What Can Delay Your Siding or Roofing Project?

Delays can be frustrating, especially for home improvement projects. We totally get it: you want your job done as quickly as possible.

Regardless of the reason—whether it’s to minimize damage to your home, to wrap up the project before the holidays, or before you put your house on the market—having your home’s exterior looking good ASAP is the goal.

But delays happen. How will they affect your project timeline? What does a typical project even look like?

In this article, we aim to answer all your questions and more. So let’s dive right in: What will delays do to your siding and roofing project?

Here’s What the Typical Timeline for Siding or Roofing Projects Looks Like

Let’s start with what a typical siding and roofing project should look like.

Both siding and roofing projects take roughly three to four months to complete from start to finish. Construction starts about two months after signing all the paperwork, finalizing design, ordering materials, and aligning schedules.

If nothing crazy happens, siding projects should take two to three weeks to complete, and roofing projects take one to two weeks to complete.

What Can Delay My Siding or Roofing Project?

Despite all our experience, we never know what could happen after we start a project. From bad weather, finding rot, lead or asbestos, or design choices, we’ll explain to you what these different delays all mean for your home renovation.

#1 Bad Weather Could Affect Your Siding Project

It’s the time old question: how will bad weather change the timeline of your exterior renovation?

The answer: it depends on the type of bad weather. Obviously, projects cannot happen during environmental disasters such as tornados, hurricanes, or wildfires.

However, for more common “bad weather”—such as hot summers, rainy autumn and spring, or snow, the answer lies in your contractor’s capabilities.

Experienced contractors well-versed in the climate of your county will be able to inform you of when the best season to begin your project is.

Here at Pacific Exteriors, we have nearly 20 years of experience working within the rainy climate of Seattle. All our contractors know how to protect your home’s renovation from the rain.

Regardless of if you choose us for your exterior projects or not, the contractor you choose should be fluent in how to mitigate weather delays specific to your locale.

#2 The Job Could be Bigger Than It Appeared

There might be problems under the surface.

This is one of the top fears we hear from homeowners: what happens if my home has rot behind old siding? How much of a delay will that cause?

The answer to that can only come from your project manager once all the damage has been assessed. Rot, while not always aggressive, gradually eats away at all the wood of your home if not treated properly.

Rot delays are usually a 3-to-5-day delay. If a project manager assesses your rot to need more immediate attention and replacement, it could push out your project by one to two weeks.

#3 Some Toxic Substances Could Slow Things Down (a bit)

The presence of lead contamination in your home is worrisome, not only for your health but for your home. What will it mean for your project and your health?

According to Kevin, one of our experienced project managers based out of Seattle, lead containment is a minor bump in the road at Pacific Exteriors.

While it can seem worrisome—lead poisoning is no joke—the crews and project managers at Pacific Exteriors are certified in lead remediation. What this looks on site is:

·         Additional protective wear to protect the contractors working on the site.

·         Mandatory minimum plastic cover and drop cloth distance from the home to ensure no lead-contaminated residue is present on the work site.

·         Work sites can be lead-proofed in real time, meaning minimal delay and low additional costs for your project.

Lead containment happens when lead is present in your home’s paint. The efforts our project managers and crews take to mitigate damage is to protect not only themselves, but also you, your family, and the environment.

#4 Other Toxic Substances Can Slow Things Down A Lot

While lead containment and remediation are one thing, asbestos is another beast entirely. Pacific Exteriors does not offer asbestos remediation services.

We are certified to take samples of potentially contaminated areas in your home, but we cannot offer remediation services. If any asbestos is found, the project will be placed on hold until a client can hire a certified asbestos abatement contractor.

Unfortunately, with asbestos abatement, delays can be months. Additionally, they can cost tens of thousands of dollars for homeowners because of the additional contractor cost.

There is no easy workaround the presence of asbestos. Contacting an asbestos-certified contractor before any project starts is likely your best bet, as the information will help you make the best decisions to protect your family from the health consequences of asbestos.

#5 Slow Design Decisions Will Delay Your Exterior Renovation

Slow design decisions will delay your project...but we anticipate this. It’s why we offer a variety of free design and design-related service to all homeowners.

1.      We provide a free professional design consultation. Working with our professional exterior design consultant will help you convey what your goal and ideal home exterior would look like. In the consultation, different mockups will be provided for you to look at and envision before construction even starts.

2.      We offer free siding and roofing samples. Our goal is for homeowners to love everything about their home’s exterior, and giving homeowners free siding samples helps them decide sooner in a variety of different lighting conditions.

3.      We have a tool available on our website to help homeowners visualize potential colors for their home. On our website is this incredibly handy tool that includes all of our product offerings and is a no-cost, quick way for homeowners to test out infinite color pairings and options.

Finally, there are several blogposts available on our website specifically about color options and how to pick colors for your home renovation project. Check them out!

Delays Are Less Frustrating with a Reliable Contractor on Your Side

It’s true that exterior renovation projects are already expensive. With potential delays and additional consultations, it can seem even more intimidating to start the process.

But if there’s one thing this article has shown you, it’s that good contractors will have strategies and advice for you as a homeowner. From experience working in less-than-ideal weather climates and a swathe of design tools intent on helping you come to a confident decision, we get it.

It’s why we’re here. So if you have any questions, give us a call. If you’re curious about understanding how we can help transform your home, fill out the form for your free estimate.