Vinyl siding brands ?

[rkpatt758]

I am looking at vinyl siding project for my house . Besides the looks and getting the thickest I need some recommendations on what brand to use . Are all of the major brands ( Alcoa, Alside, Haertland, Mastic ) brands comparing with the same approximate thickness about the same in quality with respect to UV resistance . One contractor said he preferred heartland because of superior UV resistance . Aslo what about that that viny siding which has a layer of styrofoam backing - sold as " techwall " by a contractor in my area ? - thanks

[Joseph Meehan]

Consumer Reports did a comparison not long ago. You may want to take a look at what they found. I suggest you find the whole article, many libraries have the older issues. Just reading the ratings can be misleading.

[RobertPatrick]

[e-mail] wrote in news: [e-mail]:

ewwwwwww, vinyl looks so plastic and fake.

[Art]

Thought I would tell you my fathers vinyl siding story. He had Sears install it over a decade ago with a non prorated warranty. Eventually if started giving off little balls in vinyl and he complained to Sears. They asked him for a copy of the warranty since later installations were pro-rated. He had his and they replaced the whole job. Bottom line is don't believe it will last forever and find a non prorated warranty from a company who will stay in business. Or go with some other type of siding like Hardiplank cement board.

[Bag Boy]

I agree with Art. I know you are interested in vinyl siding, but it may be worthwhile to check out the Hardiplank. I've seen it at the Home Depot or at Lowes (can't remember as I'm in both stores frequently). You can take a look at it and decide.

I'm actually going to remove my newer vinyl siding (3 years) and replace it with the Hardiplank once the addition is complete. It looks like a more durable product and you don't have to worry about it warping or blowing off when it gets windy outside.

[R.Smyth]

A little off topic but still interesting. We recently put an addition on our house. The contractor matched the vinyl siding which was put up about 8 years ago. The colour was no problem. But the manufacturer now makes the panels narrower and it was impossible to match them up with the existing siding. And I was damned if I was going to replace the old siding. So we have a bit of a mismatch which I hope to conceal or de-emphasize with a climbing vine or something where the two meet.. It's the same scam the candy bar and laundry detergent people use...reduce the size but keep the same price. ds