Time for New Siding?

Before you begin the process of installing the siding, you need to decide on an insulation type. There are two basic types: quarter-inch fan-fold, which many installers prefer, and and foil-backed insulation. Quarter-inch fanfold is often selected because of your ability to wrap it around the corners of a building. Some people like foil-backed insulation because it has better insulation ability. However, it doesn't breathe as well.

Once you've selected the insulation, you must select what type of siding you want. You could opt for vinyl siding, since it tends to resist dents better than aluminum. Also, it's not easy to accidentally scratch the color off vinyl. However, in extreme cold, vinyl tends to get brittle, and then to crack.

Besides vinyl, there are two metal siding materials: steel and the above-mentioned aluminum. Both are usually painted. Steel siding tends to endure better in snowy areas and in extreme cold. Aluminum, though, is less expensive than steel. Both metals offer better energy effiiency than what vinyl does. This means that with aluminum or steel siding, your cooling and heating costs will be lower. 

A disadvantage of the two metal sidings is that it's expensive to repair them when damaged; vinyl can be repaired at a much lower cost. For this reason, if you experience a lot of hail, you might want to go with vinyl rather than metal.

Regardless of which siding company you choose to do business with, they'll be able to provide you with vinyl, aluminum or steel. Most of them prefer to sell one or the other, and they will try to encourage you to buy that particular kind of siding (usually the one that makes them the most money). However, if you insist on one material, any company will be able to help you with your request. The best approach is to shop around. Call three or four siding companie and ask if they can fax or email you some estimates / comparisons of different kinds of siding. That will help you narrow down your choices, and finally select the one you want. It will also help you figure out who should help you install it.

But maybe you've got vinyl or aluminum siding and it's not bad enough to be replaced yet.  Maybe it's just a bit on the dingy side and just needs tto be cleaned up a little. You might notice there's some kind of chalky residue or mildew growing on it. If so, don't waste money replacing the siding; just fix the problem! You can usually take care of this by using a Prep line wash for vinyl siding. This will take care of the dinginess. 

To kill the mildew, you'll need some bleach, gloves, safety goggles, boots, and some old clothes to wear, and an old cloth. It really is as simple as wetting down the cloth with a water / bleach mixture and washing the spots with the mildew.

To get rid of the chalk on the siding, use  a long-handled scrub brush and soap. It'll take some hard scrubbing, but you should be able to get rid of it all and vastly improve the appearance of your siding. Your home will look almost new when you're with the project.