Siding Repair & Replacement in Boston, MA

Houses in Boston

In the neighborhoods we cover, most houses are wood-frame. Dorchester, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale and Hyde Park have block after block of triple-deckers and two-families from around 1890 to 1930, built with painted clapboard, often with cedar shingles on the top floor. Vinyl went over much of that clapboard between the 1970s and 1990s. West Roxbury has more single-family Colonials and Capes with clapboard, shingles and later vinyl. Allston-Brighton mixes two-families, triple-deckers and larger wood apartment houses. Three stories, a flat roof and old gutters add up to a lot of wall to keep dry.

What we fix most often here

• Loose vinyl on a triple-decker. Wind gets under the top-floor panels, pops them out of the lock and bends the J-channel. We re-hang and replace panels and fix the channel.
• Rot under the vinyl. Vinyl laid over clapboard without housewrap traps water. We open the wall, cut out the rotted clapboard and sheathing, add housewrap and re-side.
• Corner boards and porch trim. Front porches catch the weather. We replace rotted trim, corner boards and the siding behind them.
• Storm damage. We run 24-hour emergency service for storm damage and come back for the permanent repair once the weather allows.

For the flat roof, gutters or skylights that feed water into the wall, see other exterior services.

Permits and historic districts

The city’s building permit comes into play when the siding is replaced; a repair in the same material usually stays below that line. Some Boston neighborhoods have landmark districts where exterior changes are reviewed, so check with the city before changing the material or the look. Most houses in these neighborhoods went up long before 1978.

How it works

1. Photo first. Include the neighborhood and which floor the damage is on, since a top-floor wall changes what we bring.
2. Estimate visit. We unlock a panel where the wall looks worst and write a free estimate that says whether the sheathing behind the vinyl is dry.
3. Panels or a re-side. Repairs start as soon as we have panels that match. A replacement starts after the city’s building permit, with staging set for all three floors.
4. Walk-through. Staging comes down, the old panels go in our truck, and we go over the work with you floor by floor.

Repair or replace?

On a triple-decker, the answer depends on what is under the vinyl. If the panels are loose but the wall behind is dry, we repair, and that is most Boston calls, which suits a company with repair in its name. If the vinyl cracks wherever you press it and the clapboard under it is soft, replacement with new housewrap is the better fix. On a two-family with painted clapboard, cutting out rotted boards and repainting usually beats re-siding. The estimate says which route you are on; the siding repair and siding installation and replacement pages explain both.

Where in Boston

From our base in Chestnut Hill, West Roxbury, Roslindale and Jamaica Plain are about 10–20 minutes; Hyde Park, Dorchester and Allston-Brighton about 15–25 minutes. Nearby towns we cover: Brookline (about 10 minutes from Chestnut Hill), Newton (about 5–15 minutes), Dedham and Westwood (about 15–20 minutes), Milton and Quincy (about 25–30 minutes) and Cambridge (about 20–25 minutes). Neighborhood and floor are the first things we ask, so have them ready when you call or text (857) 245-9588 or get a free estimate online.