New for 2004
  Summer 2004
Lifetime Fade Protection

Dark colors. Light colors. CertainTeed offers its vinyl siding in more than 30 popular colors. Because we use the newest technology and state-of-the-art formulations, we back all of our vinyl siding colors with PermaColor™ Lifetime Fade Protection. Although any colored surface will fade over time, we warrant our vinyl siding to stay within 4 Hunter Units. Hunter Units are the universally recognized color measurements that define degree of color change. This means you can sell with confidence and assure your customers that their homes will stay beautiful for years to come—it's guaranteed.

To help you promote this powerful warranty coverage, ask your distributor for our new full-color brochure (CTS217). Click here for complete warranty details, or go to our website (www.certainteed.com). Enter the “Professional” site, and follow the links to vinyl siding warranties.


New Hidden Fastener System (HFS) Installs Faster, Easier

It’s simple; it’s fast; and it’s less expensive to install than typical underdeck systems. The new Boardwalk Hidden Fastener System (HFS™) requires about half the number of screws as a typical deck installation and creates a Barefoot Friendly surface without any exposed hardware.

Simple —The HFS requires only one screw per joist for each plank. When the planks are properly installed, the recommended 1/8" gap happens automatically. And there’s no working under the deck; HFS clips and screws are applied to the top of the joist.

Fast —Installation of the Boardwalk HFS is up to 50 percent faster. To install, simply screw one HFS clip to the joist to hold the plank in place; then slide in the next plank.

Less Expensive —Boardwalk HFS is far less expensive to install for two reasons: You’ll use about half the number of screws as a typical deck installation, and you’ll be working on the top of the deck. Installation time is decreased by half.

To read more about these and the other benefits of the Boardwalk Hidden Fastener System, ask your distributor for the new HFS full-color rack brochure, or call our Sales Support Group 800-233-8990 and ask for BW094 (or click here to download).

 

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Installing The Boardwalk HFS
Bob Werner is CertainTeed's in-house application specialist. A former owner of his own contracting business, Bob has over 30 years of experience in the industry.

Installing the new Boardwalk Hidden Fastener System (HFS™) is as easy as 1-2-3.
Please note that you will install the fasteners and planks while working on top of the deck.

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3

To ensure a straight line, snap a chalk line across the joists. Using the chalk line as your guide, fasten the back edge of the first row with one screw per joist. Fasten the front edge with the HFS clip and screw. Use one clip at each deck joist.



Install the second row of HFS planks by sliding them into the HFS clips of the first row. If the second plank is installed correctly, there will be a 1/8" gap between the first and second planks. Fasten the front edge of the board with an HFS clip and screw. Repeat the process across the deck.

You may have to rip the last board to the proper width. Fasten the last HFS plank into position with a screw, either straight down into the framing (1) or up diagonally through the framing into the bottom of the plank (2).

Complete instructions for installing the Boardwalk Composite Decking Hidden Fastener System (BW095) and for assembling Boardwalk Composite Railings (BW006 - Part1 & Part2) are available at www.certainteed.com. Enter the Professional site as a Contractor, and follow the links to Deck and Railing Installation Instructions. Or, you can call our Fax on Demand Service at 800-947-0057, press 13, and then follow the prompts. For railings, ask for documents 720 and 723; for HFS, document 706.



Reversible Planks Look Like Real Wood

CertainTeed’s Boardwalk® Composite Decking is now available in a reversible woodgrain/smooth, 5/4 x 6 plank. The first woodgrain plank specifically engineered for decks, this new composite decking product offers the high performance and low maintenance you’ve come to expect from Boardwalk with the look of real wood.

Once you’ve seen this new product, you’ll make it your first choice in composite decking.
    • One side features a smooth surface, while the other looks like beautifully grained wood.
    • The woodgrain resembles real cedar more closely than competitive materials.
    • The “cathedral” pattern in the grain runs in both directions, so you can reverse the planks.
    • Narrower grain at the outer edges complements the wider grain in the middle.
    • End-matching is easy because wide grain butts to wide grain, and narrow grain butts to narrow.

Available in both gray and tan in 20', 16', and 12' lengths, the Boardwalk reversible plank also features CertainTeed’s exclusive CleanSweep™ slip-resistant surface. The manufacturing and finishing process creates a grain with no sharp edges or inner corners to trap dirt or chip off. Homeowners will appreciate the easy cleaning and Barefoot Friendly™ feel of these rounded edges.

