Change Decades of Troublesome Painting for Decades of Carefree Vinyl Siding

Having to repaint the exterior of your home every couple of years is really annoying, isn't it? You might say that your prayers have been answered in the shape of vinyl siding, which saves you the headache of finding someone to hire for this job every couple of years.

Not only does vinyl siding come with products that are guaranteed to last up to 15 years, but it doesn't need much maintenance either pressure washings every now and then will make your house look as good as new.

With an 80% of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) in its composition, which makes it very durable, vinyl siding is manufactured in a broad variety of profiles, textures and colors. Like every good thing, there is a drawback to using vinyl siding instead of painting, in the sense that you need to choose a color and prepare to stick to it for years to come. Vinyl siding is available in a paintable form, which is still longer lasting than wood, but would leave you with at least some of the maintenance headaches of your existing exterior.

Depending on the type of home you have, you may choose different textures to more closely resemble wood grains or specific finishes such as cedar, logs, or redwood. Depending on the way the panels are attached, there are chiefly two styles of vinyl siding, namely the standard style where panels overlap and the seams are visible, and the seamless style with panels that can be 40 feet wide. For some style homes, you might even want to choose a style that is installed vertically instead of horizontally.

You will also want to consider the thickness of the siding, as that affects both how durable it is and the cost. The panels that you can normally find in home improvement centers are the standard type - 0.040- to 0.045-inch thick, and the premium type 0.055-inch thick. The premium grade sidings are mostly recommendable for houses in typically cold-weather areas or located in the vicinity of water.

Although it takes a lot of work and quite a bit of time, with the right tools you can install the vinyl siding on your home all by yourself, provided your home is an average rectangular house with no exceptionally high walls. A house isn't complete with just installing the siding, so you will have to install the corners, J-channel, the window and door tracks as well. Doing this kind of work on your house is indeed money-saving, but it will eat a lot of your time, too.

Should you choose to have a professional do the job, consider more than the estimate for installation. You should also check his credentials, previous jobs done on different houses, preferably more than a few years back. Aside from the regular phone calls to the owners, you should go the extra mile and see the houses for yourself to check if the siding is still in good shape. One of the keys to having vinyl siding that lasts is proper installation, and when you're making a change to get away from ongoing maintenance, the last thing you want is another worry.