A January blizzard blowing straight off Lake Superior will slam right into the side of a house in Superior, WI. Weather in this area gets very brutal on exterior walls. More property owners are looking at Metal Siding to armor up their properties. Absolute Siding Co has seen plenty of old wood and warped vinyl give up after a few heavy Northland winters. Metal Siding is tough, but setting up Metal Siding right takes a bit of planning.
Before the Project Starts
Preparation makes or breaks a Metal Siding job. Contractors cannot just slap steel panels over rotten wood and hope for the best. Before anyone lifts a hammer, you have got to take a close look at what is happening underneath your current exterior. Clay-heavy soil and damp spring thaws around neighborhoods like Allouez mean moisture loves to creep up behind old cladding.
What you can DIY here is the initial exploratory work. Pull off a small piece of old Metal Siding near a corner or foundation line to check for soft wood or mold. Getting clear measurements of your exterior walls is also fair game for a handy homeowner. But do not try to calculate thermal bridging requirements or structural load capacity on your own. Leave the deep building envelope assessment to a professional contractor who knows local building codes in Superior, WI.
During the Installation Phase
Putting up steel or aluminum panels for Metal Siding is heavy, precise work. Metal expands and contracts wildly when the thermometer swings from a humid July afternoon to a sub-zero February night in Douglas County. If you drive those screws down too tight, the Metal Siding panels will buckle and pop as soon as the weather turns.
This is where you call in a pro crew for Metal Siding work. Handling 16-foot steel lengths on a ladder while the wind whips off the bay is a recipe for bent material and safety headaches. Absolute Siding Co spends a lot of time making sure thermal movement allowances and flashing details around windows are dead-on. One missed flashing step means water gets trapped behind the metal, turning your heavy-duty Metal Siding upgrade into a hidden rot trap.
After the Siding Goes Up
Once the last trim piece is snapped into place, your maintenance routine for Metal Siding drops dramatically compared to traditional wood. You will not be scraping and painting every four years. However, you are not completely off the hook.
As a homeowner, your post-installation job for Metal Siding is simple upkeep. Walk your property line every spring. Look for any loose fasteners caused by high winds or minor dings from flying winter gravel. Rinse off road salt or dirt buildup near the ground with a standard garden hose. Keep heavy shrubs trimmed back a foot or two from the metal walls to maintain airflow. Metal Siding gives you incredible long-term defense, but a quick seasonal look-see ensures the Metal Siding stays tight and dry for decades. Absolute Siding Co provides Metal Siding services for homes in Superior, WI.