How To Install Cedar Shingle Siding: The Professional Installation Guide

Installing cedar shingle siding requires meticulous attention to moisture management, proper fastening schedules, and precise exposure lines to ensure a resilient, architecturally striking exterior that lasts for decades. By integrating a continuous rainscreen drainage plane, utilizing stainless steel ring-shank fasteners, and maintaining strict gap allowances, you will prevent premature material failure and wood rot.

Pre-Operation & Planning Checklist

Executing a cedar shingle installation demands proper site prep, specialized carpentry tools, and a firm grasp of building envelope physics. Shingles are dynamic wood products that expand and contract with seasonal humidity fluctuations; thus, material acclimation and precise flashing details are non-negotiable.

• Essential gear, tools, and materials: Circular saw with a fine-tooth carbide blade, utility knife, block plane, shingle hatchet or pneumatic siding nailer with depth control, stainless steel or hot-dipped galvanized ring-shank nails, chalk line, stainless steel staples, story pole, builder's level, safety glasses, and hearing protection. Grade-A Western Red Cedar or Northern White Cedar shingles along with pre-formed corner pieces.
• Mandatory prerequisite knowledge and standards: Compliance with local building codes, installation of a weather-resistive barrier (WRB) combined with a dimpled or zippered rainscreen mat, and adherence to manufacturer guidelines regarding minimum ground clearances (6 to 8 inches above grade).
• Estimated budget and duration benchmarks: Material costs generally range from $8 to $15 per square foot installed, depending on shingle grade. A standard two-person crew can typically prep and install 1 to 1.5 squares (100 to 150 square feet) per day.

Step-by-Step Installation Workflow

Step 1: Weather-Resistive Barrier and Ryscreen Setup

Begin by completely wrapping the wall assembly with a high-performance weather-resistive barrier (WRB), ensuring proper lapping (minimum 2 inches for horizontal seams and 6 inches for vertical seams) to shed incidental moisture. Over the WRB, install a vertical rainscreen drainage mat to create a mandatory minimum 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch ventilation gap behind the cedar shingles. This air space allows trapped moisture to drain downward and evaporates residual humidity, preventing moisture from becoming trapped against the structural sheathing.

Warning: Never install cedar shingles directly over flat plywood or OSB without a breathable WRB and a drainage gap. Trapped vapor will cause the back of the shingles to rot prematurely.

Step 2: Establishing the Starter Course and Chalk Lines

Measure down from the top of the wall or up from your starting reference line, accounting for the desired first-course overhang (typically 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch below the sill plate). Snap a level chalk line around the entire perimeter of the building to serve as the baseline for the starter course. Nail a double-thick starter course along this line, using wider, heavier shingles or ripping standard shingles to create a solid drip edge.

Pro-Tip: Build a story pole—a straight 1x3 lumber piece marked with your exact exposure lines (e.g., 5 inches for 16-inch shingles)—to transfer course heights cleanly across windows, doors, and corners without relying on continuous level lines that can drift.

Step 3: Sorting and Spacing Shingles for Expansion

Sort through your shingle bundles before nailing, blending bundles to ensure an even distribution of grain densities and natural color variations. As you lay each course across the wall, maintain a consistent 1/4-inch expansion gap between adjacent shingles. Cedar expands significantly when wet; butting shingles tightly together will cause buckling, cupping, and splitting along the nailing line as seasonal moisture levels rise.

Step 4: Fastening Protocols and Course Progression

Fasten each shingle using two ring-shank nails driven approximately 3/4 inch in from each edge, and roughly 1 inch above the butt line of the subsequent course (about 1 inch above the exposure line). Never drive nails through the exposed portion of the shingle below, and ensure nail heads are flush with the wood surface—do not sink them into depressions that crush wood fibers. Stagger the vertical joints between courses so that no joint aligns within 1 1/2 inches of a joint in the courses immediately above or below it.

Step 5: Constructing Inside and Outside Corners

For professional-grade corners, utilize factory-made woven corner units or manually interleave alternating cedar shingles at inside and outside corners. When weaving outside corners, overlap alternating left- and right-facing shingles, trimming the overlapping edge flush with a block plane or utility knife for a crisp, plumb line. Ensure a continuous flashing membrane is applied underneath all corner assemblies prior to shingle attachment to protect the vulnerable building intersections.

Cedar Siding Material and Fastener Specifications

Common Site Failures and Field Fixes

• Root Cause: Black streaks and rust stains bleeding from fastener heads down the face of the shingles.
  
  
  • Actionable Fix: Replace non-rated steel fasteners immediately with Type 304 or 316 stainless steel ring-shank nails. Wash stained areas with an oxalic acid-based wood cleaner to neutralize iron tannin reactions.
• Root Cause: Shingles cracking, buckling, or popping loose along the wall surface.
  
  
  • Actionable Fix: Inspect for missing expansion gaps. Remove buckled sections, trim the shingle edges to restore the mandatory 1/4-inch spacing, and refasten with proper ring-shank nails.
• Root Cause: Premature rotting at the bottom wall plate due to splash-back moisture.
  
  
  • Actionable Fix: Carefully cut away the bottom 2 inches of compromised shingles using a multi-tool, install a retrofitted metal drip edge and flashing tape, and splice in a rot-resistant replacement starter course.
• Root Cause: Wavy, unaligned horizontal coursing visible from a distance.
  
  
  • Actionable Fix: Stop installation immediately, pull the story pole measurements, and check reference levels. Use wood shims behind subsequent courses to gradually blend and correct course drift over a span of several feet.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do cedar shingle siding installations require pre-treatment or staining?

While Western Red Cedar contains natural extractives that resist decay, treating shingles with a breathable, penetrating oil-based sealer or bleaching oil helps maintain color consistency and wards off UV degradation. Apply finishes to all six sides before installation for ultimate weather protection, or allow untreated wood to weather naturally to a silvery-gray patina.

What is the ideal exposure for 16-inch cedar shingles?

The standard exposure for 16-inch (Fivex) shingles is 3-3/4 inches for single-course application on walls. For a double-course application, exposures can be extended up to 12 inches, provided a heavy-duty underlayment shingle is installed beneath the outer layer.

How do I prevent moisture from penetrating around windows and doors?

Integrate self-adhered flashing tape (blueskin) around all rough openings, creating a proper shingle-lap drainage sequence with window flanges, head flashings, and the exterior WRB. Ensure shingle courses terminate cleanly against J-channel alternatives or custom-milled wood trim pieces bedded in exterior-grade sealant.

Can cedar shingles be installed directly over brick or masonry?

Yes, but you must first install pressure-treated vertical wood furring strips anchored securely into the masonry to create a dead-air space, followed by exterior-grade plywood sheathing, a reliable WRB, and the rainscreen mat before nailing the shingles.

Master Your Exterior Construction Project Today

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