Exterior wall finishing arrangement

1. A finishing arrangement for an exterior wall of a building, comprising:

a weather or water barrier against at least the exterior of the wall;

an outer hardboard panel;

an insulating foam panel between the weather or water barrier and the outer hardboard panel, the insulating foam panel attached to the outer hardboard panel and having drainage channels therein;

a drainage guide that extends from the weather or water barrier to at least the outer hardboard panel, for guiding moisture away from the wall; and

at least one support member having a supporting surface for supporting at least part of the weight of at least the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel above the drainage guide, said surface extending from the weather or water barrier to at least the outer hardboard panel.

2. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the at least one support member is a single support member that extends underneath and along at least the entire length of the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel.

3. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the at least one support member comprises a channel.

4. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the at least one support member and the drainage guide are a unitary structure.

5. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the at least one support member comprises at least one hole therethrough for permitting moisture reaching the support member to fall through the at least one hole to the drainage guide.

6. The arrangement of claim 1 , further comprising at least one fastener for fastening the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel to at least the exterior of the wall.

7. The arrangement of claim 6 , wherein each of the at least one fastener is a screw dimensioned to extend through the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel into at least exterior of the wall.

8. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the drainage channels in the insulating foam panel run horizontally and vertically along a surface thereof that faces the weather or water barrier.

9. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the drainage channels in the insulating foam panel run diagonally along a surface thereof that faces the weather or water barrier.

10. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the drainage channels in the insulating foam panel run along a surface thereof that faces the weather or water barrier, and are formed by a plurality of circles, ellipses, rectangles, diamonds, squares and/or hexagons formed in the surface facing the weather or water barrier.

11. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the drainage guide extends underneath and along at least the entire length of the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel.

12. The arrangement of claim 11 , wherein the drainage guide has a generally Z-shaped profile.

13. The arrangement of claim 12 , wherein an end of the drainage guide extends upwards and between exterior sheathing and the weather or water barrier.

14. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the outer hardboard panel is of a material selected from the group consisting of: fiber cement board, cement board, metal sheeting, and magnesium oxide board.

15. The arrangement of claim 14 , wherein the outer hardboard panel is fiber cement board, and the fiber cement board is pre-painted.

16. The arrangement of claim 14 , wherein the outer hardboard panel is metal sheeting, and the metal sheeting is formed of aluminum.

17. The arrangement of claim 16 , wherein the aluminum is pre-painted.

18. The arrangement of claim 14 , wherein the outer hardboard panel is metal sheeting, and the metal sheeting is formed of stainless steel.

19. The arrangement of claim 18 , wherein the stainless steel is pre-painted.

20. The arrangement of claim 14 , wherein the outer hardboard panel is cement board, and the arrangement further comprises stucco applied to the outer surface of the cement board.

21. The arrangement of claim 1 , wherein the foam panel and the outer hardboard panel are attached to each other with glue.