A couple of friends of mine are in the preliminary stages of re-siding their newly purchased house. You know, the stage where the husband is aching over material options and costs and the wife is fretting over colors and textures. They agree on one point, the old cedar shakes― which were face nailed along their bottom edge and painted chocolate brown― aren’t cutting it.
During BBQ’s at their house we talk about the options. Whenever either of them mentions vinyl, I take a long pull from my beer, hoping the moment in which they’re expecting my response passes. It never does, and I’m simply left with my girlfriend glaring at me, wondering why I’m pounding a beer like a sophomore in college instead of carrying on a conversation. It’s awkward.
READ THE COMPLETE ARTICLE:
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Vinyl Siding Done Right
by Mike Guertin If vinyl’s final, you’d best get the details right. A veteran builder shows how to make it water-resistant and attractive. |
Why I Like Natural Products
You see, I’m not a fan of vinyl and I try and avoid it for the projects I work on. A mere mention of the word, and my mind sees miles of J-channel, fake wood plastic impressions and row after row of cookie-cutter mcmansions. I’d love to take my friends aside and explain to them what cedar clapboard siding smells like when it’s being cut and installed; The warm glow it emits as a fading sun rakes across its surface; The way it feels when you brush your fingers against it. The way, even if it’s painted instead of being stained, it adds character and authenticity. I don’t, because they’ll inevitably ask me two questions. One, how much does it cost? Two, what’s the maintenance like? WHAM! My argument is burnt worse than that forgotten burger on the grill.
Vinyl makes sense for a lot of people. In reality, it doesn’t have to look bad, or cheap. The best looking vinyl jobs are the ones that were completed by an installer who has quality work and attention to detail in keen focus. With that said, I recently asked Mike Guertin for some tips on making vinyl siding look its best. I’ve compiled some of his tips. Feel free to add yours to the list by using the comment function below.
8 TIPS FOR BETTER VINYL SIDING:
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1. Use J-channel sparingly. Vinyl panels expand and contract, so they need to be slid into pockets to hide end gaps. Integral window and door trim with built-in J-channel, cellular PVC or rigid foam corner boards with rabeted pockets, and furred out trim eliminate the need for J-channel. |
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2. Orient your joints correctly.Vinyl siding panels overlap one another at joints. Orient the overlaps away from the dominant view points of the house. Even the wafer-thin butts stick out like a sore thumb when oriented within your sight line. |
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3. Avoid Uniform Installation Patterns. Instead of offsetting panel joints by repetitive 2-ft. or 3-ft. joints, make them random so they aren’t as obvious to the eye. Several manufacturers now make single lap panels in addition to the multi-lap panels. Intersperse single lap panels with multi-lap ones to vary the joints as well.
4. Use long panels. Manufacturers make longer panels than the standard 12 ft. Using longer panels can reduce telltale joints on a typical house by almost 50%. |
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5. Keep it Straight. Use intermittent control lines to maintain straight alignment. This avoids the waviness that occurs when laying up a tall wall of vinyl. Don’t forget to snap lines for corner boards and other trim elements. |
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6. Hang it, don’t nail it. Don’t set the nails, screws or staples tight within the hem. Leave heads proud 1/16 in. so the vinyl can expand and contract. And place fasteners in the center of the slots. Even though this is standard practice, many installers still slam fasteners home, which traps the vinyl and results in warpage when panels can’t expand on a hot day. |
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7. Use Premium siding: You get what you pay for. Better vinyl siding grades look nicer, they have a broader color palette, a stiffer profiles and are low gloss. The upcharge for premium products isn’t a budget-breaker.
8. Foam-Backed panels look better over time. Though the true insulation value can be debated, ‘insulated’ vinyl panels are backed with rigid foam. The foam stiffens up the panels and keeps the face flat and crisp looking. Just make sure to only use products with ribbed back surfaces, like the Solid Core Siding product by Crane. These ribs permit water that leaks behind the surface to drain. |
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Use J-channel sparingly. Vinyl panels expand and contract, so they need to be slid into pockets to hide end gaps. Integral window and door trim with built-in J-channel, cellular PVC or rigid foam corner boards with rabeted pockets, and furred out trim eliminate the need for J-channel.
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Orient your joints correctly.Vinyl siding panels overlap one another at joints. Orient the overlaps away from the dominant view points of the house. Even the wafer-thin butts stick out like a sore thumb when oriented within your sight line.
-
Avoid Uniform Installation Patterns. Instead of offsetting panel joints by repetitive 2-ft. or 3-ft. joints, make them random so they aren't as obvious to the eye. Several manufacturers now make single lap panels in addition to the multi-lap panels. Intersperse single lap panels with multi-lap ones to vary the joints as well. Use long panels. Manufacturers make longer panels than the standard 12 ft. Using longer panels can reduce telltale joints on a typical house by almost 50%.
