Facade assembly. Can you make a ventilated façade yourself?

DIY Ventilated Facade Installation. Can I Do a Ventilated Facade Myself?

A common question asked by investors is “Can I do a ventilated facade myself?” Installing a facade. Technically, no one can forbid it… and the materials for making a ventilated facade can be purchased on the market. However, it makes no sense!

A lion’s share of the cost of a ventilated facade is the materials. Cladding panels, regardless of their type, even if they belong to the cheapest among ventilated facades, such as fiber-cement or ceramic panels, regardless of the manufacturer, whether they are Polish panels like Concreate or foreign ones like Trespa, Equitone – Euronit, are always a big expense.

At the same time, it is the panels that are easiest to waste, destroy through improper cutting of edges, cutting with the wrong tool, incorrect measurement of the building, poor storage, poor handling, or, very importantly, improper installation. All of this has a huge impact on the appearance of the facade. Therefore, I advise against doing the work yourself. It’s just a waste of material, and therefore money.

Possible Defects When Making a Ventilated Facade. DIY Facade Installation.

Some defects are visible to the naked eye already during installation before building acceptance, but some errors only appear a few months after mounting and are not material defects, as confirmed by the technical advisor, but simply installation errors.

Every manufacturer has its own guidelines for each stage of working with the panel: from horizontal, vertical transport, as with concrete panels Fibre C, which require lifting with suction cups, to storage, such as fiber-cement panels should be stored under a roof or at least covered; cutting, e.g., the wrong saw for cutting HPL Prodema panels will cause the protective lacquer to peel off; and most importantly, the installation method, support density of the panel, e.g., for panels with analogous characteristics, HPL panels from different manufacturers, for example Trespa and Krono, have different support densities, etc. A cladding panel simultaneously loses its warranty if these guidelines are not followed, and a person dealing with ventilated facades, especially specially trained and prepared technical advisors, will catch any deviations from their guidelines. Panels improperly mounted on the facade, e.g., too stiff, warp, twist, crack, or even fall off the substructure.

Additionally, rarely does an investor have the necessary equipment to install ventilated facades. Tools such as levels and drills are generally available, but few people own screwdrivers, let alone saws with 3-meter guides at home.

Moreover, improper execution of the substructure, which might seem invisible, has a huge impact on the cladding’s appearance. Any unevenness in the substructure directly transfers to the panels, making these defects visible to the naked eye.

All this is compounded by excessive stiffening of the structure or the panel, which can lead to panels cracking and falling off the building’s facade. Or improper preparation of the panel for installation in the adhesive system. All this means that the facade will need at least some corrections, and often even replacement.

The apparent savings from DIY installation, instead of using trained teams, can lead to new, large, unforeseen costs for repairing the new facade.

Maria Ziółek m3ziolek ventilated facades