Ferndale Siding Cedar Siding Looks Great in the Showroom Photo
We get the appeal. Cedar siding has a warmth and texture that manufactured products spend a lot of marketing budget trying to imitate. It takes stain well, it smells good on install day, and on a dry, well-ventilated home it can look genuinely beautiful for years. If you've ever admired a cedar-sided home in Bellingham or along the Ferndale waterfront, that's real — cedar earned its reputation honestly.
But we're not in the business of selling homeowners a look. We're in the business of putting siding on a house that has to survive Whatcom County weather for decades with a minimum of drama. And when we weigh cedar's upfront charm against what it actually costs an owner in time, money, and attention over 15-20 years in this climate, we can't recommend it — and we won't install it. This page explains why, plainly, so you can make an informed choice for your own home.
What Whatcom County's Climate Does to Wood Siding
Ferndale sits close enough to the Strait of Georgia and Bellingham Bay that salt-laden air is a real factor on the west and north sides of most homes, not just waterfront properties. Add in the region's long wet season — steady, driving rain from fall through spring, followed by a cool, damp shoulder season rather than a hard, drying summer — and you have close to ideal conditions for wood siding to stay damp longer than it should.
Wood siding needs to dry out between rain events to stay stable. In a lot of the country, that happens fast. In Whatcom County, it often doesn't. Cedar boards can sit at elevated moisture content for weeks at a stretch during our wet months, especially on shaded elevations or under eaves with limited airflow. That's the root of almost every long-term cedar problem we get called out to look at.
Salt Air Accelerates Finish Breakdown
Salt air doesn't rot wood directly, but it does two things that matter: it holds moisture against surfaces longer than dry air would, and it degrades paint and stain films faster through a combination of fine salt deposition and UV exposure off the water. On homes closer to the bay, we typically see finish failure on cedar arrive noticeably sooner than the "recoat every 3-5 years" estimate quoted in most product literature.
Moss Season Isn't Just a Roof Problem
Everyone around here knows moss on the roof. Fewer people think about moss and algae on siding until they see the green-black staining creeping up from the ground line or spreading across a north-facing wall. Cedar's porous surface gives moss spores and algae something to grip that smoother, denser materials don't offer nearly as readily. Once established, that growth holds moisture against the wood surface almost permanently, which speeds up exactly the deterioration you're trying to avoid.
The Maintenance Cycle Nobody Mentions at the Sale
Cedar siding is a maintained product, not a install-and-forget one. That's not a knock on the material — it's just physically true of any real wood exposed to the weather. The trouble is that the maintenance schedule cedar actually requires in a coastal Pacific Northwest climate is more demanding, and less forgiving of delay, than most homeowners are told when they fall in love with the look.
- Stain or paint film needs recoating roughly every 3-5 years under good conditions — often sooner here given salt exposure and shaded, damp elevations.
- Caulking at joints, corners, and penetrations needs regular inspection since cedar moves seasonally with moisture content.
- Any board that develops a check, split, or loose knot needs prompt attention before water gets behind the finish.
- Moss and algae growth needs periodic soft-washing, which itself has to be done carefully so pressure and chemicals don't strip the finish or drive water into seams.
- Ground-level and lower courses need extra scrutiny for splashback moisture and soil contact.
Skip a cycle or two — which happens easily when a homeowner is busy, between contractors, or just unaware of the schedule — and cedar doesn't degrade gracefully. It goes from "due for a recoat" to "board replacement" faster than most people expect, because once the finish film fails, bare wood in this climate starts absorbing moisture again almost immediately.
Moisture, Rot, and the Repaint Treadmill
The core physical issue with cedar in a marine climate is straightforward: wood is dimensionally stable only when its moisture content stays in a narrow range. In Whatcom County's cycle of prolonged wet seasons and short drying windows, cedar siding is regularly pushed outside that range on parts of the house that don't get much sun or airflow — north walls, areas shaded by mature trees or neighboring structures, and anywhere close to sprinkler overspray or downspout discharge.
Once a board takes on excess moisture behind a compromised finish, you're looking at cupping, checking, or soft spots, and in worse cases, rot that can travel to the sheathing behind it. Catching this early keeps repairs small. Catching it late means opening up a wall section. We've seen both outcomes, and the difference usually comes down to how consistently the homeowner (or a previous owner) kept up with recoating — which is exactly the burden we don't want to hand our clients.
