The 5 Most Common Cladding Materials in South Africa

You've probably visited a contemporary home where the finishes are elegant and pristine. Possibly you are wondering how this is possible. There is only one answer: Cladding. Construction and building materials have evolved tremendously since medieval times, when people built with malleable materials like mud, straw, and tree trunks, to today, when there are multiple durable materials including “Cladding” available. 

What is Cladding?

Cladding is a non-load-bearing covering that is affixed to a building's outside face in order to protect it from the elements and maintain its visual appeal over time. For both developers and homeowners, this contemporary building technique has produced a desirable effect and affected the value of the real estate. The entire performance of your property can be considerably impacted by the cladding you choose, particularly in terms of environmental concerns.

Benefits of Cladding

Now that we know what cladding is, let’s move on to know what the benefits of cladding are.

• Safety

Although cladding dates back to the Dark Ages, it has come a long way to achieve the contemporary forms that we use today. A gap between the inner and exterior walls is made during the installation of the cladding. The outer leaf's job is to shield the structure from the elements, leaving the inner leaf to concentrate only on load-bearing responsibilities. The structure's ability to retain heat is also improved by adding insulation between the two levels.

• Beauty Appeal and Enhanced Resale Value

Most homeowners frequently choose cladding based only on its visual appeal and potential for resale. You have the power to transform your home's general appearance from plain to stunning by choosing the proper material and color!

• No Maintenance to Low Maintenance

Your financial situation may be severely impacted by home maintenance. Spending relatively little effort and money on upkeep is the ideal scenario. Although most people might view it as a superfluous outlay, cladding offers substantial long-term maintenance cost reductions.

The 5 Most Common Cladding Materials in South Africa

The following are the 5 most common cladding materials in South Africa:

Steel Cladding: The Strength Behind Modern Construction

Steel cladding is the best option when seeking a cutting-edge, cost-efficient, and excellent ecologically friendly wall covering. Steel panels can be installed over any type of cladding, including pre-existing metal systems, rather easily.

Steel cladding is a type of surface coating in which a foundation is bonded to a protective material, such as metal powder or foil, using heat and/or pressure. The research on metal cladding is important because it generally provides very reliable and cost-efficient corrosion and wears protection. Additionally, for a variety of crucial applications including metals and composites, the process parameters can be tuned.

Benefits of Steel Cladding

Steel Cladding has a few below-mentioned benefits and uses:

• Steel cladding is very simple to maintain and can give your house or office construction a new dimension.
• Since they are lightweight and strong, cladding profiles have a wide range of applications. They may make your boring outside walls beautiful and long-lasting or even brighten up your interiors by acting as accent walls inside and preventing chipping, flaking, and scorching.
• Steel cladding can be customized to meet your specific demands and specifications and adds depth and texture to buildings. It is available in a variety of metal kinds, colors, and finishes.

Cladding with Porcelain Tiles

Incredible performance and endurance are guaranteed by the porcelain tile cladding. It is a great option for inside cladding because it can be used in both residential and commercial structures, and it is available in a variety of colours and sizes. 

Porcelain tiles from South Africa's cladding give off a crisp, contemporary vibe when applied on walls. Because of its smooth texture, cleaning and upkeep are simple. For protecting surfaces, tile cladding is the finest option. It is water-resistant and resistant to all external forces.

In the design of modern homes and businesses, porcelain tile cladding has become the norm. This is because porcelain tile can offer a high level of technical performance, is durable, incredibly hygienic and safe, and is resistant to wear, the passage of time, and erosion.

Customers do not simply prefer porcelain tiles for their technical qualities, however, designers all over the world also value the surfaces' attractive appearance. 

The Composite Company collections provide a wide variety of environmental inspirations, such as the wood, stone, or marble effect, as well as urban effects, such as concrete and metal, allowing for the creation of flooring and cladding that can be either a complete look or a combination of different sources of inspiration to create unexpected spaces.

