| Author |
Message |
Joel McKellar, LEED AP
Senior Member
Username: joelmckellar
Post Number: 43
Registered: 02-2006
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 13, 2009 - 03:26 pm: |    |
I'm trying to find out whether masonite cladding (from the 80's... exact product unknown) is recyclable/mulchable in any way. I know very little about the product personally, but it seems to be little more than paper and a binder and as such should be possible to mulch and/or have some manufacturer find a use... |
Phil Kabza
Senior Member
Username: phil_kabza
Post Number: 412
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 13, 2009 - 10:17 pm: | |
I've seen self-composting masonite-type sidings in place on buildings, so I'd think you could get the stuff to compost in a good compost pile. |
George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA
Senior Member
Username: geverding
Post Number: 491
Registered: 11-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 14, 2009 - 11:00 am: | |
Masonite Company still makes doors for interior use, so you might check their website for information about the composition. Masonite, the product, is generically fiberboard, a compressed cellulose impregnated panel. I would agree with Phil that it should easily compost.
Wood fiber sidings were all the rage in the late 60s and for several decades after. They looked "just like wood", could be applied prefinished, and best of all for the builder, were much more economical than woods siding. Cheaper first cost, and later on when they added prefinished wood fiber trim boards, the builder could essentially remove exterior painting from the budget.
What's not to like? I guarantee you that was a product that could last for the life of the home...except that the reality was, to make the product last, you needed to paint it every three years or so because you were relying on the thin prefinished coating to be the weatherbarrier.
Fastidious homeowners with budgets for frequent caulking and painting probably still have masonite in reasonable shape from that era. Most homeowners don't do that kind of maintenance, hence Phil's comment about seeing masonite composting in place on buildings.
One issue you may encounter is lead based paints, although by the 80s most new homes were painted with lead free products.
George A. Everding AIA CSI CCS CCCA
Cannon Design - St. Louis, MO |
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