Cedar vs. Fiber Cement: What the Trade-off Actually Looks Like
| Factor | Cedar Siding | James Hardie Fiber Cement |
|---|---|---|
| Refinishing cycle | Every 3-5 years (often sooner near salt air) | ColorPlus factory finish rated for decades; no routine repainting needed |
| Moisture behavior | Absorbs water; can cup, check, or rot if finish fails | Engineered to resist moisture-related swelling and rot |
| Moss/algae resistance | Porous surface holds growth once established | Denser surface, easier to keep clean, less to hold onto |
| Fire performance | Combustible wood product | Non-combustible fiber cement |
| Typical warranty | Varies by installer; finish warranty separate from material | Long-term transferable manufacturer warranty on the material |
| Upfront material cost | Generally lower | Higher upfront, lower lifetime cost of ownership |
That last row matters more than it looks. Cedar's lower sticker price gets a lot of the attention during the buying decision, but it's the total cost over a 20-year ownership window — material, labor for recoating, repair of failed sections, and the value of not having a maintenance obligation hanging over you every few years — where fiber cement actually comes out ahead for most homeowners in this climate.
Fire and Insurance Considerations
Wood siding is a combustible material, full stop. That's not a Whatcom County-specific issue, but it's a legitimate factor in any honest comparison, and some insurers now factor exterior cladding material into premiums or underwriting decisions. Fiber cement's non-combustible rating is a straightforward advantage that has nothing to do with regional climate and everything to do with material science.
Wood is also, unsurprisingly, a food source and habitat option for insects in a way that fiber cement simply isn't. That's a secondary consideration next to the moisture issue, but it's part of why we don't think cedar is the right long-term investment for most of the homes we work on.
Why We Standardized on James Hardie Instead
We made a decision as a company to install only James Hardie fiber cement siding, and cedar's maintenance demands are a big part of why. Hardie's HZ5 product line is engineered specifically for climates like ours — freeze-thaw cycling, sustained moisture exposure, and coastal air — and the factory-applied ColorPlus finish is baked on under controlled conditions, not brushed on in the field where weather and timing affect the result.
That means a homeowner isn't signing up for a recurring maintenance obligation just to keep the exterior looking and performing the way it did on installation day. The material is non-combustible, it doesn't feed moss and algae the way porous wood does, and it carries a strong transferable warranty backed by a manufacturer that engineers specifically for this kind of product, not a general lumber supplier. When it's installed to spec — correct fastening, proper clearances, flashing detail done right — it's built to perform with minimal upkeep for a very long time, which is exactly what we want to be able to stand behind on a Ferndale home.
If You Already Have Cedar Siding
Plenty of Whatcom County homes still have cedar on them, and it doesn't mean you're facing an emergency. If you're planning to keep it going for now, here's what actually matters for catching problems early:
- Walk the exterior each fall before the wet season and each spring after it, looking specifically at north-facing and shaded walls.
- Press on any board that looks discolored or feels soft — a spongy response usually means moisture has gotten in behind the finish.
- Check caulking at trim, corners, and window/door edges for cracking or gaps.
- Address moss and algae growth promptly with a gentle wash rather than letting it build up over a season.
- Don't let a missed recoat cycle turn into two missed cycles — that's usually the tipping point between "refinish" and "replace."
If that maintenance schedule sounds like more than you want to keep committing to, or if you're already seeing rot, checking, or repeated finish failure, that's usually the point where replacing with a lower-maintenance material starts to make financial sense rather than continuing to chase the problem board by board.
Our Honest Recommendation
We're not going to tell you cedar is a bad product — it isn't. It's a demanding one, and in a climate defined by salt air, driving rain, and a moss season that runs longer than most people plan for, that demand shows up as recurring cost and recurring attention most homeowners didn't fully sign up for. We'd rather install something once, correctly, and have it hold up with minimal fuss for decades. That's why James Hardie is the only siding we put on homes.
If you're weighing cedar against other options, dealing with an aging cedar exterior, or just want a straight answer about what makes sense for your specific home and its exposure, we're happy to take a look. Reach out for a free, no-pressure estimate — we'll walk your property, talk through what we're seeing, and give you an honest read on your options.