There's a specific homeowner LP SmartSide is made for: someone who wants the warmth and grain of real wood on their Palo Alto home but has no interest in the rot, the pests, and the constant upkeep that solid cedar or redwood eventually demands. SmartSide is engineered wood — wood strands bonded and treated through LP's SmartGuard process — and it splits the difference between the authenticity of wood and the durability of a manufactured product. Bay Area Siding Company installs it across Palo Alto, and it's a natural fit on a lot of the city's houses.

Thinking about SmartSide? Request a bid or call (415) 619-5167.

What makes engineered wood different

SmartSide starts as real wood, so it takes and holds paint like wood and carries a genuine wood-grain texture that molded products can't fully imitate. The SmartGuard treatment — a process applied through the material, not just a surface coat — is engineered to resist the fungal decay and termite damage that shorten the life of natural wood. Compared with fiber cement, SmartSide is noticeably lighter and more impact-resistant, and it cuts and fastens more like lumber, which makes for a cleaner, faster install on many homes. It comes in lap, panel, trim, and shake-style products, so it can carry an entire exterior program in one material family.

Where SmartSide fits in Palo Alto

Palo Alto's architecture rewards a warm, textured cladding. On Craftsman and traditional homes in Crescent Park and Barron Park, SmartSide lap and shakes read as genuine wood at a fraction of the maintenance. On Eichler and mid-century homes in Greenmeadow, Fairmeadow, and Green Gables — originally clad in vertical tongue-and-groove redwood board or scored redwood plywood — SmartSide's panel and vertical products can reproduce that board rhythm honestly while lasting far longer than the original wood did. Where the city's advisory Eichler Neighborhood Design Guidelines encourage retaining the original character, an engineered-wood profile that echoes the vertical-board look is often a good design answer, and we design around those guidelines where they apply.

The city's mild, coastal-influenced climate (California Energy Code Climate Zone 4) is friendly to a well-installed, well-painted SmartSide exterior — the damp winters that punish untreated wood are exactly what the SmartGuard treatment is built to handle.

The honest trade-offs

SmartSide is wood-based, so it is combustible — a real consideration if your parcel sits along the western foothill edge inside a mapped Wildland-Urban Interface or Fire Hazard Severity Zone, where noncombustible fiber cement is usually the better fire-conscious call and Chapter 7A of the California Building Code may bear on the assembly (parcel- and scope-dependent; we confirm with the City). And because it's real wood under the treatment, it needs to be kept painted — the finish is the moisture barrier, and letting it fail eventually lets water in. That's less upkeep than raw cedar but more than fiber cement or vinyl.

How it compares

Against natural wood siding, SmartSide keeps most of the look and shrinks the maintenance and decay risk. Against fiber cement and James Hardie, it's lighter, easier to work, and more impact-resistant, but it is combustible and needs periodic repainting where fiber cement holds paint longer and won't burn. Against vinyl, it looks and feels far more premium at a higher cost. LP SmartSide is also known for a strong, long limited warranty — we state that generally and confirm the current written terms before you order. Compare the full field on the siding replacement hub.

Installation and permitting

A SmartSide re-side in Palo Alto requires a City of Palo Alto building permit, and we do a full tear-off rather than covering over failing material: the old cladding comes off to the sheathing so the water-resistive barrier and flashing can be inspected and corrected. SmartSide's performance and warranty both depend on correct installation — proper clearances at grade and roofs, correct fastening, and a complete paint/finish — so we install to LP's specifications and handle the permit for your scope, confirming any design-review or fire-zone items up front.

What drives the cost

Every project is priced after a walkthrough. With SmartSide the drivers are total wall area; stories and access; the product mix (lap, panel, shake, and the trim package); the finish specification; and how much substrate or flashing repair appears at tear-off. Character detailing on a Craftsman or Eichler can add labor. We provide specifics after seeing the home.

FAQ

Is LP SmartSide real wood? Yes — it's engineered wood, made from treated wood strands bonded together, so it has genuine wood grain and takes paint like wood, with a treatment engineered to resist rot and termites.

Is SmartSide okay for a fire-zone parcel in Palo Alto? It's combustible, so on a foothill parcel in a mapped Fire Hazard Severity Zone we'd usually recommend noncombustible fiber cement instead. Whether Chapter 7A applies to your assembly depends on your parcel and scope, which we confirm with the City.

How does SmartSide compare to Hardie? SmartSide is lighter, more impact-resistant, and easier to work, with a warmer real-wood texture; James Hardie fiber cement is noncombustible and needs less repainting. The right pick depends on your fire zone, look, and maintenance tolerance.

Do I need a permit for SmartSide in Palo Alto? Yes. Re-siding requires a building permit from the City of Palo Alto; we prepare and file it for your scope.

Ready to talk SmartSide?

Get the look of wood without the wood-siding upkeep, installed to spec. Request a bid or call (415) 619-5167. We also handle siding replacement and window replacement in Palo Alto, serve the wider Peninsula, and post finished work in our project gallery.