Residing your home with vinyl siding is a smart investment. Compared to all other cladding, it has the lowest installed cost (both materials and labor) and unlike other cladding, vinyl siding does not need additional investment over the life of the product. There’s no cost to paint, caulk, or refinish every few years like you have to do with wood, fiber cement, or other prefabricated products. Vinyl siding certified for color retention is warranted to resist fading so the beauty and durability you get on day one will last a lifetime.
In addition to making your house look great, siding has a vital job to perform — protecting your home from the elements. When properly installed, certified vinyl siding can withstand winds of 110 miles per hour. Plus, certified vinyl and other polymeric siding, will never crack, chip, flake, pit peel or fade. And with the most comprehensive warranties of any siding, you know your investment is safe when you build or remodel with America’s number one choice — vinyl siding.
Home builder, author, and VSI consultant Fernando Pages Ruiz talks about why he thinks vinyl siding is a better choice than fiber cement.
The Truth About Vinyl Siding vs. Brick
Vinyl siding is the number one choice of remodelers, builders and homeowners. Used alone or in combination with other exterior cladding, vinyl and other polymeric siding deliver undeniable curb appeal at the most affordable price. An impressive list of benefits includes lasting beauty, durability, extremely low maintenance, sustainability and great value.
Some competitors continue to make claims that simply are not true. In this brochure, we present the facts about vinyl siding and important things to consider about brick.
Facts:
Beauty
- Vinyl siding offers an impressive variety of profiles and shapes, with ideal choices to suit virtually any architectural style; an ever-increasing spectrum of colors, including darker options and period colors; and comprehensive architectural trim options and accessories in matching and complementary colors.
- While recognized for its attractive appearance, brick’s limited variations and color options are not suited for popular architectural styles, including Queen Anne and Craftsman. Because accessories are not available in brick, many brick homes rely on high-maintenance trim (e.g., wood) to complete the look.
Installation
- Vinyl siding has the lowest total installed cost of any exterior cladding. An independent agency ensures that certified vinyl siding installers are trained and tested on ASTM-accepted application techniques.
- Brick’s labor-intensive process equates to higher installation cost; about 420 percent more expensive than vinyl siding. Due to weight, it is more expensive to ship to job site.
Environmental Impact
- Vinyl Siding qualifies as an environmentally preferred product. Per BEES software analysis, has lower environmental impact than brick in total embodied energy, global warming potential and criteria air pollutants
- Per BEES software analysis, brick’s effects on global warming are three times greater than those of vinyl siding
Value
- Vinyl siding is has the lowest total installed cost of any exterior cladding; has no long-term maintenance costs; no evidence of different appreciation rate of property value compared to other types of exterior cladding; and lifetime, transferable warranties are available
- Brick is nearly 400 percent more expensive material cost than vinyl siding and maintenance to re-point joints adds to life cycle cost of the home
Insulated siding can improve a home’s energy efficiency. Most exterior walls have insulation in between the wall studs, but allow significant energy loss through the studs themselves. Wall studs, both wood and metal, are poor insulators — when they come in contact with the exterior cladding, they allow heat to pass through them (which is called a thermal bridge). Since these studs represent up to 25 percent of the wall surface of an average home, it’s like having an entire exterior wall with no insulation at all.
Learn more about how vinyl siding can help you side with safety – and do it beautifully.
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Insulated Siding as Home Insulation (ISHI): A Guide for Users and Energy Raters
Insulated siding is vinyl cladding with a substantial thickness of rigid foam plastic insulation that is permanently attached. Various national building energy performance programs recognize insulated siding as an energy-efficient exterior cladding.
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This Guide instructs specifiers and energy specialists on how insulated siding can be applied to meet the energy efficiency requirements, including but not limited to:
International Energy Conservation Code (IECC)
The major regulatory tool for energy-efficiency residential construction is the IECC. Insulated siding is listed in both the 2012 and 2015 energy code among materials that can be used outside of the building to provide the required total wall R-value in the coldest climate zones. Generally speaking, builders and remodeling contractors are able to use insulated siding to meet the R-value/U-factor requirements. This Guide will help you identify sections applicable within the code.
Insulated siding also meets the requirements of the 2015 International Residential Code through third-party certification based on ASTM D7793 Standard Specification for Insulated Vinyl Siding. ASTM D7793 includes the requirements for both the vinyl siding component and the foam plastic component, as well as performance requirements for the product as a whole.
ENERGY STAR® Qualified Homes
In order to earn the ENERGY STAR label, a new home must meet EPA’s guidelines for energy efficiency. Insulated siding has been added to the checklist of building products or methodologies that can help qualify homes under ENERGY STAR Qualified Homes version 3 because of its ability to reduce thermal bridging. This Guide will help builders who want to earn the ENERGY STAR label for homes use insulated siding to comply with thermal bridging requirements.
R-value Testing
FTC regulations govern home insulation marketing claims and the means by which the R-value of home insulation is determined. The claimed or rated R-value must be based on actual testing conducted in accordance with one of the test methods specified in the regulations. This Guide discusses the Standard Test Method for Thermal Performance of Building Materials and Envelope Assemblies by Means of a Hot Box Apparatus (ASTM C1363). ASTM D7793 specifies sample configurations and installation details used in the ASTM C1363 tests to produce accurate and consistent R-value for insulated siding. Chapter 6 of this Guide provides detailed information on how tested R-values can be used to calculate a wall assembly’s U-factor.
