Creative Faux Panels

We recently received an email from Barney, a Philadelphia resident with an interesting problem. We think brick veneer siding might offer a solution.

Last year, I bought a beautiful 1925 townhouse in the Fairmont neighborhood of Philadelphia. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a survey done before we closed the deal and was in for a surprise when I moved in.

It wasn’t brick, as I’d imagined it to be, but was actually a regular board home covered in a fake brick siding made of asphalt.

Underneath, we found a lot of water damage and even an ant’s nest. We had to spend thousands getting it back up to spec. Now we’ve made the structural repairs needed, we’re trying to find a cost-effective way to get that same brick appearance without having the damp and insect problems occur again. Can you help?

Barney sent us a picture of his Philadelphia home, finished with 1930s asphalt siding. Modern brick veneer siding would make a good replacement.

We certainly can, Barney!

Most likely, your new home is covered in an asphalt siding made to look like brick. It was a popular choice for the homeowner in the days before vinyl and polyurethane alternatives became available.

In the 1930s, brand names such as Insulbrick gave a pretty good faux brick appearance using fiberboard siding coated with tar and decorated with thin brick veneer for texture and shape.

Unfortunately, products like these had issues that have since largely been eliminated. One issue was moisture – which gathered behind the asphalt siding and led to rot and mold.

A second problem was insect control: Asphalt siding made great homes for carpenter ants and termites, and they’d often cause considerable damage behind the asphalt siding over the years.

The best option for your 1920s house is to remove the original asphalt siding and replace it with a modern alternative from fauxpanels.com.

The great news is that this isn’t an overly expensive proposition; and our brick veneer siding means you can keep the same brick appearance that attracted you to the home in the first place.

One of our customers had the same problem as Barney, and used Carlton brick veneer siding to update their 1920s home while retaining the period look. Here's a photo.

The first step is to remove the original asphalt siding from your home. Then ensure all structural repairs are completed, and have the house examined for insect problems like termites and ants.

Once the structure is completely repaired, use our drainage mats to cover the surface you’ll be attaching the panels to.

Required by building code in many regions, drainage mats increase moisture control and energy efficiency; making them an investment that often pats for itself within a few years.

Finally, choose a style and color of panel that suits your home and install it. We offer a variety of brick veneer panels to choose from, so you’ll have no problem finding one that matches the original look of your home.

The photo you sent us suggests that Carlton panels might be a good choice.

Made from durable, molded polyurethane, many of our panels have eliminated a lot of the problems that the old asphalt siding would have caused.

Our panels and siding are completely waterproof and weatherproof, and resistant to insects. They’re easy to install, too – and can be cut to shape with a regular wood saw.

Using our products, you’ll be able to get your new home back to its former glory – and we’d love to see pictures when you do!

Just last week, we blogged about how our faux panels are going to be featured on DIY Networks’ hit show Man Caves. That inspired Steve Mele from Cape Cod to email us with what must be the absolute opposite of a classic “man cave” – a fairy tale castle playhouse!

Only a great dad would build a fairy tale castle for his little girl. We're proud that faux panels was a part of it.

“Here is a pic of me using your decorative stone panels on my daughters princess castle I’ve been building in my yard,” Steve emailed us – and we were floored with the results. We’ve seen our products used in many different ways, but this has to be one of the cutest, and most original.

As you can see from the “before” picture, Steve hasn’t cut any corners in building this stunning castle playhouse for his daughter. He’s even laid down our drainage mats before installing the panels, as if required by many regional building codes (although I’m not sure if Far Far Away, where this fairy tale castle clearly belongs, has such stringent construction codes as we do in America!)

Our Carlton Cobblestone Summer Tan Panels were the perfect choice for Steve’s playhouse design, because they perfectly recreate the look, color and texture of real stonework – perfect for recreating medieval décor, as customers who’ve used our projects at renaissance faires and on film sets will tell you.

This Work-in-Progress shot shows Steve using our drainage mats for the best fit and performance possible.

But they were also easy and practical to install. Made from durable polyurethane, our decorative stone panels are easily cut to size with a regular wood saw, and take just moments to install with screws and construction adhesive. Seamlessly interlocking, for a perfect fit, it’s difficult to tell them from the real thing once installed.

The beautiful final detail of Steve’s project was a contrasting tower, using regular siding. That actually mimics many real medieval castles, the builders of which used wood and timber to build towers taller and quicker than they could with stone. It’s also a nice way to give a contemporary twist to a design firmly rooted in the classic.

There’s a certain irony to the fact that Steve was inspired to email us after learning our products were going to be used on Man Caves. We can’t think of anything more manly than spending the time and effort building something as beautiful as this for your little girl.

Impressed? So were we. But if you think you’ve got a design project to rival Steve’s, we’d love to judge for ourselves. Send pictures and information to us as info@fauxpanels.com and we may even feature your project here!

Jason Cameron and Tony Siragusa, hosts of DIY Network’s hit TV show Man Caves, used our Nailon Char Brown Brick Veneer Panels to help a former marine create a martial arts-themed basement dojo.

This stunning Japanese-themed basement dojo was brought to life with our Nailon brick veneer panels

As a former marine, John Latham is no stranger to personal discipline. Years of military service honed his body into a deadly fighting machine – and since leaving the force, he’s continued to keep himself at the peak of physical fitness through a rigorous training routine. That’s how he continues to hit hard and heavy on the professional martial arts circuit.

