Vinyl siding is one of the most durable siding materials available but changing tastes, time, weather, and improper installation can leave your wanting to paint, needing to deep clean, or needing to repair your siding. 

What are the solutions to these common vinyl siding woes?

Can You Paint Vinyl Siding?

Vinyl siding has a colorant added at the time of manufacturing so that there isn't any surface-level that can chip or crack under the sun. Over time, non-white vinyl siding can start to fade and you might start to wonder if you need to purchase all new siding or if you can just paint over what's already there.

Good news! You can certainly paint over your existing vinyl siding providing it isn't heavily damaged, which would call for a replacement. And you can use regular old exterior house paint. But there are a couple of tips to help you get the best experience. 

First, make sure you tell the paint store that the paint is for vinyl siding. The associate will mix up your chosen color in a special formula that doesn't involve black pigments in the mixing process. Your color will still look the same, but will do a better job at reflecting the sun's heat, which is important as vinyl can start to buckle and warp with repeated, intense exposures to heat.

Second, choose a color that's a close match to the existing color or a darker shade. You don't want to put a white paint over a dark brown vinyl siding. The siding will peek through faster than you think with this type of color combination. And bear in mind that the over layer of paint will need to be touched up from time to time regardless.

How Do You Clean Off Tough Dirt?

You can use a pressure washer on vinyl siding if you're quite careful. You want to make sure to use a lower setting so that the vinyl doesn't dent and you need to point the water in such a way that the stream doesn't go up into the gaps between the siding which are a necessity due to how the siding is placed.

If you have paint stains on the vinyl from an outdoor project, you can use a plastic paint scraper to gently buff off the paint. Have stubborn latex paint on the siding? You can use a hair dryer set to the lowest setting to loosen the paint. Don't leave the heat on the paint any longer than a couple of seconds or you risk damaging your siding.

Do you have mold or mildew stains on the siding? Use a strongly diluted combination of bleach and water and a stiff brush to remove the stains.

If the stains are too hard to remove or your chosen paint color isn't covering the ugly of your original siding, call in a vinyl siding repair company (such as Stark Siding Inc) for possible repairs or a consultation for affordable replacement siding.

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