What does the designer of the house recommend?

I certainly wouldn't recommend wrapping it in any kind of composite cement board, the stuff is brittle and to prone to braking. Use PVC trim boards and paint them and don't even try using the cement boards. Versatex makes column wraps out of PVC and not cement boards for a reason.

Azek painted or real wood is the answer in my opinion.

My columns are wrapped in Hardie. 5 years no issues in SW Florida.

obviously a child hasn't crashed a motorized kiddy car into your columns yet.

Designer is out of the country for the week so I’m flying solo on this one :)

Thanks for idea, #kevin9418! On Versatex website, “Versawrap” looks like a very smooth and modern option. Any idea of maintenance needed if you paint it? And what color would we do??? We could try to color-match the “Copper” Versatex but would definitely look flat and not at all like wood. Does that matter?? Thx!!

Having grain would matter to me. Smooth looks cheap IMO, and you don't need to use Versatlex column wrap. Textured PVC trim boards can be found at most building supply outlets and your contractor can easily and quickly cut and assemble wraps from the trim boards. But versalex does sell textured trim panels so I don't see why they don't also sell the column wrap kits with textured trim, they call it timber ridge so check with your supplier.

Your Copper colored Versalex is painted (and eventually will need repainted as it weathers) so they may sell the same paint color you need or have the color codes for your color available. If not a scrap piece taken to a paint store can easily do a color match.

Can Versatlex be painted dark colors?

Versawrap comes in 8" widths. Page 20.

Wait, Kevin. Crazy $$$ Copper-colored Versatex is painted and will need repainting?? I thought we opted for a maintenance-free solution here for the house siding. Ugh.

Sorry to disappoint you Michelle. but the paint will weather and degrade over a decade or two, but the cement board will last at least 50 years or longer. Unlike vinyl siding the great thing about cement board is it will take new paint well and when styles or your taste of color changes so can your siding color.

The only truly maintenance free materials are brick and stone which can last many lifetimes, or Copper which can last 50 lifetimes. In second place would be commercial grade metal roofing and siding with a 70% polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) coating and will last a lifetime. Metal panels coated with galvalume and then PVDF will last two lifetimes.

A house roofed with 26 ga or better metal roofing panels coated with galvalume and PVDF is expensive but will never need replacing in a lifetime and something to never worry about. Additionally most insurance companies will give at least a 10% discount on home insurance rates when this metal is used Considering a new homeowner may need to re-roof a house 3 times in their life if they build young the true cost for the metal roofing is at least breakeven, but with $200-$300 savings on insurance rates over 40+ years the metal could save you money.

Side note, if Versalex uses HVDP paint on your siding then it will last 30 to 50 years.

How about we do black aluminum pillars to match black railings. Then the wood look would be surprise in the ceiling as you approach the porch. Also making pillar more neutral would make the peacock blue door pop more (see blue door blocked by wood beam in Pic#3. Thoughts??

Though we will also need to decide how to finish this beam here…

What does the "textured black finish" look like? It may not go with the home style.

It's interesting that smoothly finished painted wood trim and siding used to be considered desirable and better workmanship, and paint applied over raised grain or old scraped off layers of paint was considered inferior workmanship, but now smooth looks "cheap" and textured to look like painted-over irregular finishes is more desirable.

😜