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Photograph of - damaged vinyl siding Vinyl Siding Inspection Checklist
& Vinyl Siding Repair Methods

Vinyl siding defect recognition & diagnosis:

Improper installation details of vinyl siding or of vinyl siding F or J channel trim or corner moldings can cause or aggravate building leaks and even invite insect pests and structural damage.

This article discusses common defects observed in vinyl exterior building siding, such as buckling, splitting, cracks, odors, and questions about the need for a vapor barrier behind vinyl siding and over building sheathing. Included are comments from several recognized building inspection and construction authorities.

Our page top photo shows wrinkled vinyl siding - often caused by heat exposure such as from a BBQ Grill - but in this location the pattern and size of the damage made us suspect that there was another cause.

InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers, products, or services discussed at this website.

- Daniel Friedman, Publisher/Editor/Author - See WHO ARE WE?

Inspect Vinyl Siding for Damage: Examples of Bad Installation, Cracks, Leaks & Other Damage to Vinyl Siding

Horrible vinyl siding job in New York - many defects cataloged (C) InspectApedia.com Daniel Friedman

[Click to enlarge any image]

While some vinyl siding on the home shown above has been replaced (darker siding at green arrow) this was one of the worst vinyl siding installation jobs I've seen.

At this New York home the siding has at some locations been installed using scraps (pink arrow), with gaps (black arrow), with lower corner trim on the outside rather than inside of the upper corner trim segment (leaky at pink arrow), buckling (tan arrow), with un-even, overlapped courses (blue arrow), perhaps where the siding was installed below a now-removed porch roof that has been left poorly-flashed as a possible wall leak (red arrow).

This article discusses vinyl siding inspection points, defects, and repair procedures.

Article Series Contents

Impact Damage, Cracks, & Holes in Vinyl Siding

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

Most of the vinyl siding problems we see appear to be due to poor installation details, though on occasion we see cracks and breaks that may be blamed on older, more brittle vinyl products.

Our photo (above) demonstrates impact damage to vinyl siding, in this case just above the floor of an outside deck.

Our second vinyl siding damage (below, courtesy of Carson Dunlop Associates ) demonstrates an impact damage even to siding that made both a hole and a crack in the wall covering.

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

With (often older-generation) more brittle vinyl wall siding products we often find impact damage and holes caused by stones kicked-up against the wall by a lawn mower or weed-wacker.

Vinyl Siding Gaps & Holes Caulked; Cracks at Vinyl Window Trim

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman ...

Our vinyl siding caulk photo (above) shows a combination of improper trim installation, building leaks, caulk where it is not helping, and even the caulk was so sloppily applied that it didn't seal anything.

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

Our photo above shows cracking vinyl siding above a window corner - a bad place for a leak that can lead to building water entry, window damage, and even hidden mold.

Improper J-Channel in Vinyl Siding Cause Costly Building Damage

One of the most common vinyl siding installation mistakes (also found on aluminum sided buildings) is the improper cut and trim of the ends of horizontal J-channel used above windows and doors (shown at below-left), or improper termination of the bottoms of J-channel used along the sides of windows or doors (shown at below right).

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman ...

A simple error such as short-trimming of the J-channel and failure to provide proper water-directing bends can send water behind the J-channel and into the building wall and structure.

In our photo above it looks like really sloppy J-channel work during siding installation, leaving a leak at the window sill.

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

The required tab extension on the horizontal or upper J-channel is missing entirely, allowing J-channel rainwater to flow down behind the vertical J-channel along the window side.

Vinyl siding J-channel end-treatment to avoid leaks (C) InspectApedia KGIn our vinyl siding J-channel photo above it appears as if the window-top horizontal J-channel end cut tab was correctly cut and bent over the outside of the vertical J-channel running along the window side.

A reader provided this detail during investigation of leaky vinyl siding that is illustrated and discussed

at SIDING LEAK DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR.

[Click to enlarge any image]

Watch out: J-Channel errors can rot windows and doors: Our photo of improperly-cut J-channel trim around a window (above right) shows a more serious problem than may be immediately apparent.

In Spackenkill, Poughkeepsie, NY we found an entire neighborhood of homes in which nearly all of the windows were rotted beyond repair due to this error.

Wind-blown rain sent inside the J-channel trim and into the window structure was the problem caused because the installer didn't follow the manufacturer's instructions. Properly the top J-channel is trimmed to include a tab bent over the vertical J-channel to route water outside, not inside the trim.

See FIGURE 1-25 in Best Construction Practices for details, and return here using your browser's "Back" button.

Here is what the Vinyl Siding Institute Advises about Installing J-Channel

J-channel is used around windows and doors to receive the siding. Follow the steps below when applying trim.

See VINYL SIDING INSTALLATION for details.

