Stand on the curb and look at any tiny house: the siding is the first thing you judge and the last thing you want to replace. It takes the rain, the sun, and the highway wind, and on a house on wheels it also eats a real chunk of the weight budget. Pick for looks alone and you may be repainting in three years or overweight at the scale.
Weight, cost, maintenance, and lifespan are the four numbers that decide siding, and this comparison puts them side by side for cedar, corrugated metal, and composites. You will see installed price ranges, the pounds-per-square-foot math that matters for towing, and which material suits which climate. Choose armor that fits both your aesthetic and your axle ratings.
The Skin of the House
Siding is the tiny house’s weather armor, its curb appeal, and — critically — a significant slice of its weight budget. The three leading options (cedar, corrugated metal, composites) differ wildly in weight, maintenance, cost, and character. This guide compares them head-to-head for houses on wheels.
1. Cedar Siding: The Natural Classic
Weight: 2–3 lbs/sq ft (bevel/channel siding) — mid-range. Cost: $3–7/sq ft installed materials (DIY less) — the premium natural option. Durability: naturally rot- and insect-resistant (30+ year life with maintenance), but it weathers to gray without finish and needs re-staining every 3–5 years. Installation: familiar carpentry — nails or screws, standard tools, forgiving. The tiny house case: unmatched warmth and character; the weight is manageable; the maintenance is the tax. Watch out: cedar is a softwood — road debris dings it; and in fire-prone areas, untreated cedar is a liability (fire-treated options exist).
2. Corrugated Metal Siding: The Industrial Workhorse
Weight: 1–1.5 lbs/sq ft — the lightweight champion (saves 500–1,000 lbs vs heavier options on a full house). Cost: $1.50–4/sq ft — the budget winner. Durability: 40–60 years, zero rot, minimal maintenance (occasional wash; repaint every 15–20 years), excellent fire resistance. Installation: screws with rubber washers, overlapping panels — fast, but every screw is a potential leak (use the manufacturer’s fastening pattern religiously), and cut edges need touch-up paint (bare steel rusts). The tiny house case: the weight savings alone justify it for heavy builds; the modern-industrial look suits many designs. Watch out: oil canning (the wavy distortion — use heavier gauge, 26ga minimum, and proper fastening), noise (rain is loud — insulate well), and the “shed” aesthetic (design matters).
3. Composite Siding: The Engineered Middle
LP SmartSide: 1.5 lbs/sq ft, $2–4/sq ft — engineered wood strand, treated against rot/termites, lighter than fiber cement, cuts like wood. The tiny house favorite composite. HardiePlank (fiber cement): 2.5 lbs/sq ft, $2–5/sq ft — extremely durable, fireproof, but heavy (the weight rules it out for many THOWs) and brittle (cracks on impact; needs diamond blades to cut). PVC/composite boards: 1–2 lbs/sq ft, $4–8/sq ft — zero maintenance, but expensive and can look plastic. The tiny house case: LP SmartSide hits the sweet spot — light, durable, affordable, familiar to install. Hardie is for foundation tiny houses where weight doesn’t matter.
4. Head-to-Head Comparison
- Weight: corrugated metal (1–1.5) → LP SmartSide (1.5) → cedar (2–3) → Hardie (2.5) → heaviest.
- Cost (materials): corrugated metal ($1.50–4) → LP SmartSide ($2–4) → cedar ($3–7) → composites ($4–8).
- Maintenance: metal ≈ composites (minimal) → cedar (re-stain every 3–5 years).
- Lifespan: metal (40–60 yrs) → Hardie (50+) → LP (30+) → cedar (30+ with care).
- Fire resistance: metal = Hardie (excellent) → LP (treated, good) → cedar (poor unless treated).
- DIY friendliness: cedar = LP (standard tools) → metal (simple but fussy) → Hardie (special blades, heavy).
5. The Weight Math: Why It Matters
A 28-ft tiny house has ~800–1,000 sq ft of wall siding. The spread: corrugated metal ≈ 1,000–1,500 lbs; LP SmartSide ≈ 1,200–1,500 lbs; cedar ≈ 1,600–3,000 lbs; Hardie ≈ 2,000–2,500 lbs. The difference between metal and cedar can exceed 1,000 lbs — nearly 10% of a 12,000-lb weight budget. If your weight ledger is tight, siding choice alone can make or break the GVWR. Run the numbers before falling in love with a material.
6. Installation Essentials (All Types)
Rain screen gap: siding over 3/4″ strapping (the ventilated cavity — lets the wall dry, extends siding life 2× — the single most important siding detail). Flashing: every window, door, and penetration flashed with metal (siding is not waterproof — the flashing and WRB behind it are). Fastening for travel: ring-shank nails or screws (smooth nails back out under vibration — the highway loosens everything), and follow the manufacturer’s nailing schedule (warranty and wind resistance depend on it). Bottom clearance: 6″+ above grade/deck (splash-back rots the bottom course — the most common siding failure).
7. Mixing Materials: The Designer Move
The best-looking tiny houses rarely use one siding: metal + cedar accents (metal field, cedar gable or bump-out — the modern-rustic standard), board-and-batten LP (vertical lines make small houses look taller), shou sugi ban (charred cedar — stunning, fire-resistant, but premium cost). Mixing adds visual interest and lets you put the expensive material where it shows and the cheap/light material where it doesn’t. Keep the rain screen and flashing details consistent across materials — the transitions are where leaks start.
Final Considerations
For most tiny houses on wheels: corrugated metal or LP SmartSide for the weight-conscious and budget-minded; cedar where character justifies the maintenance; Hardie only on foundations. Whatever you choose, the rain screen gap and flashing matter more than the material — a perfectly installed budget siding outlasts a poorly installed premium one. The skin protects the house; the details protect the skin.