The home siding of today is not at all like the siding your grandparents had on their home. Through the years, siding has changed — it’s become more aesthetically pleasing and more environmentally friendly while maintaining its durability and budget-friendliness.
Siding’s Start
In a broad sense, “siding” is really any exterior material on the sides of your home (as opposed to roofing or window materials). So, if we go back far enough, the earliest siding materials were stucco, mud, or thatch. Over the years, this expanded to include bricks, stone, wooden boards, and metal panels.
But when we talk about “siding” these days, we are usually talking about the prefabricated materials that are laid along the exterior walls of your home to protect walls from damage and the interior from the elements. When we think of siding in recent years, we usually think of wood, vinyl, or metal siding. Throughout the 1900s, metal, asphalt and wood siding were popular choices for protecting home exteriors (and these materials are still good options today).
Hello, Vinyl!
Beginning in the 1950s, vinyl siding took on a significant role in home siding development, becoming the most popular type of home exterior siding in the US beginning in the 1970s. Early vinyl siding had the advantage of being easy to install, durable, cost-effective, and low-maintenance. On the downside, there wasn’t a ton of variability in the look of vinyl siding in the 70s and 80s. This created a sort of “carbon copy” feel to homes with vinyl siding. And although vinyl siding was seen as modern, sleek, trendy, and forward-thinking in the 60s and 70s, it started to be seen as more of a “cheap” and low-effort option for home exteriors as time went on. As we moved into the 80s and 90s, consumers also became increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of coating their homes in plastic. As awareness of issues like carbon footprints and sustainability became more common, homeowners wanted to feel good about the choices they made for their home exteriors.
This Isn’t Your Grandparents’ Siding
The vinyl siding of today manages to avoid a lot of the problems and concerns of the late 20th century while maintaining its best qualities. Vinyl siding is no longer a “one style fits all” situation. Vinyl siding comes in a dizzying array of colors, textures, and formats, allowing homeowners to create any look they want with the ease and efficiency of vinyl. Vinyl siding comes in options which can mimic wooden shakes and shingles, tiles, textured wood panels, and more, meaning that there’s no longer a particular “look” associated with vinyl siding.
Vinyl siding has also managed to maintain (or improve) upon its plus sides — from ease of maintenance to cost-consciousness to durability. Vinyl siding is as consumer friendly as ever, while looking more beautiful than ever before.
The early environmental concerns regarding vinyl siding have also improved. The manufacturing processes of vinyl siding are more environmentally conscious these days, and we are now more aware, as consumers, that the durability and recyclability of vinyl siding are major positive points for the environmental impact of vinyl siding.
And vinyl siding isn’t the only option for consumers who want to be aware of their environmental impact while also reducing their home maintenance commitments with siding. Fiber cement siding and engineered wood siding are newer developments in home siding that provide sustainable and aesthetically pleasing home exterior options made from natural materials.
Whether you want tips on maintaining and repairing your existing home siding, or you’d like to learn more about modern siding options for your home, you can give us a call here at Harper Siding and Roofing. We’re experts on all types of siding and exteriors, and we’d love to show you how we can help you make sustainable, attractive, and budget-friendly updates to the exterior of your home.