How this checklist works
Greenville is the seat and largest city of Pitt County, which spans 656 square miles and dates its history to 1760. Whatever its age, the siding on your house wears in small steps: a nail backs out, a caulk joint splits, a gutter spills on the same patch of wall until the boards there go soft. Catching those steps early keeps a repair small.
This checklist splits the year into five short visits. Each one takes an hour or so. Walk the house in the same order every time, front wall first and then clockwise, and take photos from the same spots so you can compare them later. NOAA's engineering weather set has no station near Greenville, so the checklist works from what you can see on your own walls rather than from local figures.
What to carry
- a phone camera and a notebook, or a notes app;
- binoculars for the upper courses and the soffit;
- a flashlight for the shaded side and under the eaves;
- a putty knife or screwdriver to probe soft spots gently;
- a step ladder, used only where the ground is level.
Late winter: the damage pass
Do this on a calm, dry day toward the end of the cold months.
- Front wall. Look for cracked or chipped vinyl and dented lap; cold panels break more easily when struck.
- Each corner. Check that corner posts and trim boards still sit tight to the wall.
- Eaves. Look for stains on the soffit or upper courses that could mean water backing up at the roof edge.
- Inside. Walk the rooms on outside walls and note any damp spots, peeling paint or odd smells.
- Write it up. List the repairs, mark which ones can wait for warmer weather, and fix anything letting water in right away.
Spring: follow the water
- Watch a steady rain from under a porch or an open garage. Note where gutters overflow and where water splashes back onto the bottom course.
- Clean gutters and check that each downspout empties several feet away from the wall.
- Look above windows and doors. Streaks below a head flashing suggest water getting behind it.
- Find each kick-out flashing where a roof edge meets a sidewall. If there is none, add it to the list.
- Collect bids for any larger job while the list from your visits is fresh.
Early summer: clean and clear
- Wash gently. A garden hose, a soft brush and a cleaner the siding maker allows will do. A pressure washer can drive water up behind the laps.
- Check the shaded walls and the areas behind shrubs for mildew or algae, and clean it before it stains.
- Cut plants back so leaves and vines don't touch the siding and air can move along the wall.
- Reset sprinklers so they wet the lawn, not the lowest boards.
- Look for nests of wasps or mud daubers in joints, vents and under trim.
Late summer and early fall: paint and caulk
- Read the label first. Every can of paint and tube of caulk lists the temperatures and moisture it can be applied in.
- Work with the sun. Paint the shaded side in the afternoon and the sunny side early; a hot wall can make paint blister or dry too fast.
- Replace failed caulk around trim, but leave the bottom edges of lap siding open so water can drain out.
- Touch up bare spots on wood and engineered wood, especially cut ends.
Fall: close up for the cold
- Seal around pipes, wires, vents and meters where gaps have opened.
- Clean the gutters again after the leaves come down.
- Drain and shut off outdoor faucets, and store the hoses.
- Move firewood, bins and bikes away from the walls so nothing holds moisture against the siding all winter.
After any big storm
Wind and rain can do in an afternoon what normal wear takes years to do. Once it is safe to go outside:
- photograph every wall before anything is moved or repaired;
- look for missing, cracked or lifted panels and loose trim;
- check that flashings and gutters are still in place;
- cover any opening that exposes the barrier or sheathing until a repair is done.
If you plan to file a claim, call your insurer before hiring anyone.
When it's more than a weekend job
Call a siding contractor if your visits turn up soft sheathing, stains spreading from window corners, paint that blisters in the same place each year, or more damaged pieces than you can patch. Ask two or three companies to price the same scope in writing, including flashing, barrier, trim and a unit price for sheathing.
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; the board's website has a public license search. Ask each bidder what state license, if any, covers this job, and what the number is, then look it up. Ask which city permits the work needs and who pulls them, and ask for proof of liability coverage and workers' compensation.
Keep a wall log
Make one folder for the house, paper or digital. In it go the siding brand, profile and color name, paint and caulk products, the dated photos from each visit, invoices and both warranties. When a panel needs matching or a buyer asks about the exterior, the answers are already there.