Siding

By James Allen

Hey Jim! • Picking a contractor • The contract proposal --- • Jim's Q&A's • Ask a question

Darren of Pineville MO:
I have a small home in rural Missouri, and it's a solid house but it has old wood siding with the paint flaking off. I want to replace it with something lower maintenance, but I'm not sure I want to go with vinyl siding. I like the look of stone, but I haven't been able to find any comprehensive comparison of different siding materials to help me determine how different materials (wood, vinyl, natural stone, faux stone) compare as far as cost, energy efficiency, etc. Would it be do-able to retrofit a wood house with stone, or would it be cost-prohibitive or otherwise ill-advised?

Could be a problem. You need to go down to your footers, and they have to be wide enough. I�m sure it�s the expensive option of all the finishes. Your primary energy efficiency comes from the wall insulation (unless you don�t have any!).

You might also want to look at some of the Hardi products.

Angelo of Lawrenceville NJ:
I am having a modular home built and I have a question about the vinyl siding they put up. There is no wood or anything underneath the first row of the siding. I can stick my hand underneath the back of the first row of siding. Is this OK? Is it fine how it is or should there be something to give it support underneath?

Call your local municipal building department and ask about that. It may be legal, but it sure is an invitation for critter or insect infiltation. First, call the builder and ask. They must have a technical department that can answer your question. Now, whether their reasoning is valid or not may depend on the local codes. Confirm with the locals. You can also call a local siding contractor and run it by them.

Exterior sheathing over the wall framing is done to keep the walls from racking. It's handy, if plywood or OSB, for nailing siding to. The vinyl siding needs only to be lightly nailed every so often. I don't know the exact distance allowed between fasteners, but if it is only every 16" then the sheathing isn't needed as a backing for the vinyl, as far as fastening is concerned.

Used to be a time when you could say you get what you pay for. Seems like now-a-days you pay more and more for less and less. Not to say the modular builder is providing anything but good value, but I'm just too cynical, anymore.

Karen of Defiance, OH:
Jim, I have often wondered, can I have siding put on a block house. My house is nice, but I'm tired of painting every 2 or 3 years.

In general, sure! Talk to a few siding contractors. Typically, nailing strips would be fastened to the block, and the siding attached to that. If a contractor suggests another system, like glue, run it by me.

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