For the exterior of our house we first screwed 3x4 cm beams onto the walls. We screwed them through the Gutex into the structural beams of the house. Thanks to the very visible Gutex screws it was easy to locate them.
We chose to use horizontal Douglas wood cladding for the exterior of our house. This wood was locally milled into 2x18x250cm planks. With a table saw we were able to cut a 45° angle throughout both lengths of each plank, allowing them to slide over each other, leaving room for expansion but not allowing moisture to get behind them. On one edge we later cut another 5mm away at a 90° angle throughout the length of the plank, this makes sure the planks are overlapping slightly so bugs can’t find their way inside the wall.
We attached the planks using stainless steel screws, one for of each plank/beam overlap, screwed inside the top half of the plank. For the windows and door we added 40° planks above and below to guide moisture away. We later connected both planks with vertical pieces on the left and right of each window/door.
Once the oil was dry we added another vertical layer of planks (5x2cm) to overlap the spaces in which two horizontal planks come together and the spaces where the screws were still visible (this is the location where each structural beam is located inside the wall). These planks were also oiled but without the iron oxide to create some color contrast.
Once all the planks were in place we trimmed away the pieces that were sticking out in the corners. Next we experimented with lineseed oil and iron oxide pigments to create a warm pink/red colour. The oil makes the wood more water resistant while the iron oxide is UV-stable and acts as a sunscreen for wood. Unlike some synthetic paints, linseed oil allows the wood to breathe, letting moisture escape while still providing protection.
