at existing siding condition, wall exposure (which elevations take the worst of the wind-driven rain), and any signs of moisture or moss already present.
- Tear-off and sheathing check. Once old siding is off, we can actually see the sheathing and framing — this is where hidden moisture damage from a prior installation often shows up.
- Weather barrier and rain screen installation. This is the step that determines how the wall performs for the next several decades, not the visible siding on top of it.
- James Hardie board & batten installation, fastened and flashed to spec, with battens set to consistent reveal.
- Trim, caulk joints, and final detailing at corners, window surrounds, and transitions.
- Walkthrough with you before we call it finished.
Because we work this coastline regularly, we're not guessing at exposure conditions from a spec sheet — we've seen which elevations in this area take the worst weather and we plan the drainage and flashing details around that from the start, not as an afterthought.
What Affects Cost on a Board & Batten Project
| Cost Factor | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Condition of existing siding and sheathing | Hidden rot or moisture damage found at tear-off adds repair scope before new siding can go on |
| Wall height and accessibility | Multi-story walls, tight side yards, or steep grade affect staging and labor time |
| Amount of trim and detail work | Board and batten has more seams and battens per square foot than lap siding, which adds material and install time |
| Whole-house vs. accent application | Many homes use board and batten as a gable or entry accent rather than the full exterior — scope changes the cost proportionally |
| Color and finish selection | Factory ColorPlus finishes vary by line; some premium colors and profiles cost more than base options |
We don't quote from a distance for this reason — an accurate number needs an actual look at the walls, not just a square footage guess.
Maintaining Board & Batten in This Climate
James Hardie siding installed correctly is genuinely low-maintenance, but "low" doesn't mean "none" — especially this close to the water. A simple annual routine goes a long way:
- Rinse salt residue and general grime off the walls, particularly the side facing the water, once or twice a year
- Walk the exterior and look for moss or algae starting at battens, joints, or shaded/north-facing walls, and clean it early before it spreads
- Check caulked joints at trim and window surrounds for cracking or separation
- Keep gutters clear so overflow isn't running down and pooling behind siding at corners
- Trim back any vegetation or landscaping that's holding moisture against a wall
- Avoid high-pressure washing directly at seams and joints — a garden hose and soft brush is enough
- Have fastener heads and any exposed trim checked periodically for early corrosion, especially on the water-facing elevation
Why It Matters to Hire a Crew That Already Works Fairhaven
Board and batten in a coastal Whatcom County climate isn't a forgiving style to get wrong. A crew that mostly installs siding inland, or that doesn't build in a rain screen as standard practice, can produce a wall that looks right on install day and shows moss, staining, or corrosion within a few seasons. We install James Hardie board and batten because it's the product built for this weather, and we detail every job — flashing, fastening, drainage — assuming the driving rain and salt air we know this area gets, not a generic national spec sheet.
If you're weighing board and batten for a home in Fairhaven, we're glad to come take a look, walk the exterior with you, and put together a straightforward, no-pressure estimate — just fill out the form below.