CHOOSING EXTERIOR

Michael Holigan: We put a lot of thought into the inside of our homes. But what about the outside? Think about it. Your home's exterior makes a statement to neighbors, visitors and most importantly - to you. To make a wise choice among brick, stucco and vinyl you need to know some basic facts. First, let's talk about brick. At this factory alone, they make about nine million bricks every month. One of the brick's alluring features is versatility. You can choose from thousands of colors and brick designs. Also, brick requires little maintenance. Yet another plus, brick is extremely durable. Once the brick come out, how do you know if it's a quality brick?

Ed Stout: Well, of course there are all kind of quality tests, but one of the old-fashioned, but still very good ways to say it, how does it sound when you hit it together? I've just pulled these off of that car. As you can see it has a nice steely sound, which means it's a very dense hard product.

MH: Hard as they are, bricks don't really strengthen your overall home. That's because most new brick homes only have a brick veneer. Another exterior option - stucco. Once primarily popular in the South and Southwest stucco is now moving into the limelight nationwide.

Gloria Elmallakh: I think I like the stucco because it was different. When we started looking at houses about eight months ago they were all starting to look the same.

MH: The Elmallakh family chose a traditional stucco home. But there's another way to achieve that stucco look. It's called EIFS.

Jane Davis Medlin: That's an acronym for Exterior Insulation and Finish Systems and that's exactly what it is. It's applied to the exterior and it provides insulation as well as a beautiful textured finish on the outside.

MH: Here's how EIFS works. First the house is protected with a good water barrier like Tyvek. Polystyrene foam is the next layer. It's an excellent insulation. The thicker the foam the better insulated you'll be. The foam is smoothed out and a cement base stucco mud is applied over a reinforcing fiberglass mesh.

JM: You can make the system essentially as impact-resistant as you want to by adding layers of reinforcing mesh.

MH: You can customize your EIFS exterior to almost any shape or look that you want. Another great feature is that the EIFS system is waterproof. That can also be a negative though. If it's applied improperly you can trap water behind the wall actually up against your stud. And that could rot the wood inside your house. Say you want a more traditional look - a country home or a classic Victorian style. A great option is vinyl siding. Admittedly, it's an exterior with a bit of an image problem. But modern vinyl siding just doesn't deserve a bad rap. Just look at these homes. The vinyl looks like wood and it's actually better in many ways. For instance, upkeep is practically non-existing compared to wood, which needs regular painting.

Mark Shrode: And this is much more expensive than painting is, but a key is when you're looking at painting, painting is like renting it. You're always gonna have to be painting your house every three to five years. Well siding, you put it on one time, it's a more expensive cost, but you never do it again.

MH: To freshen your vinyl home's appearance, just wash it off. Today's vinyl siding is fade resistant and hail resistant too.

MS: It's a lot stiffer, it's more rugged. So, it prevents hail damage much better today than it used to.

MH: Vinyl siding also holds up under temperature extremes, if it's properly installed.

MS: You want to make sure this is all hand-nailed on there with about a quarter to eighth inch gap in here, so it has a give for expansion and contraction.

MH: No matter which exterior you choose, make sure that you choose a quality contractor by talking to your friends, relatives, people that you work with, realtors, the local Better Business Bureau. And once you get some names ask for their past clients and check with them to make sure the contractor did a good job and they're happy with the work. It's going to make all the difference on your new house.

Episode 59 1997 - 98 Season

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