Check That Vinyl Siding Before You Buy A Home
June 21st, 2008 Categories: Buying a Home, Home Inspections
I was at a home inspection with a buyer yesterday for a brand new home they purchased in North Raleigh. This particular home has vinyl siding and the inspector discovered that it was too tight.
Have you ever seen a home where the vinyl siding has buckled? Especially during the hot North Carolina summer days. If so, this was most likely because the siding was installed too tight. Our inspector told us that every piece should be able to move 1/4″ to 1/2″ when you grab the edge and give it a good pull.
We tugged on every single piece of siding we could reach, on all four sides of the home, and not a single piece moved. The inspector took us to a home under construction right next door and every piece we pulled on moved at least 1/4″ or so. This was a great object lesson and really illustrated the difference between a proper installation and an improper one.
Our home inspector speculated that the installer either nailed the nails too tight or failed to nail them in the centers of the slots. Or maybe he did both. Vinyl siding is designed to be installed in such a way that it can move slightly when it expands and contracts, or as the house settles over time. This eliminates the buckling effect. The photo at the right illustrates the correct way to nail the siding.
It left as is, the very least that would happen is that cosmetically the siding would be unattractive as it bowed out in various places in an attempt to relieve the pressure caused by the expansion. Worst case, several pieces could come loose allowing water to enter the walls. Don’t even want to think about the long term implications of that.
This one discovery paid for the cost of the home inspection… many times over. Now we have powerful evidence to present to the builder that will help us convince him that he needs to fix the siding. And the fix could very well be to pull it all off and reinstall it. But, whatever the fix, it’s the right thing to do for the buyer.
Owning a home will cost you far less over time if you can make sure it was built properly. And new homes aren’t perfect. Unfortunately, people build homes and sometimes they make mistakes, or unknowingly use defective materials. It pays to have an agent who can connect you with a good inspector. And it always pays to have a home inspection.
[...] shows what I know. Thanks to Jonathan Bunn at the Real Estate Bakery (get it?) who pointed me to this article on Raleigh Real Estate Talk. Have you ever seen a home where the vinyl siding has buckled? Especially during the hot North [...]
Bob,
This was a great post! I have dealt with a similar issue before and finding resolve took some time because it was not a new home and the repair was labor intensive. I like you blog and I’m glad to see other Raleigh agents doing it!