What casn I do to prevent rot in the ends of my board and batten siding? The boards and battens will rest on a concrete slab, so moisture could "pool" against the wood. Is there something I can apply to the ends before they are put up? Thanks.

JJB

Besides sealing the ends with some kind of water proofing or maybe paint, I would say cut the boards and battens short of the concrete.

I live in a barn/house with this siding,the ends of the boards have only gone to the wayside where they are exposed like you are describing, resting on top of the concrete sill.

I have now cut the base off and installed treated lumber to the base course(8 inch treated siding,and had to shim it out to match the 1" barnwood siding),the batten have survived as they are further out from the concrete and don't have quite the moisture problem.

Can you cut the concrete down to make it a sloped lip instead of a flat(water retaining) lip?

Perhaps you could do what I did on an addition,make a treated piece of 2X cut at an angle(say 30 degrees)and then apply the siding?This has worked for the last 10 years or so here,the siding and batten were new and haven't shown any rot.

Hope this helps:)

Ken

You can not allow wood siding to touch a cement base, it will always cause rot. Small air gap or flashing will kep the water from wicking up into the wood.