For David, selecting the right material to complement the characterful stone cladding was an important part of the self build process. “Larch is popular with a lot of architects, and I can see the attraction. However, my wife and I don’t like the fact that if you walk around a property, the boards will have weathered at diff erent rates. Some will be brown, some will be grey and some will be black. It’s not for us,” he says. After much deliberation and careful research, David and Pia opted to go with a fibre cement product called HardiePlank.
“Ultimately, we felt it would weather better in the climate up here, where it would be very exposed to the elements,” says David. “Unless I tell people, they don’t know it’s not wood. It’s also got a clean, uniform finish that we both like.” Fibre cement is a composite material made of cement reinforced with cellulose fibres. It is an ultra durable form of cladding as it is water resistant and does not rot, warp or crack. It is also impervious to termites and a range of other pests. In addition, it is fire retardant and will not ignite when exposed to direct flames or extreme heat, in short, it is a non-combustible material.