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utherjorge
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# Posted: 1 Feb 2026 02:08pm
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I spoke today to the spray foam guy: going to shoot for end of March to do the underside of the ceiling.
However, yesterday, I was speaking to the awesome contractor guy who did my driveway/pad. Here's what my plan was for the exterior of my cabin shell:
Board and batten shell, with boards, not with T-111 siding. I was going to go with foam board in between the batten strips. Then housewrap (or rainscreen????) over that. Then LP Smartside over that.
My guy said no, housewrap then insulation over that, then whatever siding.
Obviously it will still settle and dry some more, and we have been bombed with snow down there like everyone else. No construction is taking place yet...but I'm close! Considering getting some stuff done in a couple weeks when I have time off from work.
Thank you in advance as always!
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DRP
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# Posted: 1 Feb 2026 06:21pm
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I'd say your guy is in line with this thinking;
https://buildingscience.com/documents/insights/bsi-001-the-perfect-wall
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Brettny
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# Posted: 2 Feb 2026 10:49am
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Your putting foam board over the boards on the exterior and spraying in the studio bays?
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Steve_S
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# Posted: 2 Feb 2026 11:59am
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Your contractor "guy" is correct. Do the walls, then wrap, then add the exterior 1" Foam Sheet, then strapping running VERTICALLY anchored into the studs/frame then Horizontally to attach your back boards to allowing for at least 1" space between boards then your battens to cover that gap. This provides an "air gap" thermal break which will not hold moisture and prevent heat/cold transfer from the outside to the inside.
If you do your Roof in a Cool-Roof method, you can connect that "air-gap" to your soffits so that as the roof warms, convection will pull the air up and vent it out on the Roofs Ridge Vent, which further prevents humidity or damp + keeps the structure neutral.
I designed my home using these methods and it's seriously efficient and having thermally broken walls/roof really prevents heat gain in summer & heat loss in winter... IE: My Radiant heating only runs 3 cycles of 2 hours within a 24hr period to maintain 25C/75F when it is -30C/-22F outside. In the summer when it is 40C/104F outside, the house never gets over 27C/80F and I no longer own an AC system.
A difference to your Board-Batten, I did Live Edge Cedar, using 8" cut cedar backboards with Live Edge Cedar face boards on the exterior. My roof is Forest Green Tin, so it does pretty good convection and run a full length Ridge Vent which pulls lot's of air up and out.
*NB: I am within a protected northern arboreal forest, which is primarily evergreens, and therefore my home blends in and is almost invisible as a result. The downside is that chipmunks & squirrels think it's a huge tree and run up along the sides sometimes.
** The roof seems thick, well it is, from the inside finish to the outside of the tin it is 13-1/2" thick, with PolyISO Sheet Insulation between the rafters.
Some photo's attached to help.
Cool Roof design
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Batter Cross Batten (Roof & Wall)
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Cabin front - pre-porch
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gcrank1
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# Posted: 2 Feb 2026 12:04pm
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If I had built our cabin again that is how I would want to do it!
And if my house burned down/blew away that is the kind of build I would use.
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 3 Feb 2026 05:49pm
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OK, so as always...amazing help and ideas. The last time I did a thread, you all gave me ideas I hadn't considered and I've shifted my plans accordingly. It looks like yet again, what I thought I knew was incorrect.
So, the interior ceiling will be spray foamed. There's already a lay of some such (I'd have to dig up exactly what it is) under the metal roof, and that will be spray foamed.
My thought was to do rockwool in the interior spaces between studs. Plastic sheeting vapor barrier and then T&G on top for the interior walls.
If I do all that, for something that won't be a permanent home (12x16 cabin on skids) and has interior hear for when I need it...should I go through the trouble of putting that LP smartside stuff up for aesthetics? Or can I simply seal the cracks as needed and stain the exterior for aesthetics and let 'er rip?
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Brettny
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# Posted: 3 Feb 2026 07:24pm
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What are you doing on the floor? All that with no solid floor insulation and the floor will still be as cold as the outside.
Honestly I wouldn't even bother with spray foam on a 12x16. Just use foam board and put it between thr studs and use canned foam around it.
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 3 Feb 2026 09:06pm
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we have talked about jacking up the cabin to get under it to insulate, but I am not thrilled about that idea at all.
Like...the very opposite of being thrilled about an idea.
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 8 Feb 2026 11:24am
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bumping for this question from before:
If I do all that, for something that won't be a permanent home (12x16 cabin on skids) and has interior hear for when I need it...should I go through the trouble of putting that LP smartside stuff up for aesthetics? Or can I simply seal the cracks as needed and stain the exterior for aesthetics and let 'er rip?
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Brettny
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# Posted: 8 Feb 2026 05:13pm
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Personally I wouldnt re side it. I would however let it dry if its not kiln dried then cawlk every batten to the board and use a oil based stain on it.
We have a storage shed that was a temporary cabin with next to no insulation that was rough cut green board and batten. It's about 6yrs old. I stained it the first year. Some cracks opened up and you can see some light between the battens. I didn't cawlk everyone,just the worst. I wouldnt risk getting the insulation wet in yours for a few tubes of cawlk.
The oil based stain I used weathered superbly. It was TWP 1500 series.
