If you are pricing weatherboard installation in Melbourne, the decision that matters most is not the installer — it is the material. Timber, fibre cement, metal, vinyl and composite behave very differently on a Melbourne wall, and the cheapest board on the day is rarely the cheapest board over twenty years. This guide sets out what each one does, how the job actually runs, and where it goes wrong.
The short version
- Five materials are in common use here: timber, fibre cement, metal, vinyl and composite timber. Only timber and composite need painting as part of normal upkeep.
- The two profiles you will be quoted are classic weatherboard and shiplap. Shiplap sits flatter and sheds water at the joint; classic overlaps and is more forgiving of uneven framing.
- Boards go on from the bottom up, overlapping, with flashing at every window, door and corner. Flashing is where most water problems begin.
- Fibre cement, metal and vinyl do not rot. Timber does, and on a southern or exposed wall it will need repainting about every five years on the west and north elevations, and up to eight on the sheltered sides.
- There is no reliable per-square-metre rate for installation. Condition, access and how much of the existing wall has to come off move it too far, so the only number worth having is a quote for your wall.
Most people arrive at this question because something has already failed — a board has gone soft under a window, paint is flaking in sheets, or a builder has said the cladding needs replacing rather than patching. That is the right moment to think about material, because you are paying for the labour either way and the labour is most of the bill.
The honest headline is that there is no single best weatherboard. Timber looks right on a period home and is the only option under most heritage overlays. Fibre cement will outlast it with less attention. Vinyl needs almost nothing and looks like vinyl. What follows is what each one costs you in maintenance rather than what it costs on the invoice.
What weatherboards are doing
Weatherboards are a rain screen. They are not waterproof on their own and they are not meant to be — water gets behind them in driving rain, and the wall works because that water can drain and dry before it reaches the frame. Everything that goes wrong with cladding is a variation on water getting in and not being able to get out again.
That is why flashing, overlap and gaps matter more than the board itself. A cheap board installed correctly outlasts an expensive board installed tight to the frame with no drainage path. It is also why painting over a wall that is already holding moisture seals the problem in rather than fixing it.
The five materials, compared
Timber — the default on period Melbourne homes.
Upkeep: painting on a cycle.
Rots: yes, at cut ends and where it stays wet.
Heritage: usually the only accepted option.
Timber is what most inner-suburb homes already have, and matching it is often not a choice. It moves with the weather, holds paint well when prepared properly, and punishes neglect faster than anything else on this list.
Fibre cement — the common modern replacement.
Upkeep: painting, but for appearance rather than protection.
Rots: no.
Heritage: sometimes accepted in profiles that mimic timber.
It is heavier and harder to cut than timber, and cutting it makes silica dust that has to be managed properly. In exchange you get a board that does not rot, does not feed borers, and does not care how long you leave it.
Metal — usually steel or aluminium.
Upkeep: washing.
Rots: no, but can corrode at cut edges and fixings.
Heritage: rarely accepted on a street facade.
Metal suits contemporary builds and exposed sites. The finish is factory-applied, so a scratch is a repair rather than a touch-up.
Vinyl — the lowest-maintenance option.
Upkeep: washing.
Rots: no.
Heritage: not accepted.
Vinyl is never painted and never needs to be. It is the cheapest to live with and the least convincing to look at, which is why it appears on rear elevations more often than front ones.
Composite timber — engineered board.
Upkeep: painting.
Rots: resistant rather than immune.
Heritage: case by case.
Composite tries to sit between timber and fibre cement: more dimensionally stable than timber, lighter than fibre cement, and priced accordingly.
Why there is no single answer
Three things move the decision more than personal taste. The first is whether your property sits under a heritage overlay, because that can rule out four of the five materials on the street-facing wall regardless of what you would prefer. Your council is the authority on this, not your builder.
The second is exposure. A north-west wall in full sun and a shaded south wall behind a fence age at completely different rates, and it is normal for one elevation of a house to need work while the others are sound. The third is access — a two-storey rear elevation on a sloping block costs more to clad than a single-fronted cottage of the same area, because the scaffold does.
How the installation runs
- Strip and inspect. The old cladding comes off and the frame underneath is checked. This is the step that changes quotes, because rotten studs and noggins are not visible until the wall is open.
- Repair the frame. Any damaged framing is replaced before new boards go anywhere near it. Cladding over soft framing buys a few years at most.
- Flashing and wrap. Flashing goes around every window, door and corner, and the wall wrap is lapped so water runs outward rather than inward.
- Boards, bottom up. Each course overlaps the one below. Starting at the bottom is what makes the overlap shed water instead of collecting it.
- Seal and coat. Joints and cut ends are sealed, then primed and painted. Cut ends are where timber drinks, so sealing them is not optional.
Things people do not see coming
The frame is worse than the cladding. Boards are the visible symptom. If water has been getting in for years, the studs behind them have been wet for years too, and that is found on day one rather than at quote stage.
Old cladding may contain asbestos. Fibre cement sheeting installed before the late 1980s can contain asbestos, and it cannot be cut, drilled or removed like modern board. It has to be tested first and removed under the rules that apply to it.
Lead paint on pre-1970 timber. Sanding old paintwork on an older home releases lead dust. It changes how the preparation is done and what happens to the debris.
Matching an existing profile is not always possible. Older boards were milled to sizes that are no longer stocked. Sometimes a patch has to be machined to match, which is slower and dearer than buying a length off the rack.
When to stop doing it yourself
Replacing one or two boards at ground level on a sound wall is a reasonable job for someone confident with tools. Cutting them accurately, sealing the ends and matching the paint is the hard part, not the fixing.
It stops being sensible at height, at scale, or the moment the wall is opened up and the framing is not sound. Anything above single-storey reach needs proper access rather than a ladder, and framing repair is structural work. If the old sheeting might contain asbestos, it is not a decision about confidence at all.
Keeping them sound afterwards
- Wash down annually — most paint failure on the shaded side starts as mould, not as sun damage.
- Keep garden beds, mulch and paving clear of the bottom board so it can dry.
- Check the cut ends around windows each spring; they fail before the middle of a board does.
- Repaint on a cycle — roughly five years on the west and north elevations, up to eight on the sheltered sides. Repaint when the surface starts chalking, not when it starts flaking. Once it flakes you are paying for preparation as well as paint.
Get a quote for weatherboard work
We repair, replace and paint weatherboards with the same crew, so the timber work and the painting are not two trades and two schedules. That matters most on this job, because the point at which you find out how bad the frame is comes after the wall is open. Call 0403 162 374 or request a quote, and we will come and look at the wall before anyone quotes a number.
This guide is general information about weatherboard materials and installation, not advice for a specific property. Costs, permit requirements and heritage restrictions vary by council, site condition and access. Asbestos testing and removal are regulated in Victoria by WorkSafe Victoria, and structural framing repair may require a registered building practitioner. Confirm the requirements for your own property before you commit.
A friend found reviews of this company on a neighbourhood website so I included MCM in my list when I sought quotes for repairing and painting weatherboards on my house.