A full-color, 4-page glamour brochure that highlights the advantages of Boardwalk reversible composite decking is available from you distributor. Or you can call our Sales Support Team at 800-233-8990 and ask for BW096 (or click here to download).



Margin vs. Markup

By Doug Nyberg, Director of Sales Productivity, CertainTeed

Each issue, we include tips on selling from our Director of Sales Force Productivity, Doug Nyberg. If you have a comment or sales tip that you would like to suggest, click here to let him know.

Do you routinely mark up the cost of goods and labor, and use that amount as your selling price? If so, you may be cheating your company out of hard-earned profits. Here’s why:

To calculate markup, you first add the cost of your materials and labor. Then you add a percentage—let's say 30% which is your markup. The total (materials + labor + markup) is the price you charge for the job.

In the example below, your company earns $450—a 30% markup.
$1000 (materials) + $500 (labor) = $1500 (cost)
$1500 + $450 (30% markup) = $1,950

Margin, on the other hand, is calculated by deducting your costs (which include your markup) from the selling price. How do you arrive at this selling price? First, add the cost of your materials and labor. Then subtract the margin you want to achieve (in our example, 30%) from 1. Divide your costs by this number to determine the selling price.

In the example below, your company earns nearly $643—a 30% margin.
$1000 (materials) + $500 (labor) = $1,500 (cost)
$1,500 (cost) ÷ (1 – .30) = 1,500 ÷ .7 = $2,142. 85 (your new selling price)

As you can see, you’ll make more money ($643 vs. $450) if you price your jobs by margin instead of markup.




Free Materials Can Help You Sell

Are you taking advantage of all the materials available to help you market your business and close the sale? You can access these free “e-sources” through the Professional site at www.certainteed.com.

CertainTeed's Digital Marketing Library contains everything you need to launch an effective advertising campaign. A wide selection of photos, logos, artwork, copy text, and camera-ready ads are available for you to download. Use these digital resources to create your own ads and brochures, or use our library of siding images and logos to spruce up your website.

The ColorView™ Exterior Style and Color Selector is a practical, easy-to-use, mix-and-match tool developed to help homeowners select exterior colors for their home. From their own computers, potential customers can choose from a variety of siding and roofing colors. By combining CertainTeed siding colors with trim, shutter, window, and door options, homeowners can create one-of-a-kind exteriors.

Our Remodeler Incentive Program rewards contractors who use qualifying CertainTeed products in their remodeling projects. Specific dollar amounts of CertainTeed products qualify you to win valuable merchandise. Spend as little as $30,000 on qualifying products to earn a much-needed vacation or merchandise designed to make your life more enjoyable.

The Master Craftsman Continuing Education program is available only to professional contractors like you. Siding contractors who participate in these courses demonstrate their commitment to their profession and prepare themselves to better serve their customers.

The Award of Excellence salutes our best customers—the builders, contractors, and remodelers who create outstanding projects using CertainTeed products. This program acknowledges those who demonstrate creativity, craftsmanship, and professionalism. Winners receive recognition that they can use to help market and promote their companies.

For more information about these and other valuable e-sources, log on to www.certainteed.com, or call 800-233-8990.


Ideas from Coast to Coast

For 100 years, CertainTeed has been creating products to enhance the landscape of America. You can see the progress of this effort in a new “Idea Book" featuring WeatherBoards™ FiberCement Siding.

This 20-page brochure contains full-color photography of homes clad in a selection of colors and styles. Home and siding styles popular in the Pacific Northwest, Southwest, Great Plains, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, and New England areas of the U.S. are featured.

You can also use this new glamour brochure to show your customers the design and color options available to them. The back page contains color shots of the full line of WeatherBoards styles and profiles. There are also color representations of our 13 prefinished paint colors and 6 premium stains.

Creating a Scenic America, the new “Idea Book" about WeatherBoards FiberCement Siding is available from your distributor or by calling CertainTeed’s Sales Support Group at 800-233-8990. Ask for WB036.



New for 2004

WeatherBoards™ FiberCement Siding is now available in a new size and color.

New Size - WeatherBoards’s popular Random Square Straight Edge Shapes™ siding is now available in a 5" exposure as well as the traditional 7". The 12" x 48" panel is prefinished in any of our 13 colors or 6 stains.
New Color - Your latest WeatherBoards color option is “Oyster Shell.” Just like our other prefinish colors, Oyster Shell is backed by a 25-year finish warranty.
New Soffit - WeatherBoards smooth, cedar, smooth ventilated, and cedar ventilated soffit is now available in 1/4"-thick panels. These thinner soffit panels are lighter and easier to install than 5/16" panels.