Building a Home Remodeling Design Dilemma

KWP Ecoside vs. LP Smartside vs. Trugood engineered wood siding

2 years ago

Trying to get some impartial advice, ideally based on personal experience about the pros and cons of these products so that we can best make an informed decision about purchasing for our own home. We are also interested in a rustic look, with defined woodgrain and a two color pre-painted process to more closely mimic the wood look. Would also be interested in experience with companies that pre-finish the products. I know that KWP finishes their own. I understand that Northwest Factory Finishes, Legacy and Diamondkote all provide finishing for LP Smartside. Not sure about Trugood. Thank you for any help that you can provide!

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Comments (4)

Debra Evalds
2 years ago
I see that there are no comments Lori :( I am seeking the same information. Have you decided or found a great pre-finished product? Thanks
Golfergal216
2 years ago
I am in same boat. We are in Ky and are going with Diamond Kote-Smartside in their rustic look. We are going with Canyon color.
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HU-467821532
6 months ago
I realize this post is 2 years old, but for those of you who might be facing the same question in 2023, I will share my experience.

I chose to go with KWP Eco rustic siding with LP Smartside trim. Both were pre-finished by Legacy. I loved the color and it looked great. I got a lot of compliments on the color of the house.

But then, 2 years after the siding was installed, the coating started to peel off the substrate in a very big way, all over the house. (The LP trim was fine.). I live in the mountains and the summer sun is super intense and the winters can hit -30. It's also very windy.

I contacted Legacy and sent closeup photos. They said that KWP puts the primer on the substrate and the pics clearly showed the white primer was peeling off. (One side of the peel was the white primer and the other side was the color they painted it).

I filed a warranty claim with KWP and after a number of months, I got someone to respond. After that contact, things went a bit faster. I sent them samples of the worst boards for analysis to determine the root cause. Ultimately, they honored the warranty, which calls for replacement of the material only or the the return of the cash paid for the materials (excluding sales tax.) I have not been told the root cause. Maybe I got a bad batch? In any case, it's nice to see that they stood behind their product.

That said, beware.... .You will be on the hook for the labor cost to remove the failed siding and install new siding. In my case, that meant I had to shell out another $ 30,000, just because the KWP siding failed to perform. I had already paid to have it installed the first time ! When buying, I thought this type of thing never happens to me, but this time I got hammered !! A 30 or 50 year warranty sounds great, but be sure to read the fine print in the warranty before you buy so you understand the risk you are taking.

Just to be clear, the issue was with KWP, not the finishing that Legacy did. Legacy was incredibly supportive and helpful in getting the claim resolved.
HU-467821532
6 months ago
PS --- I forgot to mention that the painting technique used to give the eco rustic siding that really great look can not be duplicated on site. In order words, you can't sand the boards down and re-paint them. Alternatively, if they try to replace just the bad boards with new ones, then you potentially have colors that don't match due to production variations and color fading on the existing boards. In my case over 60% of the boards failed. I had no choice but to replace the siding on the entire house.

KWP Ecoside vs. LP Smartside vs. Trugood engineered wood siding

Comments (4)

Debra Evalds

Golfergal216

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