Important Questions to Ask Your Siding Contractor Before a Siding Replacement | Mr. Happy House
Replacing your siding can be a nightmare if you don’t plan accordingly. Knowing what to expect and what to look for when hiring a siding contractor to repair or replace your siding can save you money and stress. Just like any other type of installation such as a roof or a kitchen remodel, installing siding is it’s own specialty, you can’t just hire anyone to do it, they must be highly skilled in installing siding or at least have experience installing it.
Before you hire a contractor or a company for a siding replacement, here are some important questions to ask your siding contractor before a siding replacement:
Should I Repair or Replace My Siding?
Besides the roof, your siding is another main protector that keeps your home from water, wind, and fire. If your siding is rotted or falling apart, your walls are susceptible to damage. If you leave damaged siding untouched, eventually the damage will spread to other areas.
For wood siding, getting rot is very common. If rot has spread along with other areas of the siding, a minor repair may not fix the issue. In this case, a full replacement of the section may be needed.
Rotted siding occurs when moisture has built up inside of the siding and framing of the house. Problems like these happen when small leaks continue to bring in small doses of moisture over time. (This is why you shouldn’t ignore small leak prone areas!)
Deciding whether or not to repair or replace your siding is up to you, but it all depends on how badly damaged your siding is.
what Type of Siding Material Should I Use?
The type of siding material is largely based several different factors, however, we do recommend installing Hardie Plank Siding. It’s one of the best types of siding and is a popular siding choice, not because of its looks, but because of its durability. According to new 2021 stats, when installing fiber cement siding, homeowners can recoup as much as 76 percent of the upfront cost! That makes it one of the best investments you can make for your home.
Without getting too much into detail about James Hardie Siding, it’s rot free, fire resistant, insect-resistance, and is proven to withstand heavy storms. Other types of siding materials such as wood, are high-maintenance too, wood siding requires a lot of powerwashing to keep mold & mildew out, and frequent painting to prevent rot. Learn more about why you should choose James Hardie products for your siding installation.
How Long Will the Installation Take?
This is a big one to ask the contractor/company. Usually a full siding replacement on a 2000 square foot home, should take 3-4 days when the weather conditions are right. Ask the siding contractor what the time frames are for the installation, they should be able to tell you what’s going to take place and exactly what you need to expect during the installation.
Who Will Be at The Job Site?
Siding installation is not something that shouldn’t be taken seriously. Removing and installing new siding requires skilled people for the project to turn out right. You should be able to either have a project manager or the contractor onsite to overlook operations. A lot can go wrong, and if there is no project manager or a contractor onsite, the installation may not turn out right.
The best response you should get from the siding contractor is either “I’ll be on the job” or “I’ll have a skilled project manager on the job site”. Be EXTRA careful if the contractor says “The installers know what their doing, they will be just fine”, that’s not a good response, because for a full siding replacement, it can’t possibly be done seamlessly without someone skilled overseeing everything.
Will You Protect My Home From Getting Damaged During the Siding Replacement?
When installing new siding, you should ask the siding contractor how they will protect your lawn or other areas of your home from getting damaged. Professional siding contractors/companies are usually good at installation siding without damaging any windows or electric. If there are areas on your property that you don’t want to have damaged, address it with the contractor so that they will take extra caution during the installation.
Is There Any Other Areas of Concern?
Experienced siding contractors will know if there are potential problems that may cause changes during siding replacement. Make sure that any potential problems that may occur are addressed before the siding replacement and the same goes for the contractor as well. Generally if there are problem areas such as the soffits and fascia, a good siding contractor should be able to address that with you.
During a siding repair or a full replacement, the siding contractor can encounter moisture problems in the walls or areas that need insulation. In this case, you may have to pay more if you want other problems fixed during the siding installation.
After reading this article on important questions to ask your siding contractor before a siding replacement, I hope that you are now more informed about what to expect and the steps to take when deciding to replace your siding.
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2 Responses
It’s great that this article explains the different siding material options. My cousin wants to improve her home’s exterior. Maybe she can find a siding option that looks better and will work with the weather in her area.
Thanks for pointing out that one of the benefits of hiring a professional contractor for our siding needs is that they can ensure that the right material will be used for our sidings. The other day my neighbor shared that he is looking to have his sidings changed to something more practical yet modern. I will definitely remind him to hire a reputable contractor.