Devon, is this the product you are referencing? It is Hardee Panel which is a 4x8 fiber cement panel.
If so, I have this product on one of my rental houses. Installed it 15 years ago and it looks just as good today as it did the day I put it up. It will require additional structural support, but will hold up to the elements well.
No, thats what I am going to side my house in though.
This is the stuff I was thinking of
I guess its not made by Hardie. I thought it was.
Devon, how expensive will the cement board be if you have to do it over. "I can't afford to do it right, but I can afford to do it over."
Steve, isn’t that the American (corporate) way? Never enough time or money to do it right, but always enough to do it over.
That’s true Steve for sure. I would hope that the cement board elevated off the ground and then treaded with a sealer wouldn’t need to be done over. Cetrsiy the PVC wouldn’t need to be done over that’s for sure. I am still very much h considering the 1x3 PVC for the ladder for that. Very reason.
Devon,
The board in your picture is Durock Cement board. Not sure if is rated for Ground Contact.
I am not putting it on the ground. The yard will be the top of an elevated cabinet. The only real exposure to moisture or weather (not found in the air)will be the surface which I want to treat with a sealer.
But I would still be concerned that it will deteriorate, I know PVC won’t in my lifetime. But if this stuff will hold up in this situation then it is certainly cheaper than PVC. I like being frugal but like Steve says I can’t afford to do it over.
I went back and read my first post and I have even confused myself. Originally I was thinking house siding like Dan H. posted a picture of which is fiber cement. Then I switched to the cement board idea with the fiberglass mesh. I didn’t really convey that. I apologize for being ambiguous.
Devon, I don’t think the cement backer board will hold up over time. It certainly was not designed for exterior horizontal use. Also, it is meant to have a solid subsurface to rest on like a plywood subfloor. The PVC that Steve suggested will be there for almost forever. Have you considered using the method that Ken has used on his new elevated RR. Have you considered just pouring an elevated concrete slab? It would take a little work but it will also be there for a long time.
There are many different brands and types that people refer to as “hardy backer”… I have used the stuff with the very smooth finish, no fiberglas webbing visible, and sold as waterproof. It’s more expensive than the stuff the Devon showed the picture of, and does not delaminate like the cheaper stuff that Kevin has experienced.
My yard is made of it. It is on the ground supported by composite 2x4’s about ever foot and a half. It’s been out for years, untreated, and “cleaning the track” in the yard involves a garden hose and on a strong stream.
Looks as good as the day I laid it… the key is the CHEAP stuff is NO GOOD for outside and the most expensive stuff is.
All good advice.
That’s why I love this site. All in all I think I am leaning toward the PVC. It not that big of an area. 12’ X 30" unless I expand its width a bit as Sean has suggested. Either way it will by far be the most extensive tack work in the layout with all the turnouts and therefor the most difficult to replace if it should go bad.
I am convinced that the right cement board with the proper treatment would outlast me. But is there a better product, I am thinking so. I am still a young guy and believe myself to be permanently located. So I hope that I get a solid 30+ years out of this layout. Making choices now for the most permanent solutions makes sense. Especially on a part of the layout I would likely not mess with to many times.
Of course I am probably full of poop. I will probably rearrange it a hundred time (this summer) and will move in a year.(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)
and will move in a year.
You better not. You have an open hose scheduled for next year.
That’s the third Sat in July. I will close on the fourth Sat(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif).
I actually got to thinking about this last night. I think I have found a way to way over engineer and way over complicate this process which will make the track and ladder system removable should I need to move or rearrange.
Over engineer, thems words I like.
David Maynard said:
Over engineer, thems words I like.
Let’s all give credit to Daktah John’s Department of Overengineering.
Greg is right about the difference in backer boards. I’ve used both and discovered quickly the stuff with the webbing comes apart quickly. The other that Greg uses holds up well and doesn’t need painting unless one likes the aesthetics of it. Sometimes it’s a little harder to find. HD and Lowes usually has it, but not always displayed with he cheaper webbed stuff.
MY Experience. I have used the thicker 1/2 hardi backer board, painted, as bases for buildings over gravel or on patio blocks and it holds up decent enough. I had some of the 1/4 stuff as scrap so I tried it for a short retaining wall behind the RR in direct contact with dirt on one side and it became brittle and cracked up like in Kevin S’s photo in about 2 years.
I have been using the 1/4 backer board to make roof panels for my various buildings and painting them brown or black. The material holds up well (so far) if it is not exposed to constant moisture.
It is tough to cut and watch out for the dust.
I would think you could build a frame and use the 1/2 type painted with a exterior coat and it would give you years of use at half the cost of plywood.
Do remember that each time you put a screw into it to hold your track down you are creating a hole for water to get in.
No matter what product I use it will have something applied to the surface of it. I want to have some sort of “dirt” for the yard but don’t want dirt. I was thinking, if considering the cement board, to use the black tar foundation sealer and then add sand to it while wet to give the yard some texture. If I go PVC I will use paint and do the same thing.
Whatever you use for texture Devon be sure to glue it down well. In my main yard which is a bench with a plywood top I sprinkled aquarium gravel all over it which looked good but every time it rained it would go all over the place and get into the switches.
If you go with the hardibacker surface or plywood you could get a roll of rolled roofing and put that on to give some texture and protection for your base. Do remember to seal the screw holes when you put down the track.
Todd, how do you get the roofing felt to drain after rain/snow? I plan to put down landscape fabric over hardware cloth in order to allow for drainage on my new elevated layout. Surface on top of the landscape fabric will be scoria (volcanic cinder fines), which will drain well as well. The biggest issue for me will be wind, moving the surface material around.
