Siding in Burlington
Burlington is a railroad and mill town by origin. Alamance County's history traces it to the Company Shops roundhouse of 1859 and to the mills that kept its people working after the railroad repair shops moved away; the county counts more than 65 mills in the Haw River watershed within its borders. Mill houses, early twentieth-century homes and postwar neighborhoods sit alongside newer subdivisions, so a siding job here can mean anything from patching original wood clapboard to replacing worn vinyl on a 1990s house.
The weather the wall has to handle
The nearest NOAA engineering weather station is at Greensboro/Piedmont Triad, about 28 miles west. Its data shows:
- a 50-year basic wind speed of 90 mph, measured as a 3-second gust;
- a 100-year rainfall rate of 3.5 inches per hour;
- about 56 freeze-thaw cycles in an average year;
- about 573 hours a year with the wet-bulb temperature above 73°F.
That combination is hard on siding in quiet ways. Water that gets behind a lap or into a crack freezes and expands dozens of times each winter, and in summer humid air keeps walls from drying out. Most siding problems start where water gets in and can't get out.
Older houses
On mill-era and older homes, siding is often original wood, sometimes hidden under later aluminum, asbestos-cement or vinyl. Before you agree to a price:
- ask the contractor to open a test area and show you what's underneath;
- ask how they'll handle any older layers, including testing and disposal where needed;
- ask whether they can match the existing lap width and profile for a partial repair;
- ask how they'll price rotted sheathing or framing found once the old siding is off.
What goes behind the siding
The siding is only the outer layer. Ask about housewrap or another weather barrier, flashing above windows and doors, kick-out flashing where a roof edge meets a wall, and a drainage gap or drainable wrap that lets the wall dry. These details matter more than the brand name on the panel.
Choosing a material
Vinyl, fiber cement, engineered wood and real wood all perform here when they're installed well. Compare them on upkeep, painting, impact resistance and how each handles moisture at cut ends and joints. Ask for the manufacturer's installation instructions and whether the installer follows them; many warranties depend on it.
The license threshold
The North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors says that by law a general contractor must hold a state license when the total cost of a project is $40,000 or more, and its website has a public license search. A whole-house re-side with sheathing repairs and trim can approach that figure. If yours could, look the contractor up before you sign.
Comparing quotes
Ask every bidder to price the same scope: material and thickness or grade, removal of old layers, sheathing repair pricing, weather barrier, flashing, trim, soffit and fascia, paint or finish, permit, cleanup and the product and installation warranties. Compare line by line, not by the total.