But maintaining that extreme level of fitness isn’t easy – especially when real-world responsibilities like work and family intervene. As John found himself working longer and longer hours, fitting in time to hit the training mat became more and more of a challenge.

Oriental murals helped add a feng shui touch to the basement training room

That’s where the crew from DIY Network’s Man Caves came in: Hosts Tony Siragusa and Jason Cameron helped transform John’s cluttered basement into a stunning training dojo, complete with a martial arts-theme and a serene, feng shui feel.

To create the stunning basement, the crew from Man Caves approached Faux Panels – choosing to use our Nailon Char Brown Brick Veneer Panels as contrast pieces on the basement wall. Easy to install, yet perfectly mimicking the look and texture of weathered brick, it was a great way to bring stability and solidness to the basement space – all perfectly in keeping with the highly disciplined martial arts mindset.

Martial arts-themed decorations and show pieces added a touch of Asian flair and sophistication.

Jason and Tony completed the basement remodeling project by painting the brick veneer panels with vivid oriental motifs; and mounted racks of Samurai swords, Japanese lanterns and black fixtures directly to the panels to complete the dojo theme.

This was where the brick veneer was such a smart choice. Constructed from tough and durable polypropylene, it was easy to trim the panels to size with a regular wood saw, and fit wires and mounting fixtures directly into the wall behind them. The result is truly spectacular; and the mounted fittings blend so seamlessly with the panels that it’s difficult to tell that the house wasn’t built that way originally.

As we wrote about this time last year, our faux panels are the perfect tools for creating a stunning and masculine man cave in your basement.

If you’ve used our panels on your own basement remodeling project, we’d love to see pictures of the results – and if you think your transformation rivals that of the Man Caves crew. Send your pictures to info@fauxpanels.com

Catch the “Dojo” episode of DIY Network’s Man Caves this Friday, February 17 at 9pm EST. Check local listing for channel information.

Faux Panels is incredibly proud to introduce an exciting new line of products – our vividly realistic Vinyl Log Siding.

Our insulated vinyl log siding looks as good as the real thing.

Inspired by classic log cabin construction, these beautiful vinyl panels perfectly recreate the look of log walls, but at a fraction of the cost. Even better, unlike real wood they’re 100% weatherproof, resistant to mold, mildew, termites and rot and will maintain their beautiful color through years rain, snow, sleet and hail.

They’re the perfect home siding option for those looking for something a little different – and can instantly turn even a modern building into something timeless and classic.

But why choose vinyl log siding? Perhaps it’s because few buildings epitomize American architecture like the log cabin.

A classic design, first used by the pioneers of pre-colonial times, log cabins are still popular today in ski and sports destinations throughout the country. Their wooden construction is practical and versatile in more remote areas; while the design aesthetic is increasingly popular with high-end home designers.

America was founded on the groundstone of log cabins. Recreate that look with our vinyl siding.

Our vinyl log siding lets you exploit that aesthetic on your existing home; in a way that’s easier and more affordable than you might imagine.

The vinyl siding is as easy to install as regular siding. For instructions, check out this installation guide and find all the accessories you’ll need to install log siding by clicking on the accessories tab.

In just a few hours, you can quickly cover an entire exterior wall with the insulated siding. Over the course of a weekend, you can transform a whole brick or board home into something that wouldn’t look out of place in the Adirondacks.

With four vividly rendered color choices to pick from, the design options are limited only by your imagination.

If you order our vinyl log siding, please be sure to send before and after pictures to info@fauxpanels.com. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Log cabins are a familiar site in snowy locals - and our insulated vinyl panels are a great way to get that look on your own property

Our synthetic log cabin siding is vividly textured, as you can see from this close-up

Astro Kids is a store-within-a-store at the world-famous FAO Schwarz toy store in New York City

World-famous toy store FAO Schwarz in New York City recently opened Astro Kids – an exciting store-within-a-store dedicated to everything geological. FauxPanels.com and sister site FauxWoodBeams.com were honored to help bring the concept for the exciting new store to life, helping create a fantastic dinosaur-themed retail display.

Faux panels perfectly capture the look and feel of an archeological dig

“We are exposing customers to gemstones, minerals, and jewelry at a very young age,” says Dennis Tanjeloffs; one of the masterminds behind the exciting new Astro Kids store at FAO Schwarz.  “Four to 14 is the target age group. Astro Kids could get big very quickly.”

Dennis, along with his brother Marc, are the third generations of an Argentinian mining family and New York institutions in their own right. Their Madison Avenue store is famous throughout the city for selling stunning gemstones and specimens.

They wanted to reach a new audience for their geological goodies, so approached Toys R Us, the owners of venerable New York toy store FAO Schwarz, to create a store-within-a-store featuring a range of gemstone products aimed at kids and teenagers.

Bringing the idea to life required products from both Faux Panels and Faux Wood Beams; which were used to frame the showcase piece of the Astro Kids display – an incredible t-rex skeleton created by New York sculptor Judy Richardson.

Astro Kids sells geological educational toys and learning products aimed at kids and teenagers

Surrounding the dinosaur are towering faux wood trusses, built like mine supports and encircling the 375 square foot retail space. Faux rock panels complete the display; mimicking real rock and brick and adding crisply vivid texture to the walls.

The result, as you can see from these pictures, is incredible – a beautiful display that makes you feel like you’re in the heart of an Arizona archeological dig; even while shopping in the middle of New York City’s most famous toy store.

If you have plans to visit New York City any time soon, make sure you check out Astro Kids – and, if you do, we’d love to know what you thought of it. Email us at info@fauxpanels.com.