Your home’s siding not only provides a notable design and style but also helps protect your property. In time, this material can start to fade, crack, and show other signs of wear and tear. When you spot some of these issues, it will cause you to ponder whether you should repair or replace your siding.
Pinnacle Home Improvements and its siding contractors are committed to beautifying homes and fortifying their structural integrity. In this blog post, we detail the role of siding and how to determine whether you should make repairs or replace it.
The Role of Siding in Home Protection and Energy Efficiency
While siding certainly plays a role in aesthetics, its main function is to shield your home from the elements and uphold its energy efficiency.
Siding’s Protective Elements for Your Home
The key purpose of siding is to keep water from seeping into the walls of your home, which can cause structural damage. It protects your home from all kinds of weather and temperature changes and keeps pests from gaining entry to wreak havoc on the interior.
Siding for Energy Efficiency
While it protects, siding also insulates your home, allowing you to help keep a consistent temperature indoors. This translates to reduced energy costs by minimizing air leaks and heat transfer. When siding is in good condition, it seals your home from air leaks, which prevents drafts that can cause your energy costs to soar.
Signs You Should Be Replacing or Repairing Home Siding
What should you look for when it comes to determining whether to make repairs or replace your siding? While it helps to have an expert assess the condition of the siding on your home, you can take a look for the common signs that your siding is in trouble.
Visible Damage
You don’t need to be an expert to spot visible signs of damage, such as cracks, gaps, warped boards, bubbling, or rotting elements. If you’re vigilant and catch these things early, you may only need to make repairs.
Increased Energy Bills
An increase in energy bills without changing your usage could be a sign that your siding isn’t upholding its duty to insulate your home. However, increases in energy bills can indicate other issues with energy efficiency, and it’s wise to find out the cause first.
Indoor Stains
When siding has been badly damaged, it can impact the interior of your home with mold, mildew, or water stains. Siding is supposed to keep water intrusion from occurring, and these stains may provide the proof that your siding needs to be replaced.
Damage from Pests
Bugs, rodents, and other pests can destroy siding materials, particularly wood. This is why it’s important to check your siding at regular intervals to halt the damage and make timely repairs before it’s too late.
Aged Siding
While some siding materials last longer than others, they all have a lifespan. If your siding is at that point, it’s a good idea to replace it even if you don’t see any other damage beyond fading.
Benefits of Repairing vs Replacing Siding
Deciding on whether to repair or replace siding will hinge on several factors that you’ll need to assess. If you repair siding, it’s a cost-effective solution, particularly if you only have minor issues like small cracks or peeling paint. It’s far more prudent to make siding repairs if you have an area of localized damage or you’re planning to sell your home soon.
On the other hand, replacing siding will cost more than making repairs, but it will provide you with a long-term solution and peace of mind. It’s a better idea to replace the siding if you’re planning to live in your home for many more years, as you’ll reap the benefits of improved energy efficiency. Siding should be replaced when there’s widespread damage or when it’s at the end of its lifespan.
Types of Home Siding Solutions and Cost Considerations
If you need to replace your siding due to the age of the material or the damage it has incurred, there are a variety of home siding solutions to choose from:
Vinyl Siding
Vinyl siding is one of the most popular choices as it balances aesthetics and affordability while being easier to maintain since it doesn’t need to be painted. It’s also an affordable option that can cost anywhere from $2 to $7 per square foot installed. Insulated vinyl siding costs more, though it can provide added energy savings over the years. Vinyl siding comes in many colors and styles, some that imitate the look of much more expensive or difficult to maintain materials, like wood, stone, or brick.
Wood Siding
There’s no doubt that wood siding provides a charming, natural look. However, it’s a high-maintenance material that you’ll need to invest in through the years to keep it in prime condition. You can expect to pay $5 to $10 per square foot installed for this material, though if you want the look for a lower cost and without the hassle, you can choose vinyl siding that has the appearance of wood.
Fiber Cement Siding
Fiber cement siding is durable and comes in many styles and textures. It costs more than vinyl siding, but it’s more affordable than stone or brick, with prices ranging from $4 to $11.
Stucco
Stucco provides great insulation with a durable, textured finish, though it tends to crack in wet climates. It will cost between $5 and $7 per square foot installed.
You can also find brick and stone siding, though these premium materials cost a pretty penny. Brick can run anywhere from $10 to $20 per square foot, while stone is the most expensive at $35 to $50 per square foot installed. However, if you have your heart set on the aesthetics they create, you can choose vinyl siding at a fraction of the cost.
Step-by-Step Guide to Assess Your Siding’s Condition
To determine whether you should make repairs to your siding or replace it, you’ll need to take a closer look. These steps will help you decide what to do next:
Start on Ground Level and Work Your Way Around
Find a starting point at the perimeter of your home and start walking it, looking at the siding from ground level. You will want to look for any visible signs of siding issues, such as the ones mentioned above, including cracks, gaps, and stains.
Make Notes and Mark Your Findings
Carrying a notebook can help you jot down any issues you find to either make the repairs yourself or call a professional. You can mark these areas with painters’ tape to find them with greater ease.
Inspect at a Higher Angle
Even if you don’t have a two-story home, you will need to elevate yourself from the ground to look at the siding higher up on the walls. You’ll need a sturdy ladder for this task, though if you aren’t up to it, a professional will have the right tools to take a closer look at these heights.
Consult a Professional
Whether you can check every part of your home’s siding or not, it’s always a good idea to consult a siding professional. They will be able to provide their expertise and help you decide whether to repair or replace the siding.
Long-Term Benefits of Choosing High-Quality Siding
When you choose high-quality siding, especially with vinyl siding options, you will enjoy many benefits over the years after replacing your current siding. It will increase the durability of your home while providing greater energy efficiency.
You’ll also spend less time having to maintain it, which may mean you’ll finally get to enjoy your weekends again rather than try to make repairs to cracked, aging siding. The greater curb appeal is something you’ll enjoy as well every time you come home. Once you replace your siding, you will see your energy bills decrease while the value of your home grows over the years.
How Pinnacle Home Improvements Can Help with Siding Replacement Options
You might know how to hang vinyl siding, or be handy enough with tools to want to figure it out. However, even if you take on many DIY projects, hanging siding requires making sure that you allow for proper expansion and contraction of these materials. One wrong move and you could compromise the structural integrity of your home by allowing gaps or warped boards that trap water behind them.
To ensure a pristine finish that provides the desired curb appeal, protection for your home’s structural integrity, and enhanced energy efficiency, it’s best to let the professionals take on this task. At Pinnacle Home Improvements, our siding experts can help you replace old, worn, and damaged siding with ease.
Since we have established strong relationships with our suppliers, we can also get the best prices on these materials, allowing you to save more on those costs. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and learn more about our siding replacement options.
