Siding creates curb appeal and provides protection from the elements, moisture intrusion, and pest infestation.
When your commercial property’s protective layer wears out or becomes damaged, your building’s ability to ward off enemies like moisture intrusion and pests wanes. Your investment’s appearance will be affected, potentially deterring customers.
It pays to understand the common problems that can occur with commercial property siding and strategize the best ways to minimize them in the future—saving you time and money.
Solutions to Commercial Siding Problems
1. Moisture Intrusion
Water penetration in your building’s siding can be costly, creating rot and mold. If your siding warps or buckles, water has likely penetrated your building’s protective layer. If water enters your siding or gets behind it, and it goes unnoticed for a period of time, it can cascade into even more serious problems like structural damage.
Solution: Safeguard your commercial property from moisture intrusion by choosing a water-resistant siding such as fiber cement or LP SmartSide engineered wood siding. Both of these products mimic the stunning look of cedar, yet without the vulnerabilities or high-maintenance wood requires.
2. Pests
When siding is compromised due to damage, water penetration, or old age, pest intrusion can result. Wood siding is quite inviting to pests such as termites and carpenter ants. It can also attract woodpeckers.
Solution: You can bypass the hassles and time-consuming cost of eliminating pests and repairing your siding by covering your commercial building with a siding material that doesn’t attract pests or woodpeckers. Fiber cement siding and LP SmartSide Engineered Wood siding are pest-resistant solutions.
3. Fading Color
Ultraviolet light can cause your commercial siding to discolor, creating an inconsistent look to your building’s exterior, and decreasing its value.
Solution: Commercial buildings with fade-resistant color weather the sun’s rays much better over the years. Factory-finished siding such as James Hardie fiber cement even comes with a 15-year warranty against fading, ensuring your building will look stunning for years to come.
4. Poor Installation
When commercial siding isn’t installed with precision, you won’t get the high performance you deserve out of it, and it probably won’t last as long as it was designed to.
Solution: Choosing durable siding material is only half of the equation if you want lasting performance out of your siding. It’s vital that you find a reputable siding contractor (like us!) to install your investment property’s siding. Make sure the contractor has specialized training in installing the siding material of your choice. Experience level is another vital factor when it comes to siding installation. Vet your choice of contractor carefully and do your online and in-person research before hiring them.
5. High Maintenance
Some siding materials require more upkeep than others. Wood siding needs to be sanded and repainted every few years, and that’s a major endeavor!
Additionally, every siding material requires some care, so be sure you get on a maintenance schedule to at least clean and inspect your siding twice a year and after any major storms.
Solution: When choosing the best material to re-side your property with, take the material’s maintenance needs into account. Engineered wood siding and fiber cement siding are great options if you’re looking for low-maintenance solutions for your investment property.
Types of Commercial Siding Materials
Cedar Siding
This popular wood siding product looks wonderful when it is installed, but can suffer some pretty predictable problems over the years, leaving you with maintenance and repair needs.
Considerations: If the cedar isn’t treated, moisture intrusion will occur, making your property vulnerable to pest infestation and even structural damage. Woodpeckers can be attracted to cedar siding and cause damage annually. Wood siding is also known to warp over time, and it doesn’t offer the fire-resistant qualities of other materials such as James Hardie fiber cement.
Vinyl Siding
Highly insulating Mastic vinyl siding is a trusted commercial material often used on rental properties. It is low-maintenance, highly customizable, and comes in a variety of styles and colors. Its reliable insulation helps save owners or renters on utility bills.
Considerations: Warping and buckling can occur if vinyl siding is installed improperly. If you choose vinyl for your building, avoid problems by hiring a reputable contractor with plenty of vinyl siding installation experience.
Engineered Wood Siding
LP SmartSide engineered wood siding is a great alternative to natural wood siding. It delivers the looks without the high-maintenance wood required. It’s customizable, so you can achieve the look you desire.
Considerations: It’s vital to find a trustworthy contractor to install this siding in order to get the best performance out of it during its lifetime.
Fiber Cement Siding
Known as the top siding choice in America due to its beauty, durability, weather resistance, pest resistance, and its 30-year warranty, this stunning siding is a wise choice for commercial properties. Made of cement, sand, cellulose, and the Hardie company’s proprietary blend, this long-lasting product delivers reliable protection for your commercial property and looks fabulous for years. Its low maintenance is a bonus that will save you time and money over its lifespan, making it ideal for investment properties.
Considerations: Fiber cement’s makeup is heavier than most siding products, so it takes a skilled team of experts to install it properly.
Get Durable Commercial Siding You Can Trust
When storms come, enjoy the peace of mind you’ll have knowing your Dayton, Ohio commercial property is well protected by durable siding installed with precision.
At American Way Exteriors, products that last are important to us. That’s why we specialize in durable, weather-resistant James Hardie siding installation. It’s the strongest siding available that stands up against Ohio’s harshest elements and comes with an outstanding 30-year transferable warranty.
We also install gorgeous, long-lasting LP SmartSide engineered wood siding and highly insulating Mastic vinyl siding.
Contact American Way Exteriors for your commercial siding needs.
