Siding gauge tool

A tool for assisting in the installation of elongated generally rectangular shaped boarding in horizontally overlapped relation on a vertically disposed wall, each board being of predetermined thickness and having opposed interior and exterior faces, said tool comprising:

• an elongated base member having opposite end portions disposed along an axis and adapted to be positioned in generally perpendicular relation to the wall when installing a board, wherein one and the other respective end portions of said base member form a handle portion to hold and manipulate the tool and a support portion to support the board in generally perpendicular relationship to the base member,
• an upwardly open resilient clamp extending generally perpendicularly from said one end portion of said base member, said clamp being adapted to receive a lower edge portion of and clampingly engage the faces of the board to be installed, and said clamp being slidable relative to said lower edge portion,
• a first gauge associated with said clamp to position the lower edge of the board to be installed in overlapped relation to the top edge of a previously installed board, said first gauge comprising a lip that is spaced from said base member and by a predetermined distance and adapted to be non-fixedly rested on the upper edge of the previously installed board, and
• a second gauge associated with the handle portion of said base member for locating nail attachment points on the edge portions of the board to be installed.

A method of installing elongated generally rectangular boarding material to a wall in horizontally overlapped relation by using a pair of installation tools, each board having opposed faces, and opposed upper and lower edge portions and opposed lateral edge portions, each tool comprising an upwardly openable U-shaped clamp member for clamping and supporting the lower edge portion of a board to be installed, a lip extending from the clamp for resting the tool and the board to be installed on the top edge of a previously installed board, a handle that is connected to the clamp and has a free end for manipulating the clamp, the handle including a gauge aperture and a gauge line for positioning the gauge aperture relative to a selected edge of the board, the method comprising the steps of:

• attaching a first board to the wall with the elongated upper edge portion thereof extending generally horizontally,
• clamping the clamp members of the first and second installation tools against the elongated lower edge portion of a second board to be installed,
• resting the lip members of the first and second installation tools on the upper edge of the first board such that the lower edge portion of the second board is generally horizontally extending and in overlapped relation to the upper edge portion of the first board,
• tacking the upper edge portion of the second board to the wall,
• removing the installation tools,
• positioning the gauge line and associated gauge aperture relative to at least one of the upper and lower edge portions of the second board, said positioning including aligning the gauge line with the edge selected, locating the gauge aperture on the second board, and marking the location, and
• driving installation nails through the nail locations marked, the nails extending through the second board and into the wall.

A removable tool for installing elongated building siding to a wall, said siding being of a predetermined thickness and having laterally spaced top and bottom edges and opposed generally planar surfaces, said tool comprising:

• a base member having first and second end portions, an upper surface for supporting the bottom edge of a piece of siding to be installed, and a lower surface;
• a gauge arm of predetermined length connected to and extending generally at a right angle from the first end portion of said base member, said gauge arm terminating in a flange member of a length less than the thickness of a previously installed piece of siding for resting on the top edge of the previously installed piece of siding, said flange member extending generally at a right angle from said gauge arm and in a direction away from the second end portion of said base member, the distance between said flange member and base member determining the amount of overlap between the bottom edge portion of a piece of siding to be installed and the top edge portion of the previously installed piece of siding;
• a resilient clip member connected to the second end portion of said base member and extending towards said gauge arm, said clip member terminating in a deflectable free end for engaging and biasing the siding to be installed towards the gauge arm;
• and
• a handle connected to the base member for releasably positioning the base member into supporting engagement with the bottom edge of the siding to be installed, said handle being generally disposed at a right angle to said gauge arm and spaced from the deflectable free end of said clip member,
• wherein one or more of said tools may be placed on the bottom edge of a first piece of siding so that the first piece of siding is releasably captured between said clip member and said gauge arm, and the piece of siding can then be placed at an appropriate position above a previously installed piece of siding with the flange member removably resting on the top edge of the previously installed piece of siding.

A removable tool for installing elongated building siding to a wall, said siding having top and bottom edge portions and a predetermined thickness, said tool comprising:

• an elongate base portion having first and second end portions and an upper surface for supporting the bottom edge portion of a piece of siding to be installed;
• an arm portion connected to and extending generally at a right angle from the first end portion of said base portion, said arm portion terminating in a flange portion for resting on the top edge of a previously installed piece of siding, said flange portion extending generally at a right angle from said arm portion and in a direction away from the second end portion of said base portion;
• a resilient clip member carried on the second end portion of said base portion, said clip member extending toward said arm portion and terminating in a deflectable free end;
• and
• a handle for positioning the base portion against the bottom edge portion of said siding to be installed, said handle being spaced from the deflectable free end of said clip member;
• wherein one or more of said tools may be placed on the bottom edge of a first piece of siding so that the first piece of siding is releasably captured between said clip member and said arm portion, and the piece of siding can then be placed at an appropriate position on a wall above a previously-installed piece of siding, so that said flange portion removably rests on the top edge of the previously installed piece.