-
Hang it, don't nail it. Don't set the nails, screws or staples tight within the hem. Leave heads proud 1/16 in. so the vinyl can expand and contract. And place fasteners in the center of the slots. Even though this is standard practice, many installers still slam fasteners home, which traps the vinyl and results in warpage when panels can't expand on a hot day.
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Keep it Straight. Use intermittent control lines to maintain straight alignment. This avoids the waviness that occurs when laying up a tall wall of vinyl. Don't forget to snap lines for corner boards and other trim elements.
-
Use Premium siding: You get what you pay for. Better vinyl siding grades look nicer, they have a broader color palette, a stiffer profiles and are low gloss. The upcharge for premium products isn't a budget-breaker. Foam-Backed panels look better over time. Though the true insulation value can be debated, 'insulated' vinyl panels are backed with rigid foam. The foam stiffens up the panels and keeps the face flat and crisp looking. Just make sure to only use products with ribbed back surfaces, like the Solid Core Siding product by Crane. These ribs permit water that leaks behind the surface to drain.
View Comments
Let's all not forget that the hardest pArt still is the metal that is supposed to cover. Hard to find someone who cares.
Here in Indiana our winds are predominately from the West. If the siding is installed to look good from the front of the home and overlap is installed so the wind can pick up the lap some of the joints will eventually be picked up enough to lift the siding off the bottom lip and sometimes when the temperature is low break the siding. I have two neighbors homes were installed and I usually rehook the bottom lip for them after winds of 40 to 50 MPH.
We would like to cast a vote in favor of "Fine" Homebuilding refraining from considering articles such as the one that promotes the use of vinyl siding. As a readers of FHB we are interested in "Fine" homebuilding. Vinyl siding has no place in a "Fine" Home.
In addition, Mike, I would like to suggest that when faced with a question of cost and maintenance you would take the opportunity to educate the consumer. Please remember we must as responsible humans, consider ALL the pros and cons when making decisions regarding building material choices. The costs to the environment, embodied energy, lifecycle analysis, petroleum based products are all examples of concerns and considerations. "Cost" is not a simple matter and "Wood" versus "Vinyl" is not an apples and apples comparison.
Thanks for reading and responding.
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" .. We would like to cast a vote in favor of "Fine" Homebuilding refraining from considering articles such as the one that promotes the use of vinyl siding."
Good point, but a silly one. I always felt the "fine" in Fine Homebuilding referred to the builder and the process, not the home. I have occasion to work on vinyl, because like it or not, there it is. I appreciate the editors running a piece like this as it is quite a bit more useful to me on an immediate level than making a statement about the environment would be. Plenty of other publications for that, but FH always provides me with excellent advice on a wide variety of situations that allow me to learn and - refine my skills.
Attn, Mike Guertin,
Your miss informed Statement,"Vinyl makes sense for a lot of people. In reality", does not make sense for several reasons.
First, It's going against all that we believe in when we are promoting "Green" building practices.
When your considering a Siding product, Ask yourself:
Question: What renewable source did this come from?
If it's not renewable, "then forget it."
Question: Where does the scrap go?
If it goes directly to our land fills, "then forget it."
We need to stop talking about price and discuss, "Value".
American values.
Cedar Siding coated and installed can have a 25 year coating guarrantee and a 100 year field life. It is what is considered the, "greenest" siding product available.
Visit the "WRCLA" website for more info.
Builders of Fine Homes have seen many Siding product experiments fail and leave customers stranded, ie LP Siding.
Now, Vinyl & Hardi siding products are trying to compete with Cedar for the Siding dollar builders spend. Before you buy,ask yourself the questions I noted above:
Vinyl: from what renewable resource?
Answer; Sourced from Fossil fuel = Not Renewable.
Waste: where does it go?
Answer: It goes to our landfill.
Hardi: from what renewable resource?
Contains, Fly Ash from burnt Coal = Not Renewable.
Waste: = It goes to our landfill.
Cedar: from what renewable resource? = Trees
Waste: = It is recycleable to make Paper,Fuel & Mulch.
America values = "Going Green". Lets show the world we are the leaders in Green building practices and use products that support those values when we side our homes.
Hi all,
Hi All,
I have been avoiding posting anything about "why I hate vinyl siding." Maybe one day I can post a blog.
Let me just say that I am sorry I had to write so much about vinyl siding in the last book I wrote--The Habitat for Humanity---How to build a house book. At that time I was told that installation practices for this siding had to be included in the book because vinyl companies were donating free siding for every Habitat house being built in the USA!
We can do better folks. Thanks, Larry Haun
Definitions of 'green' take into account life cycle costs.
Vinyl is a green enough product because it is durable. Stains and paints are mild poisons that have to be reapplied frequently. (You say 25 years, but my experience is closer to 5.)
The wood fiber and the fly ash in Hardi products are scrap or recycled, so they're green too.
Using wood is green only if the wood is responsibly farmed and shipped, and a lot of it isn't.
