Whether your current exterior siding is failing you or you’re just ready to upgrade, knowing what siding is best for your environment is important.
San Antonio has a unique climate. As a homeowner, you know how unpredictable the weather is down here.
Because your San Antonio home endures freezing winters, triple-digit summers, flash hail, and thunderstorms, you need a siding to withstand it all.
So, not only do you want to know what siding is best for your southern home, but you want to know what siding is the worst. This way, you won’t waste your time, effort, and money on the wrong siding.
Southwest Exteriors has helped thousands of homeowners transform their exteriors with high-quality James Hardie fiber cement siding since 1989. We exclusively offer these products because of their proven durability and longevity in San Antonio.
Although we only install James Hardie materials, we want to educate you on all you need to know when it comes to your siding project. This includes knowing what siding type is the best (and the worst) and how to choose the right siding for your home.
What Exterior Siding Is The Worst For San Antonio Homes?
Heat, humidity, and hail are just a few conditions your home must endure in San Antonio. Because of this, you need a siding type that can last against it all and protect your home.
Here are three of the worst siding types for San Antonio homes.
1. Vinyl Siding
Coming in at number one is vinyl siding. Vinyl is composed of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), similar to plastic.
Vinyl siding is a popular choice because of its affordability. However, the least expensive material will never be the highest quality.
While, yes, there are high-quality vinyl materials out there, vinyl siding on your exterior is not the most durable option to stand against San Antonio’s climate.
What makes vinyl siding bad for San Antonio homes?
Because of its material, vinyl siding has several disadvantages that don’t make it ideal for Southern homes.
Low-quality vinyl siding is known to expand and contract constantly when exposed to changing temperatures. This can cause the siding to warp, bend, bow, and crack during colder weather.
The constant expansion and contraction of vinyl siding can also create gaps between siding boards, which puts your home at risk of water infiltration and, ultimately, rot.
Vinyl siding may be a viable option for the exterior of an outdoor shed or storage space if you’re looking to install new siding yourself or want affordable siding. But to protect your home and last, we do not recommend vinyl siding for your San Antonio home.
2. Aluminum Siding
Aluminum siding, similar to vinyl, is another cost-effective siding choice. It provides the exterior of any home with a more rustic and industrial look.
This siding type does have its benefits, like its affordability, lightweightness, and resistance to fire. However, it isn’t the best option for San Antonio homes for a few reasons.
What makes aluminum siding bad for San Antonio homes?
One of the largest disadvantages of aluminum siding is how it absorbs heat and transfers it into your home. Because we San Antonians endure such intense summers, the last thing you want is to turn your home into an oven.
Aluminum siding can also warp and become misshapen like vinyl siding can. During heavy rain or hail storms, this siding can also be incredibly noisy.
If your siding becomes damaged or misshapen, water could infiltrate behind the siding and cause rotting behind your walls.
This is one of the largest reasons you need a durable siding type that can withstand all types of San Antonio weather and protect your home.
3. Wood Siding
The third type of siding that is not ideal for San Antonio homes is wood siding. Wood siding has been around for centuries and has proven durability and longevity.
However, it is not an ideal siding for all climates. While wood is a strong and long-lasting material for windows, siding, and doors, it has the negatives that make it unattractive for hot and humid climates.
What makes wood siding bad for San Antonio homes?
Though wood siding is durable and long-lasting, the reason it is not recommended for San Antonio homes is because of the risk of rot.
Any product made of wood is susceptible to water infiltration and rot. But, when it comes to your home, the last thing you want to do is risk rot getting in your siding and behind your walls, compromising the integrity of your home.
Because Texas weather can be so unpredictable, you want an exterior siding that can last against all types of conditions, from extreme heat to hail and snow.
With changing temperatures, wood siding can expand and contract. Over time, this can cause the wood to split and crack. This increases the risk of water infiltration and damage to your siding and home’s frame.
Overall, wood siding is an extremely durable and strong material for a multitude of home projects. They may be a right fit for homes in other areas of the U.S., but for San Antonio homeowners, we recommend staying away.
What Siding Is Best For San Antonio Homes?
Now that you know three types of siding that are not the best for San Antonio homes, you want to know, “Which siding is the best?”
As a San Antonio exterior remodeling expert for over 30 years, Southwest Exteriors knows that high-quality fiber cement siding is the most durable, long-lasting, and low-maintenance siding for San Antonio homes.
Now, we aren’t just saying that because we exclusively install James Hardie fiber cement siding.
Fiber cement siding offers numerous benefits for homes that undergo all types of weather, like
- Hail-resistance
- Fire-resistance
- Non-fading
- Non-warping
- Rot-resistance
And many more benefits. Fiber cement siding is the number one choice for South Texas homes that need siding you won’t have to worry about in the future, and will last for years.
However, fiber cement siding is one of the more expensive options on the market. So before investing in this siding, you want to fully understand what you will get out of it.
Check out this article that outlines why James Hardie fiber cement siding is best for San Antonio homes, and learn more about its benefits and what makes it unique.
Ready To Upgrade Your Siding With A Contractor You Can Trust?
When investing in a high-end product, you want to ensure your new siding is installed to perfection.
At Southwest Exteriors, our expert installation teams follow James Hardie’s Best Practices of installation to guarantee your new siding was installed correctly. Once your project is finished, a certified James Hardie inspector will look at our work and make sure everything was done right.
If one minor flaw is found, we’ll be sure to fix it for as long as you own your home.
Ready to get started and elevate your exteriors? Schedule your commitment-free consultation with Southwest Exteriors today and get the look you love coming home to!
