LESLIE: David in Louisiana needs some help with siding. What can we do for you?
DAVID: Yes, hi. I have this frame house that I’m considering to put siding on but the neighbors have been telling me, “Do it this way. Do it that way.” Like for instance, if I have some bad boards that might be a little dry rot or et cetera, I just go ahead and cover it up; the vinyl will take care of everything. I’m kind of concerned that (inaudible at 0:08:12.0) I had to replace everything. Meanwhile, (inaudible) is blistering real bad. Should I go ahead and scrape it, paint it and then put siding on it? Because I figure …
TOM: No. You don’t have to go through that much work. I can appreciate what you’re saying but I would just tell you that if the siding is rotted to the point where it will not hold a nail, I would repair those areas, David. But if it’s just blistered and looking bad, I wouldn’t worry about it at all because it’s all going to be covered by the vinyl. It’s not going to help it or hurt it by doing any kind of prep work to that old siding; you can go right on top of it with the vinyl. The only concern is if it doesn’t hold the nail because it’s rotted, that needs to be addressed.
Now, remember that when the vinyl siding goes on, over older siding it’s a little bit harder; that you’ve got to have a really good siding company that knows how to nail this stuff and the key is to not nail it too tightly; to leave some – leave it loose, leave a bit of flex so that the siding, if it’s done right, will actually sort of – you can actually take a piece and slide it back and forth in your hand. Because vinyl siding expands so much in the sun that if you don’t do it that way, the first really hot day the stuff will buckle like crazy and you will not be a happy camper.
DAVID: I see. Thank you, sir. Appreciate it.
TOM: You’re welcome, David. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
