In case you might be wondering what exactly cladding means in building a home. Cladding is a way to give your home extra protection, weather resistance, and thermal insulation. At the same time, it helps to improve the general look of a building.
Presently, certain types of cladding are fire-retardant and/or PEFC-certified to prevent fire emergencies.
Additional technological innovations contained in this process include self-cleaning types that are ecological FSC-certified cladding and impact-resistant. Also, several commercial buildings and office structures now found a way to LED into their cladding model.
There are several benefits every building stands to enjoy from this aspect of building. You do not want to have your house cladding done wrongly or with the wrong materials. Hence, you need to ensure you choose the best wall cladding material that will benefit your home.
Moreover, if you must select the best wall cladding material, first, you need all the knowledge you can get. You must first evaluate the various appearances, finishes, configurations, and colors.
Start by recognizing which areas of your home or building need cladding. Then point out the areas that have more exposure to harsh heat, sun, cold, or rain.
To help you do this well, we already put together a guide to the varieties present in the systems and the materials. These varieties will follow as guides on the following aspects.
Types Of Cladding Systems And Material
We will begin with the top wall cladding material. They include:
Stone
Stone is very reliable, even though it can crack with time. This majorly depends on its density and exposure to harsh weather conditions. This category of material is not limited to only types of natural stone. There are engineered stones, too.
Wood
Wood is the best option for simple and country-style residences. Getting wood might be expensive. Plus, it tends to crack with time, especially when it’s not properly treated, remedied, and maintained. Furthermore, this category comprises natural types of wood just as it contains engineered wood.
Metal
This remains the most durable category of wall cladding material. It might come at an expensive price, however. More so, titanium or bronze sits at the top of the list of these metals.
In all, there are still other broad varieties of wall cladding material that you can get for your home.
What are the types of cladding systems you can choose from?
The cladding systems will change the look of that home or building. Also, it can give the protection needed from harsh temperatures; be it hot or cold.
There are a variety of cladding systems out there. They include constituents like a sheet, panels, cassettes, strips, brickwork, textiles, mesh, tubes, and shingles.
First off, the brickwork system consists of outward cladding made with bricks. This system is suitable for homes that are not shielded from cold weather conditions.
This is because the bricks added to the outward façade give thermal insulation. That way, the cladding can protect the home from external climate factors. In addition, the cassette panel system is an adaptable open-jointed system founded on the Rainscreen precept.
This system is perfect for horizontal or vertical application on both low and high-rise buildings. You will find the cassettes with bent edges and are bound with clips to an aluminum skeleton. This is then restrained to the cladding.
Types Of Cladding Finishes
There are numerous types of finishes available for cladding. Among them, the most well-known choices are polished, smooth, natural, and lacquered. Whichever one you choose will depend on personal preference and what your budget allows.
Select the finish that will best complete the exterior of your home or building. You can also change it accordingly when you need to make adjustments or renovate your home exterior.
There are still other types of finishes. Some of them are:
- Matte
- Textured
- Ribbed
- Sandblasted
- Perforated
- Patina
- Reflective
- Brushed
- Grooved
- Painted
- High-gloss
- Oxidized
- 3D-printed
- Bush hammered
- Lozenge-patterned
- Aged
- Oiled
- Rounded
- Embossed
- Satin
- Metalized
- Mirror
Color Options for Cladding
Check out your neighborhood’s local planning regulations to find out if there is a specific color or colors for walls or cladding required in your area.
Also, it is good to consider multi-colored cladding for your home. Have you imagined a house with a red terracotta-style cladding on the top half and a paler shade on the bottom? The sight is beautiful.
Before you go on with the project, get a digital mock-up of your home. That way, you can get a vivid picture of what the finished result of that multi-colored cladding will look like.
Furthermore, if you intend to sell your home in the next few years, ensure the cladding is in neutral colors. That can entice likely buyers.
Finally, not all cladding comes in a full range of colors. Know the colors at your disposal for each type of wall cladding material. Then, you can decide more appropriately. Again, do not forget that color can be another source of expenses on your original cladding cost.
Cladding Appearance Options
The appearance you choose for the cladding can have a telling influence on the general appearance of the building.
In some cases, some wall cladding material came with an appearance similar to terracotta, stone, or wood. That leaves a simple and rustic appearance.
As for cladding that appears like bricks, they consist of tiny coatings of masonry. This takes up the appearance of regular bricks. You can find this in both homes and commercial buildings.
More so, modern urban buildings, more often than not, have cladding that takes the appearance of concrete or metal.
Additionally, there are other appearances usable for wall cladding material. These appearances can develop a different translucent appearance, tile appearance, fabric appearance, and 3D effect. Some of these appearance options are:
- 3D
- Stone
- Concrete
- Wood
- Terracotta
- Metal
- Fabric
- Brick
- Tile
Cladding Installation Process
You can install your cladding work in two major ways. First is the single-skin cladding and the other is the double-skin cladding.
