While vinyl can be a great alternative to ordinary house paint, and does a good job dressing up problem walls, there is a tradeoff. Although it looks like conventional siding from a distance, the illusion falters at corners, windows, doors and wall-mounted utility equipment.

While vinyl siding is not for everyone, millions of American homeowners have decided that it’s right for them. And if the huge cost can be reduced, legions of others will surely follow. The truth is, the price of vinyl siding installation can be cut nearly in half if you’re willing to do the work yourself. Vinyl siding is sold by most home centers and comes with fairly complete instructions. Requirements are also simple tools.

Part of the design dilemma is that vinyl expands and contracts a good deal with temperature changes. A standard 12-ft. length can be 1 / 2 to 5 / 8 in short on a very cold day in comparison with a very hot day. For this reason, vinyl must be cut short and nailed loose. In fact, you should be able to slide side to side every full length of at least 1 / 2 in after it is installed. The trimpieces made to conceal the ends accommodate these variations quite well, but not without compromises in performance.

Materials and tools

Siding should be installed on a flat surface, so unless you’re siding a new home, or have removed the old lap siding, you will need to coat the walls with sheets of rigid-foam board, usually 1 / 2 in thick. While rigid foam offers some insulation, its main function is to provide a flat nailing surface. Both rigid foam and siding can be nailed in place with galvanized nails board.

While you can expect differences among manufacturers, siding systems generally include a 12-ft. length of the channel walls, window / door trim, J-channel, utility channel, corner molding and metal starter strips. In addition, vented and unvented soffits, as well as fascia covers, are available.

Vinyl siding comes in several styles and in different colors. We chose a Dutch lap style, which has the appearance of tongue-and-groove car siding, because the typical profile. All vinyl siding and vinyl soffit and fascia can be cut with tin snips, a circular saw with plywood blade or by scoring with a knife and breaking it. click here if you want to know about the correct installation of siding with those who are expert in this field in williamsburg siding because they have sophisticated tools accompanied with a special expertise in this field.