Assuming you have already decided on replacing your home's current siding with vinyl, I want to cover some important facts and features to be aware of when shopping for Vinyl Siding. As in most products, there is far more to it than colors and price.
If manufactured and installed properly, a good quality vinyl siding will last 25 to 30 years + before it begins to fatigue, fade, etc. There are many manufacturers who make excellent quality products in the industry. These same companies also make products that, let's say, aren't excellent products. It isn't necessarily their fault, it's simply that there are many, many grades of vinyl and plastics, and as far as vinyl siding goes, at least in the builders market, it is extremely price driven. Most new homes don't carry any kind of long warranty or guarantee and, suffice to say, the building components used in new construction aren't usually the best quality. This is a major reason the replacement business is as large as it is.
So what is the best siding? The truth is there are a lot of good products out there.
Regardless of which product you choose, the chemical composite of the vinyl is probably the most crucial component. An Unplasticized Poly Vinyl Chloride (UPVC) is most desirable. There are no recycled materials in this type of product as there are most other PVC products, insuring a durable siding that will stand up to years of weather beating. Recycled materials break down and begin to fade and fatigue rather quickly. The up side to the recycled products is, of course, price. The UPVC products are considerably more expensive, but last 3 to 4 times longer than the less expensive alternative.
Impact Modifiers are another important component of vinyl siding. These chemical additives assure that impacts to the product from stones, baseballs, etc., spread out over the panel, rather than absorbing it all in one spot causing structural damage to the siding.
As far as fading goes, be sure you find a siding with a pigment that contains Titanium Dioxide. This helps to prevent changes in the color and ultimately retards fading by blocking harmful UV rays from the Sun. Some sidings even contain special polymers to prevent chalking. These are premium products and can get costly, but chalking is not too attractive so you might want to consider it.
Shelby Vinyl Products Co., LLC offers a Silver, Gold, and Platinum product line
(Good, better, best) which includes vinyl sidings that meet all the specifications described above.
Be sure the supplier or contractor explain fully the composite of your vinyl before your purchase.
