Top Signs It’s Time to Replace Your Home Siding

March 1st, 2022

When your home’s siding starts looking a little worse for the wear, you might assume it’s just an unsightly but harmless part of homeownership. However, this is far from the truth. Your siding protects your home from the elements and serves as the first line of defense between you and the great outdoors. Over many years of service, our siding contractors in Richboro, PA, have noticed the following big signs to replace home siding:

Missing or Loose Panels

One of the most urgent signs to replace home siding is also one of the most obvious: missing or loose siding panels. Missing or loose siding can lead to widespread trouble with insulation, damage to your home’s interior walls, and even problems with your foundation. For the sake of your home’s structural integrity, you cannot afford to ignore this issue.

Cracks and Holes

While not as noticeable as missing siding panels, cracks and holes in your siding are nothing to sneeze at, either. Cracks and holes don’t form by themselves; they happen when storms, tree limbs, animals, or other external forces cause damage to your siding. If your siding has a few small cracks, it may be repairable. However, if you notice many cracks and holes or continue to have problems with damage, it is definitely one of the signs to replace home siding.

Bulging or Warping

Bulging or warping is another one of the signs to replace home siding. Siding for your home exists to line the exterior evenly, so bulging or warping can indicate something is going on, either with the siding itself or something underneath it. Do the slats along the side of your house resemble a hilly road or bulge out in random places? Either way, your siding won’t fix itself once the problem has been found.

Blisters or Bubbles

You swear you mixed the primer right during your last home improvement project — so why is your siding looking so strange? Blisters and bubbles in your siding can indicate that there’s a bigger problem at play rather than merely an aesthetic one. You might be seeing the results of insect activity, water damage, or other siding issues.

Rotting Wood

Unless you built your home from the ground up, it’s not likely that you got to choose the siding for your home. This means there is a chance it is wood siding. Wood is one of the most affordable siding options, but it’s vulnerable to some unique problems such as rotting. This can occur in several ways; the most common is “dry rot.” You can test for dry rot by feeling your siding at the top and bottom and seeing if any pieces flake off, feel soft underneath your hands, or appear to have water damage. If you’re seeing a lot of dry rot, it’s time to replace your siding.

Wood siding may be somewhat cheap, but it’s high-maintenance and requires frequent repainting among other upkeep tasks. If your home still has wood siding, consider upgrading to vinyl siding for maximum protection as well as an attractive appearance that is virtually maintenance-free.

Animal Damage

Have you had trouble with unwanted guests in the past? You never know what part of your home might have been nibbled on or crawled through by your wild visitors. If your home has ever served as a hideout for mice, squirrels, bats, or other local critters, take a close look at your siding. Sometimes, animals will burrow into or along your siding panels, doing serious damage over time. Even if you don’t think you’ve ever been a victim of pest infestation, it’s still a wise idea to check for animal-related signs to replace home siding.

Mold or Fungus

Mold, mildew, and fungus on or around your siding are not only an eyesore. They’re also one of the signs to replace home siding — and fast. Moisture is the enemy of your walls, and letting moisture seep through your siding in the form of mold and fungus can have costly consequences.

Fading Paint

Curb appeal is one of the first things potential buyers will notice, so if you’re planning on moving soon, consider fading paint as one of the signs to replace home siding. However, even if you aren’t leaving your home, it’s still worthwhile to watch out for unusually fast fading. When it happens over the years, faded siding is no cause for alarm, but if your new coat of paint seems to fade within months, your siding might have interior damage or moisture problems.

Poor Energy Efficiency

When your energy bills shoot through the roof, your first instinct might be to check your HVAC systems for any problems. While this is never a bad idea, the culprit might actually be outside of your house. Damaged siding can affect heating and cooling all over your home and reduce your energy efficiency, meaning you end up paying more than you need to just to keep your home comfortable.

Drafty Rooms

Another one of the more hidden signs to replace home siding is drafty rooms in your house. If you’ve appropriately ventilated and heated your home, winter shouldn’t bring chilly drafts; but if your siding is damaged, you might be letting the cold straight in through your walls! If nothing you’ve done has solved your cold air problems, give siding contractors a call to figure out if this could be your problem.

Insulation Problems

Are your walls… moist? Damp walls can be a sign that water is seeping into your home from outdoors, meaning your siding isn’t doing its job. This can be doubly problematic in the winter as already poorly insulated walls experience repeated freezing and thawing, which adds even more stress on already damaged siding. Insulation problems such as this are subtle but essential signs to replace home siding.

Ready to Replace?

Replacing your home’s siding can be a necessary repair task for your home, an aesthetic improvement before you put your house on the market, or anything in between. Regardless of why you want to replace your home siding, Munz Construction is here for you. We’re available for all your home repair needs, not just siding replacement and repair! We frequently find ourselves installing replacement windows in Doylestown, PA, helping remodel areas like basements and garages, and anything else you can dream of. When you let us help you achieve your home remodeling goals, you’ll be happier with your home than ever! Get in touch with us today, or get your free estimate now.