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 10 Feb 2026 08:32pm
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Brettny: what did you use for caulk? TWP being oil-based, what did you find worked.
I don't like the colors that much for the 1500 but the redwood can work if it has too lol
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Brettny
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# Posted: 11 Feb 2026 05:58am
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I used a brown caulk home depot had duraflex or something. It was about $7 a tube. Not cheap but I have had cheap caulk crack and pull away even in interior situations. I didn't try to caulk the seams right after staining. Some I did well prior and most well after. I used a pump garden sprayer on my 10x14 shed bit it clogged and failed on the last wall. On my 20x32 1.5story cabin with t111, I used a spray gun that ran directly from a 5gal bucket. It was way faster. I also back brushed every bit of both buildings with a 6in stain brush.
My t1 11 siding needs a second coat and really could have used it 3yrs ago when I did it but it was fall and I was ready to move inside to insulate.
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Tanner
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# Posted: 14 Feb 2026 01:06pm - Edited by: Tanner
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Here's my process for the exterior of our camp in New Brunswick: First, wrapped camp in house wrap against the sheathing. Next, spaced 1 inch strapping 16" on center, then filled that space with 1 inch insulation board (r3, I think). Then applied our hemlock board and batten that I had applied CWF-UV natural preservative before installing the sideing.
Walls are 2x6, r22 insulation between studs.
Gary
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Tanner
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# Posted: 14 Feb 2026 01:11pm
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I installed the true 1" strapping to give better nailing for the board and batten
Gary
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gcrank1
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# Posted: 14 Feb 2026 10:30pm
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Looks great!
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 18 Feb 2026 11:25pm
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I'm not having any luck with caulk products.
TWP does not recommend any caulking products at all.
Different caulk companies also claim that you can't use their caulk with TWP since it is a deep-penetrating stain.
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DRP
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# Posted: 19 Feb 2026 12:23pm
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That sounds like a stain problem rather than a caulk problem.
This is a full line supplier,
https://www.sashco.com/products/
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2026 07:09pm
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Sashco replied to me and told me that they cannot support some oil-based stains: I'm pasting their replies here:
Hello David,
I received your inquiry about Big Stretch compatibility with oil based stain on your project.
Big Stretch works with many types of oil base finishes. But it depends on what type of oil stain you use. If you use a film-forming oil, you should have no issues with adhesion. On the other hand, if you're using a non-drying oil product, your sealants are apt to fail.
Can you share with me which stain you've chosen?
I then replied TWP1500. To which I received:
David,
None of our sealants are compatible with TWP deep penetrating oil stains.
I suggest calling TWP to ask for their recommendation. If you have any additional questions for Sashco, please let me know.
And I hope your project goes well.
I had already asked TWP what they thought. Their reply was this:
Sorry, we do not have any caulk suggestions. It does need to be compatible with oil-based stains.
So! I went down to (up to?) the cabin today to fool around for a variety of reasons. One of them was to see what exactly I have going on when it comes to the battens. It will surprise none of you that you all are correct. Specifically, DRP, Steve_S, and Tanner appear to be the way I'll go. It will be super easy to pop off the battens. Then, housewrap, then go horizontal like you see with Tanner, and I'll reuse the vertical battens over the top of the horizontal strips/foam board and place the Smartside. It's definitely more work and almost certainly more money but I want to be able to enjoy it 4 seasons.
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Brettny
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2026 07:22pm
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With wood siding if you don't go with a oil base deep penitrating stain your just treating the surface. Wood like to move and Crack. With any of that a surface coating is worthless. Just ask anyone who has a painted house in a moist climate.
However if your going to reside the place why not start finishing the interior and in the summer do the exterior? But then again its just a 12x16 cabin..could you just use 1-2in foam on the exterior and be happy with the interior like it is? No interior Insulation,drywall or wall coverings?
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DRP
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# Posted: 20 Feb 2026 08:09pm
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It sounds like you already have TWP applied... my earlier point was, don't use a product that is incompatible with the world... but I sense you already have it on.
Have you taken a piece of scrap wood with this deep penetrating stain, and chopped a slice out of it after he fact? Most "deep penetrating oils" go in a cell or two deep. When the K-1, bunker crude, or diesel oil carrier/solvent of the day, flashes off and weathers a bit, caulk begins to adhere. Try some inconspicuous samples and see what sticks.
Uhh yeah, here we go;
https://www.twpstain.com/pdf/TWP_1500_Series_MSDS.pdf
Boiled linseed oils in spirits. Spirits and naptha, let it flash off and I'd try a polybutyl caulk... where needed. Think like a raindrop.
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utherjorge
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# Posted: 21 Feb 2026 02:44pm
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Brettny: I actually was considering adding the windows in April and beyond as it'll be warmer, and I can each side, one at a time, to get things going. It's just studs at this time.
DRP: I have not yet applied anything, as the weather was definitely not conducive until this more recent week, and we're back to winter here already today.
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DRP
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# Posted: 21 Feb 2026 06:21pm
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Ahh, there is what I mean by using a full line supplier. Use a product that has compatible caulks and stains.
I hear you weatherwise, we are on the rain/snow line tonight. The shop/sawmill melted out yesterday. I crawled under the worst hurt truck this afternoon. It has been a skating rink here. I look forward to spring!
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