Lynden Roofing Board & Batten Siding, Built for Ferndale's Weather
Board and batten has become one of the most requested siding styles in Whatcom County, and Ferndale homes wear it especially well. The strong vertical lines suit both the newer builds going up near town and the older farmhouses scattered around the outlying roads. But the look is only half the story. Ferndale sits close enough to Bellingham Bay and the Strait of Georgia that homes here deal with a steady mix of salt-laden air, wind-driven rain, and a long wet season that keeps north-facing walls damp for months at a time. A board and batten install that looks great for one season but fails at the seams by year five is not a good trade.
This page is about doing board and batten right for this specific area — the material choice, the details that matter in wet coastal-influenced climates, and the installation process we follow on every Ferndale job.
What Ferndale's Climate Actually Does to Vertical Siding
Vertical siding styles like board and batten have more seams than horizontal lap siding, and every seam is a place water can find its way behind the cladding if it's not detailed correctly. In a dry inland climate that's a minor concern. In Ferndale, it isn't.
Driving rain
Storms coming off the water push rain sideways, not straight down. That means water gets driven up and under battens and around fasteners, not just rinsed off the face of the wall. Vertical joints and batten laps need real overlap and proper flashing behind them, not just caulk holding two boards together.
Salt air
Homes closer to the water deal with airborne salt that accelerates corrosion on fasteners, trim edges, and any exposed metal flashing. Cheap or under-spec fasteners rust and streak the siding face long before the siding itself would ever wear out.
Moss season
Whatcom County's wet season runs long, and shaded, north-facing walls stay damp for weeks at a stretch. Moss and algae take hold fastest on siding materials that hold surface moisture or have a porous factory finish. A board and batten wall that can't dry out between rain events becomes a moss farm.
Why We Install Board & Batten Only in James Hardie Fiber Cement
Board and batten can be built out of several different materials, and each one behaves differently once it's on a Ferndale wall for a few winters.
Cedar board and batten looks beautiful new, but real wood siding needs ongoing maintenance — refinishing, caulk checks, and vigilance against moisture intrusion at the battens — to hold up in a climate this wet. Skip a maintenance cycle here and it shows fast. LP SmartSide is an engineered wood product, which means it's still wood at its core; it depends on an intact factory coating and careful field sealing of every cut edge to keep moisture out, and that dependency is a bigger liability on exposed, rain-driven walls. Vinyl board and batten is low-maintenance but it's a thin plastic product — it can warp or oil-can in temperature swings, it doesn't hold paint if you ever want to change the color, and it's the most fire-vulnerable option of the group.
We standardized on James Hardie fiber cement for every board and batten job we install, including here in Ferndale, for a few concrete reasons:
- Fiber cement doesn't rot, delaminate, or feed moss the way wood-based products can
- It's non-combustible, which matters given wildfire smoke and ember exposure now reach Western Washington in dry summer stretches
- Hardie's ColorPlus factory finish is baked on and warranted against fading and peeling, so it holds up against sun and salt air without a repaint cycle
- It carries a strong, transferable manufacturer warranty when installed to Hardie's published specifications
We're not going to tell you every home that has cedar or LP siding on it today has a problem — plenty of well-maintained installations hold up fine. What we will say is that when we're the ones installing new siding, we only put our name behind the product we trust to perform in this climate without asking the homeowner to babysit it.
What a Correct Board & Batten Installation Actually Involves
Board and batten looks simple from the ground — vertical boards, battens covering the seams — but the assembly behind the face is where the job succeeds or fails.
Rainscreen and drainage plane
We install a drainage gap behind the siding so any moisture that gets past the cladding has somewhere to go and can dry out, rather than sitting against the wall sheathing. This matters more in Ferndale than in a dry climate because the wall assembly stays damp longer after every rain event.
Weather-resistive barrier and flashing
Every window, door, and penetration gets flashed and integrated with the weather barrier before a single board goes up. This is the step that actually keeps driving rain out — the siding itself is the last line of defense, not the first.
Batten spacing and fastening
Battens need consistent spacing over the vertical boards and fasteners driven to Hardie's blind- or face-nailing specifications — over- or under-driven nails are one of the most common causes of premature siding failure, and it's a detail that's easy to rush on a crew that doesn't install fiber cement daily.
Corrosion-resistant fasteners and trim
Given the salt air exposure, we use fasteners and flashing metals suited for coastal-influenced conditions, not standard interior-grade hardware that will bleed rust streaks down the face of the siding within a couple of seasons.
Comparing Board & Batten Materials for a Ferndale Home
| Material | Moisture behavior in wet climate | Maintenance | Fire resistance |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Hardie fiber cement | Dimensionally stable, doesn't rot or feed moss growth | Occasional wash; factory finish holds color | Non-combustible |
| Cedar | Absorbs moisture; prone to cupping and rot without upkeep | Refinishing and sealant checks needed regularly | Combustible |
| LP SmartSide (engineered wood) | Depends on intact coating and sealed cut edges | Field-caulking and coating inspection needed | Combustible |
| Vinyl | Doesn't rot, but can trap moisture behind panels if detailing is poor | Low, but can't be repainted; fades over time | Softens and deforms under heat |
Our Process, Start to Finish
- On-site walkthrough of the existing wall, trim, and any moisture or rot issues before we quote anything
- Removal of old siding and inspection of the sheathing underneath — any soft or damaged wood gets addressed before new siding goes up, not covered over
- Installation of the weather-resistive barrier, flashing at every window, door, and penetration, and a drainage gap behind the cladding
- Installation of James Hardie vertical panels or boards and battens to manufacturer nailing and spacing specifications
- Trim, corner, and caulking detail work using materials rated for coastal exposure
- Final walkthrough with the homeowner and warranty paperwork registered with James Hardie
What to Check Before You Hire Anyone for Board & Batten in This Area
- Do they install a proper drainage plane behind vertical siding, or just nail boards straight to the weather barrier?
- Do they use corrosion-resistant fasteners appropriate for a coastal-influenced climate?
- Can they explain how they flash windows and doors before siding goes on, in plain language?
- Are they a certified James Hardie installer, and will the warranty be registered in your name?
- Have they actually worked on homes in Ferndale or similar Whatcom County conditions before?
Why It Matters That We Already Work in Ferndale
Siding crews that mostly work drier inland areas can get away with shortcuts that don't hold up here. A crew that already works Ferndale and the surrounding Whatcom County coastline knows which walls take the worst of the driving rain, how long moss season really runs, and why fastener choice isn't a place to cut corners this close to salt water. That local pattern recognition shows up in the details — where extra flashing goes, which corners need more attention, how a wall needs to be able to dry out between storms.
It also means we're not learning on your house. We've seen how board and batten performs after a few Whatcom County winters, and we build every install around what actually holds up here, not just what looks good on install day.
If you're weighing board and batten siding for a Ferndale home, we're happy to walk the property, look at your existing siding and trim condition, and give you a straight answer on what the job actually involves. Reach out for a free, no-pressure estimate using the form below.