Siding & Windows
Siding Installation in Charleston, SC
New siding, and the layer nobody sees that does the work.
New siding, and the layer nobody sees that does the work.
Quick answer: Siding is a rain screen, not a seal: the water-resistive barrier behind it and the flashing at windows, doors and penetrations keep the wall dry. Most siding has to hang, nailed snug in the slot rather than driven tight, or it buckles in summer heat. In York County, freeze-thaw makes joint sealing matter more. Southeastern Renovation installs siding in the Charleston area and York County. Call (843) 718-8177.
That distinction changes what a good installation looks like. Siding takes the weather and sheds most of it; some water always gets behind. The barrier behind the siding is what actually protects the sheathing, and the details at windows, doors and penetrations are where it either continues correctly or stops.
Fastening is the second thing that separates a wall that lasts from one that ripples. Most siding products have to be hung rather than pinned — nailed in the center of the slot, snug but not tight, so the panel can move with temperature. Driven tight, a panel has nowhere to go and buckles on the first hot afternoon.
In York County there is a freeze-thaw factor as well: any gap left at a joint takes on water, and water that freezes in a gap makes the gap larger. The sealing details are not cosmetic.
We take this work across greater Charleston, from Summerville and Goose Creek to Mount Pleasant, West Ashley and the sea islands, and on the York County side around Rock Hill, Fort Mill, Tega Cay and Lake Wylie. More on our siding and window services.
No, and no siding product does. It sheds most of the weather; the water-resistive barrier behind it is what actually protects the sheathing, and the details where that barrier meets windows and penetrations are what decide the outcome.
Usually because it was nailed tight. Most siding has to hang, with the fastener centred in the slot and left snug rather than driven home, so the panel can expand.
Pinned tight it has nowhere to move and buckles in the heat.
Sometimes it can, and it is often the wrong call. Layering over the old surface hides whatever condition the sheathing is in, and that is exactly the thing worth knowing before the wall is closed up again.