Should you select engineered wood siding for your home in Chicago?
While All Star Products normally favors fiber-cement siding, which works fantastic in hot or cold weather, we acknowledge the pros and cons of engineered wood. In this post, we’ll address the questions and concerns people have with this upgrade over traditional wood siding.
Advantages & Disadvantages of Engineered Wood Siding
Engineered wood is a synthetic mixture of plywood/chipboards and other materials, subjected to high heat, which fuses it into a more durable product than ordinary wood siding. Here are the basic pros and cons of selecting engineered wood for your home’s siding.
Advantages
- The aesthetic value is better than average, and many homeowners find it matches the price tag they paid for it. Sometimes, you can get it pretty close to the curb appeal you’d expect from fiber-cement siding.
- You can find more installation crews capable of installing it. Engineered wood also doesn’t take that long to do the job properly.
- The finished product makes a solid imitation of that classic wood appearance.
Disadvantages
- It’s only marginally better than normal wood in defense against woodpeckers, termites, and wood rot.
- It’s neither the most expensive nor the most cost effective. Vinyl is more of a bargain material than engineered wood if that’s the primary concern.
- All wood products, including synthetic materials, struggle with expansion and contraction, making it less than ideal for the cold/hot weather in Chicago.
LP Smart Siding: A Popular Brand of Engineered Wood Siding
Now that you know the primary strengths and weaknesses of engineered woods, we should say a quick word about the most popular brand for it: LP Smart Siding. If you look through their product series, you’ll find many quality aesthetic schemes, designs, and color options.
There are plenty of homes that look great with engineered wood. Many of their products are energy efficient, contain a solid R-value, and outperform most vinyl brands.
James Hardie Siding: The Best Fiber Cement Option
Finally, we’d like to remind you why we emphasize fiber-cement siding so often. James Hardie Siding, the best synthetic material available, provides an array of advantages that you can’t get from materials like vinyl or engineered wood.
- For a similar price, it’ll outlast engineered wood, without all the risk of wood rot.
- James Hardie Siding is the best material for durability, longevity, fire resistance, and weather resistance. In fact, the manufacturer designs Hardie boards to withstand the climate conditions of a given region. Therefore, the fiber-cement siding we install on your home, would be custom fit to handle the long winters AND humid summers we get in the Midwest.
- It’s a great way to maintain curb appeal and home value even if you live in a wealthier neighborhood with many other expensive homes.
- It doesn’t require lots of additional homeowner maintenance, provided you have a professional installation crew (like All Star Products) to put it together for you.
First-Class Siding Installation with All Star Products in Chicago
Whether you select engineered wood, James Hardie Siding, or anything else for your home, we’re more than happy to help with repairs or replacement. It all starts with a no-pressure free consultation when you work with us. Our goal is to help you find the right way to protect your home from the elements.
We also cover replacement windows and doors for your Chicagoland home. That makes us a reliable one-stop-shop for several outdoor improvement needs. It’s also why we receive so much referral work from our previous customers who tell their friends about us.
If you have further questions about engineered wood siding, James Hardie Siding, or other materials, contact All Star Products for expert guidance.