The single-skin cladding sees the cladding added to the building directly in a way that serves as an outward barrier. And the double-skin sees insulation being inserted in between the two coatings of cladding.
There are also other ways, such as the ventilated cladding and the pre-assembled insulation cladding. Keep this in mind! Install ventilation as that will help prevent moisture retention in the following places:
- Beneath the paneling.
- Between the cladding and the load-bearing wall
- Between the cladding and the insulation.
When there is no insulation, the density of the cleats is always sufficient to establish this blade.
Best Ways To Go About Cladding Maintenance
This majorly depends on the cladding system used as well as the material you installed in your home or building. These two are the most important decisions to make concerning cladding. They are the primary criteria you must pay attention to for satisfactory maintenance.
Note that time may lessen the aesthetic touch of the finish. Do well to restore the cladding when the breakdown starts. The only grace you can get is to apply a new finish.
Here are other tips to pay attention to for proper maintenance:
Get Replacement For Broken Cladding Or Elements
Whenever and wherever you see a broken piece, get a replacement for it instantly. And when elements peel or fall off, find a new replacement for them instantly.
Wipe Out Dirt And Stains
Get rid of any stains or traces of dirt and pollution from around your cladding. Do this before painting and applying other kinds of treatment.
Reapplying a fresh coat of paint every year works great to keep your cladding appearance classy always.
Give Your Cladding Weather Protection Treatments
Use glues and sealers where and when you need to. That way, you can keep the cladding unscathed during harsh hot and cold climatic conditions
Other Features to Consider
Whether it is in the home or the commercial markets, there are numerous extra details for wall cladding material you must consider. Some of these other features are:
- Durability
- Incombustible Cladding
- Fire Resistance
- Impact Resistance
These are other features that are crucial to have for wall cladding in houses and other kinds of buildings. As for low and high-rise buildings, other cladding features to look out for are:
- FSC Certification
- PEFC Certification
- Integrated LED
- Backlit
One major recent trend is cladding with a green wall. Most homes and buildings prefer to go for the kind of wall cladding decorated with grass, moss, and plants. They give off an exterior that looks better. Plus, it enriches the surroundings at the same time.
Advantages Of Wall Cladding Material
Note first that what we have made clear is that there is a vast array of distinct wall cladding material, systems, and designs.
Selecting the best wall cladding material for your home is not the simplest of tasks. Yet, with the advantages outlined below, you will understand why cladding your home is necessary.
1. Proper Protection
The right wall cladding material will properly protect your home for a long period. The right materials do not get short-lived. It is not the right one if it doesn’t last long.
Keep in mind also that the best wall cladding material will ably shield your home or building. Regardless of whatever degree of weather and environmental conditions you might face, your protection is certain.
These materials can give your building the capacity to weather storms, heat waves, rain, hail, dust, moisture, snow, corrosion, and saline conditions.
Therefore, ensure you make this choice with a realistic reference to the existing climatic conditions around your home or buildings.
2. The Best Of Aesthetic Charm
Adequate wall cladding material should emphasize the aesthetics of your environment. When the right materials are used, the aesthetics are even more fascinating. Note that an aesthetically desirable house gives room for true enjoyment for the occupants.
Understand also that should you want to sell it later on, the look can be very helpful. The look will give your home an increased market value. With wall cladding, the homeowner can harmonize the finish on the walls of their buildings with the remote surroundings.
If you must give your home a truly pleasing aura and aesthetics, do not ignore suitability. For instance, using wood cladding will add that sense of class to your home.
However, it might be expensive to maintain it. Hence, when selecting the ideal wall cladding for you alongside the materials, go for something suitable but still appear nice.
3. Easy Installation
With the best wall cladding material to execute your preferred wall cladding, the next step, which is to install it, becomes simple. Depending on the structure of your house and the material you choose, this could be one of the easiest tasks throughout.
Therefore, when you’re out to buy your wall cladding material, consider your home’s structural layout. That should guide your choice on which wall cladding material would offer you that easy installation. Usually, we prefer to have our clients go for a recommended lightweight material.
The lightweight material is not just simple to convey. Also, the installation will be effortless. In turn, that will save you costs and time in both ways. You don’t want the installation job to be difficult.
That will only eat up more of your time. At the end of it all, you will incur needless labor and transportation expenses.
4. Easy To Maintain Even In Years To Come
We continually stress the need to always think ahead to prevent unexpected difficulties and expenses. So, choosing the best wall cladding material is essential. When you go for the best material, you avail yourself of the maintenance requirements that follow.
Don’t just pick a particular wall cladding material. Find out about the necessary maintenance activities and expenses. Don’t choose one with maintenance duties you know you cannot cope with. There is a certain material that guarantees stability with close to no maintenance at all.
5. Insulation
Wall cladding with the right material comes in as perfect insulation for the interior of the building. The material employed to develop the wall cladding will define its insulation properties.
Conclusion
Watch out for the best wall cladding material based on all of the aspects outlined in this article. With the right choice now, you save yourself money, time, and energy in the near future.
