I too live in an older home. Plus I own 4 other older homes. We are a young couple that is just trying to provide people with decent places to live. I really dont like the look of vinyl but I would rather put it over the asphalt shingle siding somebody put on one of our houses YEARS ago than try to remove it and fix all the wood siding, if that would even be possible. We dont have the time to do the stripping ourselves, and we dont have the money to pay somebody to strip the houses down to the wood to restore them. Our house already has really old siding on it. And because they are older homes they are very drafty, and the heating bills are outragous. I dont understand why people would get soo upset. They do all still have original woodwork and wood floors inside that I try very hard to take care of. People do what they have to do. And sometime with the extra insulation in siding it helps in more than just looks of the house. And alot of time you can choose to keep some of the character of the house. Does it make me a bad person because I just had new windows installed in one of the houses? Vinyl, double hung at that. No, it makes me responsible. The drafts that were in that house are now gone. The heating and cooling bills will go down. And it makes it easier for people to keep windows clean on the inside and the outside. Sometimes what we need to do and what we wish we could do are two different things. I am really sorry that you all feel so strongly towards people for what they put on their own houses. I pray every day that my neighbor will get siding put on his house. We live in an old neighborhood (with brick streets even) and his house has asphalt siding on it. It doesnt flow well with the rest of the houses. In my defense, I am eagerly awaiting the day they pull the old siding off my house so I can see what it used to look like!!!!

My brother has a metal roof. The guest bedroom is on the second floor with a vaulted ceiling. I do not sleep when I am a guest there. Sound of rain on "some" metal roofs are torturous to my ears. Something not mentioned here is the sound, the sales guy that pitched me said with his roofs sound is not a problem, he wouldn't put into the contract that I would get a 50% rebate if the sound of rain could be heard within the home. Maybe my brother doesn't want overnight guests. It's an old thread but added that if someone is using this for research.

Hello, my name is Jack and I'm new to this forum, let's see I can help clear this up. I have worked in construction for almost 25 years and I own my own contracting company that Specializes in Home Improvements, Home Conversions, and Home Alterations for the Disabled, the Aging and the Impaired. My customers are people with very Special needs, (I'm Not a Roofing Contractor). I have no bias You stated that you have hired this contractor on previous occasions and that you were always pleased with the quality of work he performed for you. So let's assume there's a certain level of trust. You state your roof has two layers of shingles (I assume they will be stripped away) and he will also be removing the existing siding on the house now. Does this include removing the debris? Tipping and disposal fees have gone up a tremendous amount do to the recent spike in fuel prices especially in the Northeast. Both asphalt and vinyl (PVC) material are byproducts of petroleum and have also increased in price accordingly, not only in the manufacture but also in the delivery charges to the store as well. Because he has done work for you before I make the assumtion that you do trust him. So then why would you feel that you are not getting his best price? My Customers trust me with the keys to their homes, they trust my honesty, they trust my performance, my integrity and they trust that they are getting my best price. I have built very solid and sound relationships with my customers and we both value that trust. If money is the only issue that needs to be resolved, I recommend you sit down with him and work out a work schedule in order of importantance and take it from there. It shames me to say this but: There are to many people out there buying tools and claiming to be CONTRACTORS only to leave homeowners with their lifes turned upside down and in dispair, they even have Television Shows about it. Good luck. Best Regards, Jack Sullivan

I prefer using a garden sprayer to a pressure washer, but you will need a ladder to reach the higher areas. There are several make-at-home cleaning solutions you can use. Here is a link to a Bob Vila blog that outlines the options. I use the detergent and TSP solution. The best way to really clean siding is with a brush, but that's a lot of work. Bob Vila