Green Home Improvement - Exterior Siding Maintenance

Exterior Siding Maintenance

If you are looking to install exterior home siding, it is important to consider the traits of various types of siding materials. Each material is different and requires a different amount of maintenance. Here are some tips on deciding which type of siding you should choose due to maintenance issues.

There are three main siding options; aluminum, vinyl and wood, they all differ in the amount and type of maintenance they require. For instance Aluminum siding is a metal siding that is easy to shape and mold and resistant to the elements, but it also requires painting and can require dents, pings and dips to be removed.

Aluminum siding although relatively easy to maintain, still requires paint that usually must be replaced about every 10 years as well as yearly maintenance cleaning and working on various dents that occur from lawn mowers, baseballs or soccer balls and hail. Aluminum is very strong but does dent easily. For many home owners it is relatively easy to remove a dent, just use a drill to make a tiny hole in the center of the dent and pull it out, then fill it with body filler and a little touch up paint. Cleaning can be done with a strong power washer or even your garden hose. However you will sometimes need to scrub grass stains out with over the counter cleaning agents. If you have some corrosion, you will need to sand down the corrosion and repaint the area in question or fill it with body filler.

Vinyl siding is a great material to install on your exterior. Vinyl siding usually requires less maintenance than Aluminum. Vinyl siding is made out of PVC (polyvinyl chloride) which is extremely durable and requires no painting. Vinyl siding does require maintenance once a year, usually a cleaning with a power washer or even your garden hose. If you have a strong stain, you can easily clean it with over the counter cleaning products. Vinyl is a great product for siding, even scratches are unnoticeable due to the fact that the color of the vinyl siding goes throughout the entire material. For the least amount of maintenance possible, vinyl is usually the first choice.

Wood siding is usually the most maintenance intensive siding product on the market. Wood is an organic material and is susceptible to the elements, bugs and birds. Most people love wood siding, because it makes a house look warm, charming and beautiful. Although wood siding is the most expensive form of siding both in material and installation, many people choose it for its looks. Wood siding takes a lot of maintenance to keep it looking fresh and maintained. Most people either paint their wood or stain the wood. Because wood is so versatile, you can paint the wood in almost any color and there are plenty of stains available. For staining, expect to stain your wood siding, once every three to five years. If you paint you decided to paint the exterior siding, you should usually paint your wood siding, once every five to seven years, far more often than either aluminum or vinyl siding.

If you are thinking of adding siding to your home, make sure you take a look at the ways in which you need to maintain them to make a good decision on what type of material you would like to choose.