Do I have to caulk between the boards on my fake wood house? Neighbors disagree.?

Question

I have one of those homes built with fake wood boards that overlap each other. When I look underneath the overlapping board, it is usually snug against the bottom board but a few have a gap of 1/8 inch. One man in my neighborhood caulked every single board joint and another said the first man wasted his time because moisture or condensation needs a way to get out. I am getting ready to paint my house and I don't know what to do.

Answer 1

Don't caulk the bottoms. The wood needs to drain, breath and expand.  That's why they are overlapped.  If water were to get trapped behind the caulk it would rot the boards or split them if it freezes.

Answer 2

Do not caulk its a waist of time and money just paint

Answer 3

dont caulk it is a waste of time/money  do caulk your corners though

Answer 4

DO NOT caulk these gaps.  Yes they should be closer, but it is harder for water to go upwards even with these gaps.  If you were to seal these gaps, you would be traping moisture behind the siding and that would be a whole lot worse.  Leave as is and just paint.  Good Luck.