Don't cheap out on vinyl siding for your house

What's can be worse than applying stucco over old wood siding? Try cheap vinyl or aluminum siding. 

 

"Replacing historic wood siding with new wood, or aluminum or vinyl siding could severely diminish the unique aspects of historic materials and craftsmanship. The inappropriate use of substitute siding is especially dramatic where sufficient care is not taken by the owner or applicator and the width of the clapboards is altered, shadow reveals are reduced, and molding or trim is changed or removed at the corners, at cornices or around windows and doors."

 

You can avoid this by reading the National Park Service's advice on appropriate substitutes for wood siding on historic buildings. Here's the link:

http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/tps/briefs/brief08.htm