Getting the hang of nailing cedar shake siding isn't just about swinging a hammer; it's about making sure your home stays dry and looks great for decades to come. There's something special about the look of real cedar—it has a texture and warmth that synthetic materials just can't quite mimic. But unlike vinyl, which you can practically snap together like Legos, cedar shakes require a bit more finesse and a lot more attention to detail. If you rush the job or use the wrong materials, you'll end up with split wood, rusty streaks, or shakes that warp and fall off after a single season.
Picking the Right Hardware
Before you even touch a shake, you've got to talk about the nails. This is where a lot of DIYers (and even some pros who should know better) mess up. Cedar contains natural oils called tannins. These tannins are what make the wood so resistant to rot and bugs, which is great, but they also have a nasty habit of reacting with cheap metal.
If you use standard steel nails, the wood will literally eat them. Within a year, you'll see ugly black streaks running down the side of your house where the metal is corroding. It's a mess to fix. To avoid this, you really only have two choices: stainless steel or hot-dipped galvanized nails. Stainless steel (specifically 304 or 316 grade) is the gold standard. They're pricier, but they won't react with the wood. Hot-dipped galvanized is the "budget" option that works well, but make sure they are actually "hot-dipped" and not just "electro-galvanized," which has a much thinner coating that wears off quickly.
Preparing the Wall
You can't just start nailing cedar shake siding directly onto your studs or plywood and call it a day. Cedar needs to breathe. Since wood is organic, it absorbs moisture from the air and the rain, then dries out again. If you trap moisture behind the shake, it'll rot from the inside out.
Most people use a high-quality house wrap, but many experts now recommend a "rainscreen" or a 3D spacer mesh. This creates a tiny gap between the house wrap and the siding, allowing air to circulate. Think of it like a vent for your walls. Also, don't forget your starter strip. The first row of shakes at the bottom of the wall needs to be doubled up to ensure the water sheds away from the foundation properly.
The Art of Nail Placement
Now, let's get into the actual act of nailing. Here is the golden rule: two nails per shake. That's it. You might think adding four or five nails will make it more secure, but it actually does the opposite. Wood needs to expand and contract as the temperature and humidity change. If you pin a shake down with too many nails, it can't move, so it'll eventually crack right down the middle.
Positioning is everything. You want to place your nails about 3/4 of an inch to 1 inch in from each side edge. As for the height, you should aim for about 1.5 to 2 inches above the exposure line. The "exposure" is the part of the shake that stays visible once the next row is placed on top. By nailing just above that line, the next course of shakes covers your nails completely, keeping them protected from the elements and hidden from view.
Don't Bury the Head
When you're nailing cedar shake siding, your hammer (or nail gun) needs a soft touch. You aren't trying to drive the nail into the next century. The goal is to have the head of the nail sit flush with the surface of the wood.
If you drive the nail too deep and "countersink" it, you've just created a tiny little bucket for water to sit in. That water will eventually rot the wood around the nail, and the shake will loosen. On the flip side, if the nail is sticking out too far, the next row of shakes won't sit flat, creating a "kick out" that looks amateur and lets wind-driven rain get underneath. It's a bit like Goldilocks—you need it to be just right.
The Importance of Spacing
One of the most common mistakes people make is butting the shakes too tightly against each other. It's tempting to shove them together so there are no gaps, but you have to remember that wood swells when it gets wet.
You need to leave about a 1/4-inch to 3/8-inch gap between each shake. It might look a little gappy when you first put it up, but trust me, after a good rainstorm, those shakes will expand and fill that space. If you don't leave a gap, the shakes will press against each other as they swell, causing them to "cup" or buckle off the wall. It's an expensive mistake that's easily avoided with a little patience and a spacer.
Dealing with Joints and Overlaps
As you move up the wall, you have to keep an eye on your vertical joints. You never want the gap between two shakes to align with the gap in the row directly below it. This is called "tracking," and it's a recipe for leaks.
You should aim to offset your joints by at least 1.5 inches. This creates a "staggered" effect that ensures any water that gets through a gap hits the solid wood of the shake underneath rather than the house wrap. It's basically a big puzzle, and you're the one making sure all the pieces overlap in a way that gravity can do its job and pull the water down and away.
Handling Corners and Trim
Corners are where the pros really shine. You have two main options: mitered corners or corner boards. Mitered corners look incredible—it's where the shakes from both walls meet at a clean angle—but they are a massive pain to install and require a lot of precise cutting.
Most people opt for corner boards. You install a vertical 1x4 or 1x6 piece of trim on the corner first, and then you butt your cedar shakes up against it. It's much faster, and it gives the house a nice, framed-in look. Just make sure you leave a tiny 1/8-inch gap between the shake and the trim and fill it with a high-quality, flexible caulk to keep the moisture out.
Finishing Touches
Once you've finished nailing cedar shake siding across the whole house, you have to decide on a finish. Some people love the "weathered" look, where the cedar turns a silvery gray over time. If that's your goal, you can actually leave it unfinished, though a clear water repellent is still a good idea to prevent mold.
If you want to keep that rich, honey-orange cedar color, you'll need to apply a stain. Semi-transparent stains are great because they add color and UV protection without hiding the beautiful grain of the wood. Just avoid solid paints if you can help it. Paint creates a film on the surface that can trap moisture inside the wood, leading to peeling and flaking that's a nightmare to scrape off later.
A Quick Word on Maintenance
Even the best nailing job needs a little love every few years. Take a walk around your house once a season and look for any shakes that might have split or loosened. If you find a cracked one, it's usually pretty easy to slide a new one in. You just have to carefully pry up the shakes above it, remove the old pieces, and nail the new one in place.
It might sound like a lot of work, but honestly, there's nothing quite like the pride of looking at a perfectly sided cedar home. It's a labor of love, for sure, but when you do it right, it's a finish that stands the test of time and looks better with every passing year. Just take your time, watch your spacing, and keep those nails flush!