Whether you are building a new home, or are looking at re-siding, there are more choices than ever. Siding is made from a wide variety of materials and can finish off your house with a siding solution that satisfies your taste and style.
The following table describes common siding solutions.
| Siding |
Features |
Maintenance |
| Vinyl Siding |
- Applied vertically or horizontally over most wall surfaces to create a neat, fresh look and protect the exterior surfaces of your home.
- Textured to appear like wood or masonry. It can be made to look like a variety of finishes, such as cedar boards, clapboard, and fish-scale shingles
- Wide range of colors.
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- Holds up well in the weather
- Doesn´t rot,flake, dent or blister.
- Scratches do not show up since the color runs completely through it.
- May become brittle in freezing conditions, and can crack if it is hit sharply when the weather is cold.
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| Solid Wood Siding |
- Gives a natural, quality look to your home.
- Tongue and groove siding can be used to produce smooth, luxurious walls. Log siding can give a house the look and feel of a real log cabin. Western red cedar is known for its lasting beauty, and is a traditional building material of Pacific Northwest Native Americans because of its durable qualities.
- Wood is an expensive, but beautiful, choice for siding.
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- When properly preserved and protected, lasts for many generations.
- Redwood, cedar and cypress have natural qualities that protect it from insects and mildew. Weathers naturally in mild climates for a beautiful finish.
- Other woods should be preserved by regularly restaining and repainting so they don’t crack or split from poor weather, and are protected from rot and insects.
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| Metal Siding |
- Made of steel or aluminum
- Available in a broad range of colors. Deeper and brighter colors are available in metal siding than can be found in vinyl siding.
- Comes in a variety of textures, including wood look-alikes.
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- Dent- and wind-resistant and needs very little maintenance. Shows scratches when they are deep enough to go through the color coat.
- Paint may oxidize, become chalky, and require repainting.
- If damage occurs, individual panels can be removed and replaced.
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| Fiber Cement Siding |
- Made of cement, wood fibers and sand
- Very durable
- Available in a variety of colors and styles
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- Resistant to termites, rotting and fire.
- Good choice for homes near the ocean since it holds up well in salt air and winds and in hot, humid climates.
- Requires painting, but the
paint usually lasts for a long time.
- May be difficult to repair.
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| Engineered Wood and Hardboard Siding |
- Made of small pieces of wood bonded together with resins.
- Available in lap and vertical siding
- Easy to install
- Hardboard is made of pressed wood fibers and is knot- and grain-free.
- Painted to the color of your choosing
- Available in bare, primed or finished form.
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- Chemically treated with insecticides and fungus repellents and stand up well to moisture, mildew and termites.
- Weather resistant; can tolerate bad weather, harsh sun, as well as abrasion and chemicals.
- Resistant to splitting and cracking and holds up well under strong wind or hail.
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| Brick and Stone Look-alikes |
- Adher thin-brick and manufactured stone products to the exterior walls for an appearance of brick or stonework without the maintenance hassles or the expense.
- Veneers are placed onto walls using mastic or mortar.
- May be applied over most existing siding material.
- Provide great insulation for your home as well as protective covering for the exterior.
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- Real brick and stone require occasional masonry work for maintenance, including tuck-pointing.
- Veneers require relatively little maintenance in comparison. They are very durable and stand up to rot. They weather well, and don’t require painting.
- Bricks can develop efflorescence, a white powder, that needs to be cleaned.
- Cracked or crumbling brick or mortar can be easily repaired.
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| Stucco/Synthetic Stucco |
- Applied onto walls in three coats. The final coat is tinted or painted to add color.
- Variety of textures, including raked, smooth or swirled. An extra rough finish can be achieved by adding sand or pebbles into the mix.
- Synthetic stucco, also called Exterior Insulation Finishing Systems (EIFS), is made from foam plastic insulation and synthetic coating.
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- Made with epoxy creating a resilient finish that resists cracking.
- If small cracks do appear they can be fixed by replastering.
- Synthetic stuccos have been known to cause severe water damage to the interior structure of a home. “Water-managed” synthetic stuccos help to solve this problem.
- If you paint over stucco, it will need to be re-painted at some point.
- Synthetic stucco won’t crack and is practically maintenance-free.
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