Today we head over to Tarrytown, New York. Known for its rich revolutionary war history and historic homes, Tarrytown (in the Hudson River town of Greenburgh in Westchester County) has always been a popular place to play and live.
Our client called us for a three-pronged project – new siding replacement and installing new windows and doors.
After an evaluation of her home, the first thing we did was get to installing the new windows and doors. When installing windows, doors, and siding in the same project, it’s best to do the windows and doors first. This allows the crew (us) to finish all the capping around the windows and doors before the siding is installed to seal everything up.
If you are ever thinking about new siding and windows and doors, doing it at the same time is ideal. Making sure a window is properly capped is so important. The vinyl or aluminum framing helps divert water away from the frame, which protects the interior walls, which protects your home. Not to mention that having them done at the same time can save money in the long run.
We replaced multiple doors around the house, but we did something special to the front door – installing an electronic locking mechanism. The new door design and lock not only looked stylish, but also increased our client’s home security.
Now, we know this is something that your typical siding contractor wouldn’t normally do, but here at Gunner, we always go the extra mile. If there is something we can do to make their lives easier, we are more than happy to help.
For the new siding, we used James Hardie’s Hardie Plank siding, which incidentally is the most popular and best siding brand in North America. It’s easy to see why it’s the best siding brand. James Hardie siding is environmentally friendly, durable, and adds to a home’s value and curb appeal.
James Hardie’s trademark fiber cement siding material makes it the best of the siding types you could choose, like aluminum or vinyl. It’s certainly the choice of siding experts. At Gunner, we consider James Hardie the best siding brand, so that’s all we use for siding replacement.
With so many different options available, there truly is something for everyone. Our client chose the color Iron Gray, which is a rich, bold shade sure to catch a passerby’s eye.
When removing siding, you never know what you might find underneath with the plywood, which acts as a cover and provides structural support as well as insulation.
This is something we want to make sure clients are aware of. We always hope that everything underneath is in mint condition after removing siding, but we also know that’s not always going to be the case.
Sometimes we’ll find water damage or wood rot to the plywood, among other issues. When damage is detected, it needs to be remedied before the siding replacement. You know what they say about a good foundation. Simply ignoring the problem and applying the siding anyway would do way more harm than good. You’ll be removing siding again sooner rather than later.
In this client’s case, there was no water damage to the plywood underneath the siding because, well, there was no plywood underneath. Since our client’s home is in a historic district, it really wasn’t that surprising that the home lacked proper insulation. It’s the case with many older homes.
But regardless of when your house was built, it is never too late to add plywood, especially if you are already replacing the siding during a home renovation. There are a couple of benefits to adding plywood underneath your siding. Not only is it lightweight, but it also dries faster than any other wood out there, making it a durable choice.
Some of you might be thinking about your own house and wondering if the client knew she didn’t have plywood underneath the siding. The answer is no. But she did have suspicions that something wasn’t quite right with her house.
It would get colder or warmer than she’d like, depending on the season. It was challenging to keep the house at a consistently comfortable temperature.
After we removed all the old siding, added the plywood, and secured the new Hardie Plank lap siding, she noticed an immediate difference in the temperature. It was demonstrably more stable, and as a result, the heating and cooling systems were much more energy efficient than they had been.
Overall, the siding installation and everything else turned out great. The client appreciated all the extra steps we took to ensure the job came out perfectly. The Hardie Plank lap siding, windows, and doors really upgraded the home in every sense.
We think she was most impressed with us installing the automatic door lock, even though that was the smallest part of the project. She was grateful it saved her from the hassle of adding another person to her home renovation team (which helped save money).
If you’re in the market for a siding professional to do an exterior home renovation in the tri-state area, drop us a line for a free siding estimate.
City: Tarrytown
State: New York
ZIP: 10591
Category: Siding
Materials used (manufacturer): James Hardie
Materials used (type): Lap Siding
Materials used (color): Iron Gray
Project Cost: $60,000
Time to Complete: Four weeks