Cladding With Natural Stone

Contrary to other cladding styles, Stone cladding is more commonly found on residential buildings than on commercial ones. Stone is ideal for giving homes an opulent, lavish appearance and a comfortable, "country home" feel. Although natural stone cladding can be put, many people choose its replicas because they are less expensive.

The stone cladding on your structure can enhance its aesthetics while also enhancing your home's insulation. The stone is great for adequate protection against adverse weather since it contains natural minerals like calcium and silicate. It is possible to achieve protection from intense heat, disastrous rain, and frost damage with stone cladding on both the inside and exterior of your home.

Among all of stone cladding's benefits, personalization is one of the main factors contributing to its rising popularity. Stone cladding offers a wide range of style and finishing options, making it simple to customize them and give them a special touch. You may easily use them whether you desire 3D effects, linear styles, or any other design. Furthermore, it is also possible to observe a pattern that precisely mimics a TV set using stone cladding.

Wood Cladding

One of the most alluring cladding materials is still wood. For wood cladding, strong, narrow planks that can be installed horizontally, vertically, or diagonally are typically employed. This makes it possible to fully customize to get the desired visual outcome. Because wood is an organic material, each panel will be distinct and have a distinctive grain pattern that cannot be imitated, making your property stand out from the competitors.

A wood-built structure's exterior can be finished with wood cladding. Wood cladding comes in a variety of forms, from reinforced wood panels to conventional clapboard siding. Many home improvement stores carry wood cladding supplies, and they can also purchase unique items upon request. You can also order materials directly from a manufacturer or recover them from demolished buildings and construction sites.

For a very long period, wood was employed as a cladding material. Clapboards have also been utilized as a type of cladding in various parts of the world. Many civilizations have a history of employing shingles for siding.

These materials can be utilized as panels that fasten to the building or as clapboards or shingles. These goods are occasionally more dependable and sustainable. In any situation, the cladding has two options: it can be painted, stained, etc., or it can be left bare and allowed to weather naturally.

Products created from recycled wood can also be used for wood cladding. Many businesses recover wood from deteriorating buildings and treat it so that it can be used for cladding and other purposes. Additionally, businesses recycle unwanted wood into useful items by using materials like old wine barrels and other wood products. Recycled wood cladding is a fantastic alternative for anyone looking for green building solutions who still want to deal with wood.

Composite Cladding

A new and enhanced type of cladding that performs better, more effectively, and requires less maintenance is composite cladding. This new kind of cladding is adaptable and may be utilised to great effect in structures because it is made of treated wood strand substrate.

A new kind of treated and particularly produced outside structural cladding is called composite panels. They are superior to earlier cladding in terms of being lighter, more resilient, and significantly more energy-efficient. Not to mention all of their other attributes!

The composite cladding material is waterproof, which means it can withstand being wet and can withstand water pressure! This will add a layer of defense to the outside of your building and aid in preventing water intrusion along the building's walls.

The boards, however, are resistant to more than simply the rain. The cladding's structural strength allows it to withstand heavy winds and storms. You'd be amazed at how much devastation high winds can do to your building, even if it might not seem like much.

Benefits of Composite Cladding

• It is a powerful and excellent insulator of sound and heat. Because of its ability to regulate temperature, it keeps your cabin pleasant in both hot and cold climates.
• Even earthquakes won't damage the cladding. It is weatherproof in every way. They won't be weakened by the rain or wind.
• The composite cladding is extremely low maintenance and has a long lifespan. Once something is there, it's there to stay!
• And to top it all off, it's green. After usage, recycling your wood is simple.

Conclusion

In South Africa, cladding protects a building's structure from bad weather and other damaging forces. Additionally, it can offer other unusual benefits like insulation and noise reduction in addition to significantly boosting a building's aesthetic appeal. By taking into account the wall cladding recommendations and guidelines listed above, choose your wall covering sensibly.

 If you are looking to choose the best Cladding material options in South Africa then look no further and contact The Composite Company today.