WoodPlank review: Modern wood exterior cladding

We were sent a sample set of a few boards that we wanted to look at close up to make a decision. We looked at light poplar, dark poplar, light ash, and thermo ash. When the sample pack arrived, we knew immediately we did not want any of the lighter samples as they had a yellow tone to them. We then ruled out the poplar due to it having a browner tone which we also didn’t want. After eliminating those, we chose the thermo ash that had a deep, dark red tone to it that was perfect for our project.
When the product arrived, it looked exactly like the sample board we picked out. We were so thrilled with the look and feel of the product. However, after installing the product, it became noticeable that it had lightened up considerably after only one week. This is when I reached out to Steve at Woodplank, asking him if this needs to be treated right away. He said that the wood was already heavily treated and sealed before leaving the factory and that nothing needed to be applied by us unless it was a fresh cut edge. I was relieved thinking I was possibly imagining the product as lightening. Until another week went by and it was so obvious that it has lightened up so much that it is no longer even close to the same color and tone. The lightened wood then started showing all the imperfections (blotches) that were barely detectable when the product was in its original state. I understand wood fading over years, but over a couple of weeks is completely unacceptable.
During another interaction with Steve, he stated that this is perfectly normal, that the pictures we sent him looks like ash in its natural state. That would be fine if we had ordered the light ash but that is NOT what we purchased. We purchased thermo ash which is NOT ASH IN ITS NATURAL STATE. If we had wanted the light ash, we would have ordered that, or simply asked for the product to be unfinished when it was sent. We do not want light ash. We paid for thermo ash and now we have a faded light ash colored product.
We can only surmise that the batch of wood we received is one of two things:
• Processed and treated incorrectly therefore not holding its tone or sealant due to it not being treated correctly in the first place
• Or the normal state of this product is to start fading and changing color immediately. If this is the case, then this product has been grossly misrepresented and the buyers are being lied to.
If this product was not treated correctly, I expect a full refund for the product, the shipping costs and a new batch of the order (with the correct processing and treatment) sent out ASAP. I want a refund for the initial labor and installation and now for the removal of the faulty batch and installation of the new batch.
However, if Woodplank sticks with their story that this is just what the product does, and that if I want it to look like the product that I ordered originally, then we need to spend more time and money on staining and sealing it ourselves (meaning that ordering a new batch won’t change anything because it will fade immediately as well) then I will go a different route. If Woodplank sticks with this story, they have 100% misrepresented their product both online and verbally. If this is the case, I expect a full refund including all the shipping costs ($49,084.11), costs of the installation ($25,000), the cost of the stain and sealants (TBD) and labor to stain and seal or labor to remove the product entirely (TBD).
We are attaching pictures taken from the same angle from the day it was installed on 3/18/25, a week later, another week later, and the last one from 4/22/25 – just one month after installation. The product has VERY CLEARLY faded and changed color from red tones to yellow tones.
Your product webpage indicates that this product is rated for all climates, eliminates warping and splitting, and all four sides are factory oiled for mess-free installation. It also states that the product is backed by a 25-year durability guarantee. Nowhere in the first couple of paragraphs of the product description does it ever indicate that this product will need to be treated annually, let alone within a few weeks of installation. We did find information in the installation packet that said it needs to be treated annually, but we never knew about that before ordering it. We were assured that this was a low-maintenance product, and that is not the case at all. After finding this out (annual treatment), we were assured by Steve that we did not have to do anything right away and that it was already heavily oiled and sealed and would be fine for a long time.
We never would have chosen this product, knowing that it would need to be completely refinished before exposing it to air, and if it did need to be treated on day one, then the installers would have most certainly sealed it before putting it up.
The pictures don’t lie so either way, we want this fixed.

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