Home Siding Inspection Guide

Inspecting your home's siding is crucial for maintaining its integrity and appearance. Here is what I have been looking out for:

Key Inspection Points

Cracks and Gaps

Check for any cracks, gaps, or holes in the siding. These can allow moisture to penetrate and cause structural damage.

Warping or Buckling

Look for areas where the siding may be warped or buckling, which might suggest improper installation or moisture issues. Nearby windows can sometimes create an effect that will warp your vinyl siding by becoming a magnifying glass.

Mold, Mildew, and Fungus

Be on the lookout for growths such as mold, mildew, or fungus, which indicate excess moisture. Older siding is going to be more susceptible. Older wood shingles seem to be the worst culprits to this issue.

Peeling Paint or Stains, Blisters or Bubbles

Peeling paint is just breaking the seal to the wood underneath. Excessive moisture or rain can creep into these areas and rot our your shingles. These are easy touch-ups and shouldn’t take more than an hour to patch up properly. Remember to check for rot as well if you have wood siding.

Loose or Missing Pieces

Check for any loose or missing pieces to your siding. Corners or caps sometimes fly off due to weather damage. Give areas a good tug; they shouldn’t be shifting at all.

Color Fading (Vinyl siding owners)

Significant fading can be a sign of deterioration due to prolonged exposure to UV from the sun. It breaks down the plastic like seeing sun-bleached posters at a Subway that has been in the same location for decades. You can replace per piece, but color matching is very difficult, so be sure to save the information from the manufacturer with coloring.

Insect Damage

Look for signs of insect damage, particularly if you have wood siding, which can be prone to termites. I had a woodpecker that was literally hitting my cedar shingles, and I never really thought much about it, I just figured he had too much lead paint, BUT IN REALITY, he was looking for bugs and winning.

That’s all for now! Was there something that I missed? Let me know!