Old-fashion clapboard-like wood siding system with ventilation gaps

Abstract

The wood siding system has air circulation gaps between overlapping siding boards and between the siding boards and a supporting wall. The wood siding system has the appearance of old-fashion clapboards; a limited flexibility that closely imitates a solid wall, and metal retainers with installation gauge, and lips and ridges to control the direction of shrinkage and swelling of the wood boards to preserve the visual appeal of the wood siding. A wood grain pattern on the front surface of each siding board is a mirror image of a wood grain pattern on the front surface of another siding board.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A wood siding system comprising upper and lower wood siding boards mounted to a supporting wall;
 each of said upper and lower wood siding boards having a front surface, a back surface, an upper edge; a lower edge, and a tapered cross-section; said lower edge having an apron strip and a shoulder thereon;   said apron strip of said upper wood siding board overlapping said upper edge of said lower wood siding board, and said apron strip of said upper wood siding board being held at a distance for said front surface of said lower wood siding board;   said back surfaces of said upper and lower wood siding board being held parallel and in a coplanar arrangement with each other and at a same distance from said supporting wall; and   said shoulder of said upper wood siding board being held at a distance from said upper edge of said lower wood siding board; such that an air circulation gap is maintained between said upper and lower wood siding boards and between said upper and lower wood siding boards and said supporting wall.   
     
     
         2 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 1 , also comprising a metal retainer mounted to said supporting wall between said upper and lower wood siding boards, said metal retainer having a spacing gauge lip thereon extending between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board for maintaining an even mounting distance between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         3 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein said metal retainer has a front wall, and said lower edge of said upper wood siding board has a vertical slot therein between said apron strip and said shoulder, and a portion of said front wall of said metal retainer extend in said vertical slot. 
     
     
         4 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein said gauge lip has a sharp lower edge for penetrating said upper edge of said lower wood siding board during swelling of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         5 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein said metal retainer also has a tight-fit ridge therein, extending along said shoulder of said upper wood siding board for retaining by friction force said shoulder of said upper wood siding board into said metal retainer. 
     
     
         6 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein a wood grain pattern on said front surface of said upper wood siding board is a mirror image of a wood grain pattern on said front surface of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         7 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein a thickness of said apron strip is ¼ inch. 
     
     
         8 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein a spacing of said back surface from said supporting wall is ⅛ inch. 
     
     
         9 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein said metal retainer has a backing structure comprising two C-shaped formations, respectively facing toward opposite directions. 
     
     
         10 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein one of said C-shaped formations has a nail-guiding groove therein. 
     
     
         11 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 9 , comprising a plurality of said metal retainers and wherein said front walls on said metal retainers have a same width as a dimension inside one of said C-shaped formations, so that said front wall of one of said metal retainers can be nested in said one of said C-shaped formations on another one of said metal retainers. 
     
     
         12 . A wood siding system comprising upper and lower wood siding boards mounted to a supporting wall;
 each of said upper and lower wood siding boards having a front surface, a back surface, an upper edge; a lower edge, and a tapering cross-section; said lower edge having an apron strip and a shoulder thereon; said apron strip of said upper wood siding board overlapping said upper edge of said lower wood siding board;   air circulation gaps extending between said apron strip of said upper siding board and said front surface of said lower siding board; between said lower edge of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board, and between said back surfaces of said upper and lower wood siding boards and said supporting wall;   said front surface of said upper wood siding board having a first wood grain pattern thereon,   said front surface of said lower wood siding board having a second wood grain pattern thereon, and   said first wood grain pattern being a mirror image of said second wood grain pattern.   
     
     
         13 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 12 , also comprising a metal retainer mounted to said supporting wall between said upper and lower wood siding boards; said metal retainer having a spacing gauge lip thereon extending between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board for maintaining an even mounting distance between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         14 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 13 , wherein said metal retainer has a front wall, and said lower edge of said upper wood siding board has a vertical slot therein between said apron strip and said shoulder, and a portion of said front wall of said metal retainer extends in said vertical slot for retaining said lower edge of said upper siding board to said supporting wall. 
     
     
         15 . A wood siding system comprising an upper wood siding board and a lower wood siding board mounted to a supporting wall;
 each of said upper and lower wood siding boards having a front surface, a back surface, an upper edge; a lower edge, and a tapered cross-section; said lower edge having an apron strip, a shoulder and a vertical slot between said shoulder and said apron strip;   said apron strip of said upper wood siding board overlapping said upper edge of said lower wood siding boards; said apron strip of said upper wood siding board being held at a distance from said front surface of said lower wood siding board;   said back surfaces of said upper wood siding board and said lower siding board being held parallel and in a coplanar arrangement with each other and at a same distance from said supporting wall; and   a plurality of metal retainers mounted to said supporting wall between said upper wood siding board and said lower wood siding board, each of said metal retainers having a thickness measured from said supporting wall, and a front wall extending between said apron of said upper wood siding board and said front surface of said lower wood siding board; a portion of said front wall extending in said vertical slot; and a spacing gauge lip thereon extending between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board for maintaining an even mounting distance between said shoulder of said upper wood siding board and said upper edge of said lower wood siding board; such that air circulation gaps are maintained between said upper wood siding board and said lower wood siding board and between said upper and lower wood siding boards and said supporting wall;   said metal retainer also has a tight-fit ridge thereon, extending along said shoulder of said upper wood siding board for retaining said shoulder in said metal retainer during a shrinking of said upper wood siding board.   
     
     
         16 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein a wood grain pattern on said front surface of said upper wood siding board is a mirror image of a wood grain pattern on said front surface of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         17 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein said backing structure comprising two C-shaped formations, respectively facing in opposite directions and one of said C-shaped formations has a nail-guiding groove therein. 
     
     
         18 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 15 , comprising a plurality of said metal retainers and wherein said front wall on each of said metal retainers has a same width as a dimension inside one of said C-shaped formations, so that said front wall of one of said metal retainers can be nested in said one of said C-shaped formations on another one of said metal retainers. 
     
     
         19 . The wood siding board as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein said spacing gauge lip has a sharp lower edge for penetrating said upper edge of said lower wood siding board during swelling of said lower wood siding board. 
     
     
         20 . The wood siding system as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein a thickness of said apron strip is ¼ inch.