Guide
Repair or replace your siding?
Most siding problems start small. The question is whether the problem is in a few pieces or in the whole wall. Here is how contractors usually think it through.
Start with what is behind the siding
Siding is the outer skin; the sheathing and wrap behind it keep the house dry. A cracked panel over dry, firm sheathing is a repair. Soft, dark or crumbling sheathing, staining inside on the wall below, or peeling paint indoors near a window points to water that has been getting in for a while, and to opening more of the wall.
A contractor will usually press on suspect areas, look at the bottom course and under windows, and may pull a piece or two to look behind.
Side by side
Signs that point each way
Signs a repair will do
- A few cracked, holed or missing pieces
- One section pulled loose by wind
- A handful of split or missing cedar shingles
- Dry, firm sheathing where pieces come off
Signs a replacement is due
- Warping, buckling or curling across whole walls
- Faded vinyl or weathered shingles you can no longer match
- Rot in several places, or behind most of a wall
- Old siding over no wrap or failed wrap
Matching is often the deciding factor
A repair is only as good as the match. Vinyl colors fade and lines are discontinued; cedar weathers; fiber cement gets repainted. If nothing close is available, a contractor may suggest moving siding from a hidden wall to the front, re-siding one full elevation, or doing the whole house.
Calling about either
The contractor reached through this line takes repair calls as well as replacements. Describe what you see, send photos if asked, and ask for a written price for each option if both are on the table.
Siding loose, split or just worn out?
Talk to a siding contractor who works in Suffolk County
One call connects you with an independent siding contractor serving Huntington, Babylon, Islip, Smithtown and much of Brookhaven. Have the walls looked at, then ask for a written price for the repair or the new siding.
Loose panels, soft trim or siding that's simply had its day? Talk it through with a local contractor.
The call goes to an independent siding contractor that works in western Suffolk County and takes on repairs as well as full re-siding jobs.
Call (631) 296-9599Calls may be recorded. See the referral disclosure and the privacy policy.