Exterior Siding - Option's Today
This article talks in brief about all the types of Exterior Sidings availabe in the market. It tells you the advantages and disadvantages of each of the Exterior Sidings. Exterior siding is done to protect the house from strong winds, the heat of the summer, the cold of the winter, heavy rainfall and other torments of nature. Apart from this, since it is the outer covering of the house, it is the first sight of a traveler or a guest to your house. Therefore, the exterior siding should also be pleasing to the eye. There is a fine line between being too decorative about the exterior siding and compromising its structural integrity.
Since exterior siding is a protective covering to the house, it’s often referred to as the first line of defense. For example, red cedar has a hygroscopic property. Due to this property, heat is dissipated in the summer and is conserved in the winter. What this means is that winters will be warmer and summers will be cooler. In today’s world there are many options of external siding. All have their own unique properties. Care should be taken in selecting the right exterior siding and maintaining it properly.
There are many choices of exterior siding available today. A few of them are listed below.
Different Types of Exterior Sidings
Exterior siding with Wood
Here, wood is placed in overlapping horizontal rows or "courses", called clapboard. In colonial times, Eastern white pine was the most common material. Wood siding can also be made of unpainted weather-resistant woods such as redwood. Jointed horizontal siding may be shiplapped.
Exterior siding with Plastic
Wood clapboard is often imitated using vinyl. It is usually produced in units twice as high as clapboard. Plastic imitations of wood shingle and wood shakes also exist. Vinyl or plastic siding has grown in popularity due to the generally low maintenance and low cost appeal it offers.
Exterior siding with Metal
Utilitarian buildings often use corrugated galvanized steel sheet siding. Formerly, imitation wood clapboard was made of aluminum: 'aluminum siding'.
Exterior siding with Composite materials
Various composite materials are also used for this purpose for instance, asphalt, asbestos, fiber cement, aluminum (ACM) etc. They may be in the form of shingles or boards, in which case they are sometimes called clapboard.
Your Self Help Guide to chose the Right Exterior Siding
The main function of siding is protection, from extreme weather or from excess water. It protects the house from these agents. Because this adds an aesthetic appeal to the house one lives in, there are many researchers today who are trying to study and develop new forms of siding which will provide a lot of security to the house, without compromising on the aesthetic appeal.
It up to you to select the right form of exterior siding that will be suitable to your budget.