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paul36752 This is a water front house build 2 feet above the 100 year flood plane. Those are garage doors under the house.

sburcheci I would personally do fiber cement . That vinyl siding looks cheap and feels that way too. Also I would look into how difficult it is to repaint vinyl. From what I know it's difficult because its tougher to scrape paint off because its not exactly solid. I'm also curious how vinyl would fit on inner corners and outer corners. I know fiber cement has trim pieces that it gets butted up to and then caulked.

Architectrunnerguy Fiber cement. Vinyl gennerally looks like doggie you know what. Especially the simulated cedar siding. Why are you just looking at this issue now? Wasn't a drawing or 3D renedering done during design?? And the difference in the two costs are huge!

Joseph I. Mycyk Architects, Inc. Fiber cement will never split, dry, have knots that pop out. You can get it factory primed, factory painted. It's non-combustible. Be sure to have a qualified contractor install it.

Shawn Lagemann Fiber Cement has the greatest return on the investment overall, for both resale and longevity.

feeny Another vote for fiber cement over vinyl.

A Kitchen That Works LLC Fiber cement all the way! Holds paint well, has a smaller environmental footprint and has a much more pleasing appearance. Why not use fiber cement shingles along with the fiber cement board and battons? I did this with my own house but I will admit that I did not use fiber cement battons because the sizing available in 2006 was not to my liking.

Travis Robert Renovations Our vote goes to Fiber Cement...

Concord Lumber Corporation We agree that fiber cement gives an overall better look that is closer to wood. Popular manufacturers are James Hardie and Certainteed. Both come in pre-primed boards as well as some beautiful pre-finished colors so you can avoid painting altogether. Both manufacturers warranty their color products for 15 years. Here are links to both sites:

Certainteed: http://www.certainteed.com/products/fiber-cement-siding/lap-siding
James Hardie: http://www.jameshardie.com/homeowner/index-all.shtml

Good luck with your project and we'd love to see pictures of the final product!

victorianbungalowranch Just so you know, the cement fiberboard will eventually need to be painted (15-20 years). It should be installed so that it breathes--moisture doesn't get trapped behind the siding and can evaporate. The shingle styles are quite nice and very appropiate for a lakeside home..It also comes in different types od sheets, which is somewhat cheaper to install and may be appropiate for the basement area.

Vinyl type cedar shakes are very fake looking, especially for large areas, and rather expensive. The lap siding is OK, but tends to not look as good with the detailing unless you get a very good installer. The color will never look like stained cedar--it will be one uniform color..

Whatever siding you choose, please don't skimp or eliminate the window casing and other trim--it makes a world of difference.

Real cedar is another option. It will be will have more variation in texture and color than the fiberboard, especially up close, and can be stained the red brown color you wish. The cost is about the same, or somewhat less. Depending on the style you get, shingles can look a lot like lap siding, have different widths to make interesting patterns, or be very wide and wrap around the corners. Or you can get lap siding and stain that. Each has a very different look.

I would consider a contrasting facia and soffit and a beltline between the different style of siding. It can help break up the side elevations and provide a transition between the different types of siding. I would just cover the bump-out with the same siding as the body and the bottom of the bump out to match the bottom of the house, and just run the trim or edge of the top siding into the side and continued on the same level and coursing on the other side. It could also be done in a contrasting style of siding, perhaps panels, especially if the siding was used elsewhere. Some ornamental stub brackets might be nice.

I was wondering what you plan on doing with the deck. Those posts are going to look very tall and rather spindly. Adding some cross braces and maybe beefing them up might help. How are you going to finish them?

You have a lot of options for siding designs with either cement fiberboard or cedar, as well as railing designs (perhaps glass or metal cable for a modern twist?). I would look into garage door styles and colors and trim for the side--that is massive and I think I would keep most of it monotone to minimize them.

Yes, your builder or architect should have some renderings of what various options would look like and cost..

Old World Remodeling I'm on board with with most everyone here. Fiber cement is so durable, and vinyl siding is not. The only draw back is fiber cement will always be a painted product, but still very long lasting.

valentine1961 Cement siding is a good product, but its also an expensive product. It all depends upon what your remaining budget allows. Its alot more money than vinyl siding, however in the long run it doesn't have the potential to fade like vinyl. Although, I have heard they're having issues with the board holding its color, so I would really do my research. I would look into several brands if I were going to choose a cement board.That is a huge house and I know that to do any type of siding on it will be costly. What about doing an engineered stone halfway up and do cedar on the upper portion. I will say that certainteed cedar impressions, which is a vinyl product, does not look fake, and they do come in a cedar color. They too are not cheap, but then what is. My husband has been a siding contractor for over 35 years so I've seen the good and the bad. Do your research before deciding to spend big bucks.

mariov1973 look into Nichiha cement fiber siding i used it and love it

Tia Harper Used the Hardie, hardieplank exterior siding, on my first spec house 8 yrs ago and am amazed everytime I drive by it. Looks like it is brand new! Have used it on 4 houses since then and love it.

Sunday I am building a house with Hardie Plank on the entire exterior including he window trim, the front porch will be Trex. The painters on painting the exterior within the next two weeks.

paul36752 I decided to use Nichiha lap siding on the top and board and batten on the bottom. I'm planning to have it painted like the house in this additional picture. What do you think? Thanks for all the help so far.