Why We Love Alside Vinyl Siding

Alside vinyl siding is one of the systems McCann Window & Exteriors, Inc. already hangs on Chicagoland houses. We like it because it is a vinyl system we know: profiles that fit Northshore and inner-suburb housing, colors that do not look like a toy, and a maintenance story a homeowner can live with. That is not a paid poem. It is a brand we will still stand in a driveway and talk about in five years.

This page is a product conversation. The “when to replace siding” article is the sign list. Different jobs.

Why vinyl, why this line

Painted wood cladding in this climate is a part-time job. Vinyl skips that if it is hung correctly: locked, not stretched, with room to move when August is brutal. Alside’s line covers the common laps and shakes people ask for without inventing a fictional medal.

Insulation value of siding itself is modest. The wrap, the flashing at openings, and the windows in those openings do more for comfort than the brand stamp. We will not tell you vinyl replaces a furnace.

How it has to be hung

Fasteners in the slot, not pinned tight. J-channel that lets water out. Inside and outside corners that can move. A starter course that is actually level. Those habits matter more than the brochure. Our crews have been together 10 to 15 years. That is how a wall still looks like a wall after a few freeze-thaw cycles.

When we suggest something else

If you want a painted cedar look and you will maintain it, say so. Fiber cement is in the conversation. If the sheathing is wet, we fix that before any skin goes on. If the windows are leaking into the wall, we will not hide that behind new laps.

Color, neighborhood, and honesty

Dark colors and sun are a vinyl conversation. We will tell you when a color is a risk on a bare west wall. We will not match a competitor’s “limited-time color upgrade.” We don’t play pricing games. Straightforward pricing names the profile and the squares.

35 years in this market. About 50% repeat and referral. We show up. We clean up. We deliver what we promise. Office in Northbrook. Work across Chicagoland. Alside is a tool. The wall is the job.

What we tell people in the driveway

Vinyl moves. Fasten it so it can. Do not caulk every joint as if it were wood. Keep gutters working so the wall is not a waterfall. If you want a color that will cook on a bare west wall, we will say so before it is on a truck. That is why we still hang a line we know instead of whatever was cheapest this week.

Ready to improve your home’s comfort and efficiency? Call McCann Window & Exteriors at (847) 562-1212 or visit McCannWindow.com to schedule your free consultation today.

We like Alside vinyl siding when vinyl is the right cladding for the house in front of us. That is a contractor preference with reasons, not a paid poem, not an invented award, and not a claim that vinyl belongs on every Northbrook elevation. McCann Windows & Exteriors installs siding along with windows and doors. This page is why Alside shows up in our conversations , and when we will tell you to use something else.

What vinyl does well in this climate

It does not need paint every few years. It can handle a lot of North Shore weather if it is hung on a wall that is dry and if the color is not a dark south-facing experiment you will regret. Profiles and colors exist that sit comfortably on suburban two-stories and ranches that were never trying to be a 1920s shingle house. Maintenance is a wash, not a scrape-and-prime weekend.

Why Alside in particular

We like a supplier we can get, a profile mix that covers the houses we actually see, and a product we know how to hang so it can move with temperature. Vinyl has to float. Fasteners that pin it are how oil-canning and waves get born. Brand does not save a bad hang. A brand we know well makes it easier to spec trim, corners, and soffit that belong together. That is the love: familiarity plus a fit for a lot of local housing, not a trophy.

When we will not push vinyl

When the house wants wood or fiber cement to match a street of older material. When a historic packet says no. When the wall needs a repair we should not hide. When a dark color on a huge unshaded south wall is the only thing the homeowner will accept on vinyl , we will talk heat and chalking instead of smiling. Love is not blindness.

Sequence with windows

Siding loves a window that is already flashed. If both are in play, do them as a plan. J-channel around a tired window is how you pay twice. See our Northbrook signs-of-siding-replacement page for the failure list. This page is the product preference. That page is the diagnosis.

If you want to talk Alside or another cladding on a wall we have actually seen, call 847-562-1212. Bring photos of the worst elevation and the window heads. We will tell you whether vinyl is the right love story for that house.

What we will not say

We will not say vinyl is maintenance-free forever. We will not say Alside is the only good vinyl. We will not invent a mile of local installs. We will hang it straight, flashing the openings, and we will like that job when it is the right job. That is the whole essay.

Vinyl still has to float on the wall. Fasteners that pin it make waves. We like Alside because we can spec trim and corners that belong together on the houses we actually see. We will still tell you when the street wants another cladding. 847-562-1212.