My problem with vinyl is that it's ugly, and this article goes a fair way to address the parts that make it ugly. I would have liked to see more pointers on ways to get around using j-mold.
Go CEDARIST!!!
Cradle to Cradle.... YEAH!
Anybody seen the movie "Blue Vinyl"?
Cedarist,
You can actually blame me for the misinformed statement, "vinyl makes sense for a lot of people." I wrote it. Mike simply offered me tips on how to install this material correctly. While I agree that consumers need to be aware of the environmental impact of the building materials they choose, the reality is that a lot them aren't. Just because some folks don't deem vinyl as "green" or "fine" doesn't mean that builders aren't asked to install it. An article like this is intended to help that builder.
By the way, you missed an important component in your equation regarding cedar. Would you have us believe that no fossil fuels are consumed during the harvesting and manufacturing of cedar siding? What about the greater impact of logging on local and regional eco systems? Of course, I'm playing devil's advocate here. I love cedar, but unless we’re willing to live as primitive animals beneath its canopy, we have to realize that there isn’t a truly green siding material on the market. Would you agree?
I thought I subscribed to "Fine" Homebuilding, not "Trailer Park" Homebuilding...
Vinyl has no place in "Fine" homes...
Will you be posting 8 ways to make aluminum siding look good?
To all you guys who are bad-mouthing the merits of vinyl siding, I say "Get down off your high horse!"
Yeah, sure, if I was building a new home, then vinyl would not be my first choice...but I don't normally build new homes...I remodel old homes for old people...or moderate income people...who don't have a lot of cash and simply can't afford cedar or brick, or hardie backer. You say price shouldn't matter...well what planet are you living on?
Vinyl, done right is a great product that gives the home-owner many years of maintenance free service...something most 50, 60 and 70 year old clients appreciate. They dont have the inclination to paint every few years and they don't have the extra cash to outlay for professional painters every few years either.
The cost of vinyl is very inexpensive and in various designs and colors, can be attractive. Not everyone cares if their house looks like it should belong in a magazine...they do however want something that looks clean and fresh. Vinyl can do wonders in transforming old, diplapidated tract housing; that when new, never looked so hot to begin with.
If you know how to use a metal bending brake ( and I certainly do) then you can make various window wrappings that altogether hide and/or eliminate the use of "J" channels which is definately important. Its the vinyl trim packages that jump out at you and scream "VINYL". Eliminate this unsightly tim, add wood or decorative stone touches where practicable and economically feasible, and that vinyl sided house will blend in just fine.
Vinyl siding is very big business in the Pittsburgh, PA region. Cedar siding? Our local lumberyards don't even stock it. Out West maybe you have plenty of it...here, it costs about the same as gold.
Not every client is a cash cow, and not every carpenter will ever have the luxury to work for one either. You cater to the clientel of your area, or else you either move on or fold up shop. It's easy to build a luxurious bathroom for 20K, but try doing one for 3K. The same on siding a house. Do the very best you can with what you can afford to work with. The trick to carpentry is not always being able to work with the best materials, but rather its making the materials you are working with look and perform their best.
Any tips anyone on this website can pass on concerning working with any type of material...be it pvc, fake slate,all types of wood,glass block, MDF, OSB, dryvit, formica, pergo flooring, asphalt shingles, composition floor tile, aluminum coil stock, cheap grade veneer, rough-cut lumber,treated lumber, pex tubing, concrete work, vinyl siding, fiberglass bath tubs and wall coverings,glass block, acoustical ceiling tile, suspended ceiling tile, etc etc should be most welcome...Because sooner or later, unless you are very fortunate indeed, someone is going to ask you to do a job for them that may require the use of one or more of these mentioned materials. And although you may not really want to use a particular material, it may be all that client can ever afford, and why should that client be subjected to your indifference because his pay grade is simply not as high as yours?
Have a folk victorian rental property that needs siding. It's not in a gentrifying neighborhood, but I want to restore some appropriate detail on the front of the building. How can I get a 2 color corner and frieze board effect? The vinyl siding will be light blue wedgewood and white trim - but I would like to add forest green accents. No shutters - would like green quarter round to the white corner, top of the frieze and windows and in the gable. Saw a three part vinyl corner on a home with 10 plus year vinyl siding buy current owner knows nothing about who did the work or the siding mfgr. Please help - I'm on deadline.
Great suggestions. Here's a few more.
Use cellular PVC trim pieces for corners, casings and other trim. It feels & looks more like wood but can get a little expensive.
Reduce & consolidate the vents, pipes & utility lines that come into your house. This is true for any siding project, but vinyl will look junkie in a hurry.
Try to offset the vinyl with other natural looking materials. Stone accents, brick paths, metal railing, porcelain tile. making smart choices can lower the maintenance and still retain the warm look and feel. For instance, wood soffit under a porch ceiling is far less maintenance than wood siding. Try to avoid installing a vinyl fence with your vinyl house.