See DIVERTER KICK-OUT FLASHING that can stop leaks at the roof eaves if the bottom open end of J-channel is sending water behind the gutter end-cap and down the building wall

Also see PEEL & STICK FLASHING MEMBRANES for products useful to seal around windows and doors before installing siding

Stains on Vinyl Siding

Details about stains on vinyl siding are now found in a separate article

at VINYL SIDING STAINS

Algae growth on vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

Common sources of stains on vinyl siding include formation of algae, fungus, lichens, dirt accumulation on damp surfaces, rain splash-up soil, even smoke from nearby barbecues or fires.

More about building wall stains can also be found in these companion articles:

Leaks From Vinyl Siding Bottom Edges; Breaks or Cracks in Vinyl Siding

Details about the causes of & cures for leaks in building siding are now

at SIDING LEAK DIAGNOSIS & REPAIR

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

Vinyl Siding is Not Waterproof

Watch out: vinyl siding used on building exteriors is not nor is it meant to be a waterproof barrier. While the actual face of vinyl siding is waterproof, a vinyl sided building wall is by no means waterproof.

Openings at the lap joints of vinyl siding sections as well as drain openings provided along the bottom edge of most vinyl siding products let the wall system breathe and allow wind-blown rain that may enter the siding to drain out of it as well.

Loose Vinyl Siding: Blow-Offs, Fall-Offs & Nailing Defects

Below our photographs show what happens to loose, poorly-secured vinyl siding on a home. These two loose siding pictures were taken just about a year apart. We had watched the loose buckling siding on this Poughkeepsie NY home for some time.

Finally after a windstorm much of the gable end siding has simply been lost completely.

Vinyl Siding buckling & loose (C) Daniel Friedman

Below are additional examples of poorly-attached siding (below left) and siding that was literally pulled off of the building when an adjoining structure itself collapsed.

Vinyl Siding buckling & loose (C) Daniel Friedman

The consequences of the failure at right were more serious than met the eye: this wide opening into the building wall allowed rain to soak the wall interior, leading to costly mold, rot, and insect damage to the structure.

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

In our photo at above left demonstrates a loose siding panel that is inviting more serious wind damage.

Our second photo below demonstrates a combination of poor siding installation, improper lower-roof flashing, a home that sat for months unattended while wind, rain, and snow penetrated the structure.

These are almost certainly construction and installation defects, not product defects.

Damaged vinyl siding (C) Daniel Friedman

Causes & Cures for Damaged Vinyl Siding: Bent, Buckled, Rippled or Sagging Vinyl Siding

Vinyl Siding buckling & loose (C) Daniel Friedman

Vinyl siding that buckles due to improper nailing (photo shown above left) is is not normally extremely wrinkled, and will be more wavy across longer horizontal runs of surface.

A Complete Guide to Causes of Rippled, Buckled, Bent Vinyl Siding is at:

Watch out: buckling vinyl siding at the bottom of a wall may indicate hidden structural damage or insect pest damage. Details are in the article cited above.

Detailed specifications for hanging vinyl siding to avoid buckling and blow-offs are found in this separate article:

Don't Bury Siding at Wall Bottoms, Direct Water Away, Avoid Insect & Rot Risks

Siding at ground (C) Carson Dunlop AssociatesAs Carson Dunlop Associates' photograph vinyl siding photo shows (below left), bringing vinyl siding down to ground contact or even below ground may please the architect or home owner's sense of aesthetics, but it is an engraved invitation to wood destroying insects to attack the structure.

Carson Dunlop Associates are a Toronto home inspection, report writing tool and education company. Photo used with permission.

We like to see 6-8" of clear foundation wall between the bottom of wall siding and the top of the ground surface.

Adding mulch as was done in the yellow-vinyl-sided house, increases the invitation to termites.

In addition, this home's mulch bed conspires with a water trap formed by the sidewalk and excavation to contain the mulch so as to trap water against the foundation, inviting water entry into the building's basement or crawl space.

Our next photo (below) shows siding buried several feet underground along the building's gable-end.

The fact that the surface is sloped is not sufficient to avoid risk of insect attack on this home.

To correct this buried siding problem will require excavation along the building wall and probably construction of a retaining wall along with steps to be sure that surface runoff from the up-slope side of the building is directed away from the home and not along the building's side-wall.

See SIDING CLEARANCE TO GROUND for details.

Vinyl Siding / Plastic Odors, Emissions, Health Information

Watch out: Information about vinyl products (not just siding) that may produce odors or have other health risks, fire risks, and environmental concerns that can be found at

Remove & Re-Install Vinyl Siding: use a Siding Hook

Side Swiper vinyl siding replacement tool Malco (C) Daniel Friedmanh

[Click to enlarge any image]

Shown above is a siding hook, also referred to in some manuals as a zip tool.

