The modern assortment of materials for decorating the facades of private houses is so huge that only professionals can navigate freely in this diversity. It is difficult for an ordinary person to understand the names and compositions, and it is even more difficult to choose a high-quality finish for specific wall material, to take into account all the nuances related to insulation and ventilation.
Therefore, facade works are increasingly entrusted only to professional builders. But you can figure this out on your own, thereby saving a considerable amount of money.
In this article, the most popular materials for finishing the facade will be considered, and the most modern materials that have appeared on the construction market in recent years will be discussed here.
In order to adequately withstand all the listed factors, the exterior finish must have a number of special qualities:
- The facade should be beautiful, because it is the face of a private house. The appearance of the decoration must be in harmony with the surrounding area and the structure of the building.
- The finish must be durable, because it simply has to last at least 15-20 years to be replaced in the process of the next capital repair of the house.
- Weather conditions such as frost, extreme heat, rain, snow and wind are not dangerous for high-quality finishing of facades. The wall covering should not crack, peel off, lose its external appeal, burn out, etc.
- It is desirable that the facade covering material has the ability to “breathe”, that is, it is breathable. If this quality is not present in the selected finish, you will have to arrange ventilation of the facade, and this is an additional cost.
- A beautiful facade plays the role of insulation, it retains heat without releasing it outside the walls of the house. Modern finishing materials, as a rule, meet such heat-technical requirements.
- In no case should the decoration of the facade burn or release toxic substances in the process of melting – the safety of the residents of the building depends on this.
- Microorganisms, fungi, or insects should not spread in the processing material. After all, it is mold, the movements of bugs, and other troubles that become the root cause of the appearance of microcracks, and later the complete destruction of the facade.
Facade plasters
One of the most ancient methods of exterior decoration is wall plastering. Modern facade plaster has a lot of useful properties, protects walls well from external factors,
and decorates any building.
There are many advantages of facade plaster:
- rapid improvement of the appearance of a private house;
- the possibility of painting the plaster in any shade;
- moisture resistance;
- resistance to ultraviolet radiation;
- the ability to tolerate frost and heat;
- good thermal insulation qualities;
- vapor permeability, that is, the ability to “breathe”;
- ease of installation and low cost.
Stone decoration
Stone walls are a long-lasting and decorative solution of all existing ones. The cost of natural stone is very high, so this treatment is often combined with other types or replaced with artificial stone.
Decorative (artificial) stone is an order of magnitude cheaper, and weighs much less, which is important for facade decoration. The advantages of stone walls are obvious:
- the facade is very durableand , almost never needs repair;
- the high aesthetics of this option for finishing the facade of the house is not in doubt, the stone fits perfectly in any way;
- the material is ecological;
- the stone does not deteriorate from moist,ure, sun and cold;
- the walls of the house are very resistant to mechanical damage and wind load.
Artificial stone is capable of imitating any natural rocks (from slate and sandstone to marble and granite), has a wide palette, and its qualities are practically not inferior to natural ones. But the cost of artificial stone treatment will still be very high.
Brick cladding
For the decoration of facades, not simple building bricks are used, but its decorative types. Each type of facade brick has its pros and cons, but all materials from this group share common qualities:
- excellent appearance;
- mass of textures and colors;
- different shapes and sizes;
- good resistance to negative manifestations of the external environment.
Siding for the facade
Decorative stone is one of the most popular decoration materials. It is inexpensive, with excellent decorative qualities and simple installation. In addition, facades sheathed with siding are very durable (up to 50 years), and retain heat well. Siding is often used to decorate very old buildings – the structure is instantly transformed. You can consult a siding contractor to choose which type of siding is right for you.
There are several types of external siding:
- Initially, the walls were covered with vinyl siding, which can imitate almost any surface (from wood to natural stone). It is difficult to be disappointed in this finishing materialbecausese it is cheap, but resistant to external factors, very durable, easy and quick to install.
- The simplest house can be finished with wooden siding, and it will look like an expensive natural log house. This is done for cladding facades made of wood: boards or beams. The facades are beautiful, they do not need additional insulation, but the wooden finish will not last long.
- Another facade material is metal siding. These are steel sheets covered with a thin layer of zinc or colored polymers. The facades are beautiful, last a long time and are well used, but they do not retain heat and strongly transmit extraneous sounds into the house.
- Cement siding is obtained by pressing cellulose and cement. The operational qualities of this treatment are comparable to stone. Siding does not burn, but it has a lot of weight and is difficult to mount on facades.