L. C.

14:13 11 Sep 18

Munz Construction has done a number of large projects for us at our home over the past 18 yrs. They have always done a great job. Their workers are good and very courteous. We have always felt very comfortable with them in our house, especially Phil and Jason. Steve and Pete are easy to work with and are responsive to questions/issues. Bryan is very helpful when you need to make selections for your projects. The company stands behind their work and provides quality in a timely fashion, which can't be said for a lot of other companies these days. We would definitely recommend them!

tina leck

17:46 17 Aug 18

Munz Construction did an amazing job with our basement remodel. The entire team was so pleasant to work with. Everyone that has come to our home since the remodel has been thoroughly impressed with the design. It really was a great experience to work with everyone at Munz. I’d like to also add that my husband tends to be an “overspender” and I am the complete opposite... so from the very start of our project , the design team made sure we were both comfortable with all of our selections. They always showed numerous options and price points for different things. So in the end, my husband and I were both so happy with everything. Thanks Munz, we’ll definitely use you again.

Sheryl Duffy

19:23 17 Sep 18

I did a major renovation of a 40 year old house. While touching virtually every room, the most significant changes included creating a new custom kitchen by combining the existing kitchen with a small dining room, creating a new master bedroom and converting a small bedroom into a large new master bathroom. I had contacted several well known home renovation companies who either did not seem to be interested in the large project or did not seem to offer the “full service” and support I needed. Steve and Bryan spent all the time I needed to make me comfortable making all the design decisions – not an easy task since I am design challenged! Any issues that came up, as would be expected in a project this size, were addressed. In addition, everyone made living in the house during construction as comfortable as possible. I would also like to say that the attention to detail and the finishing work done by their people was remarkable. The final results are fantastic! Needless to say I would use them again for any project and would highly recommend Munz Construction.

DJ Mischak

17:49 17 Sep 18

Chris and his crew were amazing! They added an addition that "touched" every room in the house. His workers were kind, courteous, and respectful AND they got the job done in a timely manner with WONDERFUL results. We love our new addition. We have the BEST house on the block!!!!

Hunter Labovitz

20:39 19 Sep 18

We were gutting and remodeling an old house that needed major work but that we didn’t want to tear down. Given the time and cost involved, we were very deliberate with our choice of contractor. We are very glad we chose Munz Construction as dealing with all of their employees was a pleasure from Day One (and the project took about a year so we had lots of contact). They always suggested ways to cut costs, had good suggestions to modify the blueprints to our advantage and never pushed unnecessary ideas. The design team was especially helpful as their three-dimensional computer models really gave us good insight into the final product and allowed us to make pre-construction tweaks of which we otherwise would not have thought. Munz was also very good about fixing things without complaint. As we approach one year in our new house, we are very happy and also receive lots of compliments on the design and preservation of the house.

Stacey Holloran

13:58 18 Oct 18

We are very pleased with Munz Construction. We had the front of our house framed for new windows, new siding, stucco removal, new gutters, lighting etc. They helped with design ideas upfront and the house looks amazing. Erich and his team were very pleasant, professional and detail oriented. We would definitely use them again for any additional work in the future.

Cynthia Powell

20:28 23 Oct 18

Everyone at Munz that we had the pleasure of working with were wonderful. From the beginning of our project, until the end everyone worked so hard. We had a new room, bathroom, and a beautiful porch put on our house. We are extremely happy. I would highly recommend this company.

Giannina Macaluso

21:14 22 Oct 18

Munz Construction installed my new windows. They were extremely professional and did a great job.The crew arrived timely, covered my floors and were sure keep all areas clean throughout the installation.After the job was completed the crew cleaned and actually left my home cleaner than they found it! Munz Construction is hugely recommeded and will be installing my new kitchen, powder room and hall bath!Nice to see a professional company!!!!

Catherine Melly

15:09 30 Aug 18

Had great experience with Pete, our site manager, as well as Jason (construction), Jack (electrician ), Dave (painter), and all of the other subcontractors. Very clean, professional, pleasant. I found the initial process of general design less than ideal. Having little experience with this process, I didn't feel as informed as I could have been. I expected there may be options in layout and design, but that was not the case. In fact, the original design presented to us didn't really show a layout at all, merely a word document of what would be done. I was slightly taken aback when, e.g., there was no option for any kind of linen storage in the bathroom as the design completely removed a large closet that we had in order to make room for a stall shower. It was assumed we would want a whirlpool tub, and we weren't really asked about that option. These kinds of things made me a little uncomfortable with going forward. To us, it was a very expensive job, and yet I felt like it was not considered an important one when we sat with the designer. We felt much more comfortable when Pete met with us to go over the job expectations. There were very few glitches along the way, and Pete handled each of these very professionally. The work as completed is very good, and we are very happy with the end result.

Peter Gilles

21:19 17 Oct 18

Munz Construction is a one-of-a-kind experience when it comes to renovations and construction. The family-run local business will handle every aspect of your project from helping see your initial ideas through to budgeting, permitting, and construction. You will be delighted by the friendly, knowledgeable staff whether you're visiting the showroom or have construction crews conscientiously working for you to create your masterpiece. Munz Construction has the capabilities to handle any size renovation or construction project. If you enjoy working with the best then try Munz!