Steve Bliss points out at VINYL SIDING LOCK & NAIL FLANGES that all vinyl siding panels have a locking tab at the bottom of each panel that snaps over the top tab of the panel below.

Watch out: trying to tear off vinyl siding without unhooking the lower edge (buttock) of each siding course from the course below risks damaging more siding courses and increasing the cost of repair or replacement of the wall cladding.

In fact, without a siding replacement tool such as Malco's Side Swiper SRT1 shown in our photo above, even if you can tear off the siding, re-hooking the bottom edge of the new siding section to the top of the course below can be almost impossible.

See details of how to use this tool

at VINYL SIDING HOOK to REMOVE & REPLACE

How to Remove & Replace Thick, Non-flexible Vinyl or Polycarbonate Siding Panels

CertainTeed and other manufacturers note that when removing thicker non-flexible vinyl or polycarbonate siding panels such as that company's Cedar Impressions Panel, to remove the old panels you will need to use a wood chisel to locate the locking tab of the old panel and to literally break it off.

The siding zip tool shown above won't work as the thicker plastic panels are not flexible enough to simply pull down and un-hook.

The company provides a panel replacement kit that includes new cam clip and snap rivet fasteners to hold the replacement Cedar Impressions Panel in place. Or alternatively, colored trim nails can be used to secure the new panel in place.

Download Free Vinyl Siding Installation Manuals

Your local vinyl siding supplier or building supplier will be happy to give you the vinyl siding installation manual for the specific product you are purchasing, as everyone involved has an interest in a proper vinyl siding installation. If your supplier is out of manuals for their product just give the manufacturer a call or check their website for a down-loadable vinyl siding manual. Here are some sources of vinyl siding installation guides:

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Reader Comments, Questions & Answers About The Article Above

Below you will find questions and answers previously posted on this page at its page bottom reader comment box.

Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2019-12-16 - by (mod) -

Rima

Unfortunately Clark Van Oyen's Comments Box doesn't accept videos, though you can post single images (one per comment);

You'll need an onsite inspector to be sure you have found the actual pat of water entry; I suspect there are ice dams on the roof edges but with no facts that's just a guess.

On 2019-12-16 by Rima

I posted earlier comment for water backing into house
Below is videos
Please any help is appreciated

On 2019-12-16 by Anonymous

I am having an issue with water backing into the house
When there is snow on my roof it looks like water is backing into soffits and then finding its way into the walls
I have ice shields over my entire roof
Not sure what is going on
Any suggestions

On 2019-12-11 - by (mod) -

Billy

What problem are we solving here? Maybe make a drawing or photo and use the add image button?

On 2019-12-10 by Billy

I have a lean to that i am building off an existing structure over a poured slab porch. The wall im building off of has an edition on to the original house. So the issue is with the ledger board since theres a 6 inch leg where new meets old if that makes sense. Im putting a metal roof on and so far im a few inches out of square

On 2019-06-19 - by (mod) -

Chris: IMAGE LOST by Comments Box Code error - sorry. If you can re-post the image we'll be glad to comment further.

On 2019-05-31 - by (mod) -

I'm sorry but I would need to have an on-site eye to look at your siding and flashing. We just can't see enough detail in the photos. The parts that are critical are in fact going to be covered by the siding that has already been installed.

So besides leak testing one would ir might need to actually remove a little bit of siding to see exactly what was done at the Leaky window. I agree that one does not normally rely on caulking to prevent a leak around the window in a vinyl sided building.

On 2019-05-31 1 by chris

the image of the same unit style with new siding, and different style window trim or flashing?
IMAGE LOST by older version of Clark Van Oyen’s Comments Box code - now fixed. Please re-post the image if you can. Sorry. Mod

On 2019-05-31 by chris

Thank you for taking the time to look at my issue. Although it was not news I wanted to hear, the honesty about what to do next and information provided is very appreciated.

Took a few days to try and contact a few siding companies and also look for a company or person who does leak tests/inspections if that even exists(have yet to find one for residential).

The two siding installers who did stop by to take a quick look and give estimates, both commented that the top part of the windows flashing? (attached image) should not have been caulked.

I finally spoke to the people across the street (same unit style), who also had new windows installed to remedy a leak with wind blown rain. It was still present after the new windows, and then moved onto the siding and trim around the windows.

I got the contact info for the installer they used, as they seemed to be happy with the job and have not had any leaks since, even with strong wind blown rain. I will attach a photo of the siding job if possible could you take a look to see if it looks proper? as we are seriously thinking about using the same installer.

chris
IMAGE LOST by older version of Clark Van Oyen’s Comments Box code - now fixed. Please re-post the image if you can. Sorry. Mod

 


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