Number two even if you tried to match the exposure of the existing siding let s say the dutch siding is 5 on center and you picked 6 1 4 hardi that would also have a 5 exposure so that you would always be nailing.
Hardie board over existing wood siding.
Most hardie board siding comes with a 50 year limited transferable warranty.
Hardie board siding can be made to mimic just about any other siding material including wood lap boards cedar shingles and wood shake siding.
Left unchecked small issues can become major problems that could end up costing thousands of dollars to rectify.
Why siding over existing siding is a bad move yes you may be able to save some money by not removing the old siding but that old siding could be hiding problems that may bite you down the road.
This siding is completely rot and insect resistant and can even handle salt spray from the ocean.
Using existing siding for replacing siding the best place to start is to closely examine the existing siding to get a good understanding of what condition it is actually in.
The manufacturers specifically say that to install their product over existing siding is to void the warranty.
Without properly inspecting and examining your current siding it s probably hard to tell its actual condition.
Imo it would not be a good idea to go over it.
Keeping your existing siding.
That said this is where you want to start when deciding if you should keep it.
According to the best practices manual from james hardie existing siding can be used as a substrate as long as it is in good condition meaning that it is not warped.
James hardie is the world leader in fiber cement siding and backerboard.
Any lower and you might see a few nail heads poking through the bottom of the next board any higher and your siding is likely to be loose and.
The james hardie manual actually agrees that current siding works fine for a substrate but only if it s in acceptable.
We ve been providing a better way to build for over 100 years.
Liquid nails is not a bonding mortar.
Hardie plank siding has a nail line across the top of the board that is 1 down from the top and nails are supposed to fall between and 1 from the top of the board to give the best hold.
Surprisingly many vinyl siding manufacturers state that it s perfectly acceptable to install their product over old siding.
Where hardiebacker board is being installed over a code complying subfloor for the attachment of tile the board is installed over a 3 32 1 4 thick bed of bonding mortar and then nailed down.