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|
by
Jean VanBooven-Shook |
|
February
22, 2006 |
Ode to
Siding
This
series will discuss the history of our homes in Northeast in
order to help readers develop an appreciation for their features.
We’ll ponder the scenes swirling in and around these homes
over the past century. We’ll talk about preservation,
and why we should care about it. We’ll later focus each
article on particular home features, so that homeowners can
critically consider how to keep the homes’ and Northeast’s
historic character.
How
to spot siding from a mile away. The devil is in the details.
Asbestos shingle siding and steel trim is being removed
from atop original fish scale siding and wood trim, both
still in good repair. You wonder why it was covered in
the first place. |
Vertical
“Smartsiding” belongs on sheds. Our suburban
neighbors might be happy to have it on the sides of their
beige cutouts, but not in a historic neighborhood of the
likes of Northeast! |
If you’ve
read anything much about shirtwaist homes in Kansas City, you
know that besides masonry such as stone or brick on the first
floor, the rest of the original cladding on these homes consisted
of one of three materials: clapboard, shingle or stucco. It’s
almost a mantra to repeat to yourself, sort of like “Paper,
scissors, rock.” Say it. “Clapboard, shingles, stucco.”
Sort of just rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it? Contrast
your newly learned phrase with the verbal music of “steel,
aluminum, composite and vinyl siding.” Not so pretty,
now is it?
Not so pretty, indeed. Out of two dozen houses on my block,
only four have these original materials. This ubiquitous Northeast
trend drives me nutso! (It is too a word – you’ve
seen "Happy Days.") When you’re out and about
in the neighborhood, you can’t help but to look at things,
and when you look, you think “bad siding job here, bad
siding job there.”
Besides metal or vinyl siding, many homes on my block have asbestos
shingles. My house has both, apparently, with asbestos shingles
added in 1954, and vinyl siding added overtop of it sometime
in the ‘90s. Because of the extra material, our slightly
fatter house now hangs over the property line.
Make no mistake that improperly replacing your siding diminishes
the historic, aesthetic and monetary value of your house. Interestingly,
people apply siding because it is touted as attractive, maintenance-free,
and adding insulation. However, the idea that siding in fact
adds insulation value is “hotly” debated.
Siding also hides, and sometimes speeds, deterioration from
moisture. Don’t forget all the homes around Northeast
you’ve seen with metal siding, a fact you can ascertain
by the paint that has faded and peeled from its surface. And
for some reason, siding seems to attract dirt, a trait that
betrays its makeup as synthetic siding. Finally, siding usually
removes or covers many of the most attractive ornamental features
of a home.
Next time, we’ll cover wood siding in more depth, and
I’ll fill you in on my wild and crazy adventures at Home
Depot.
Jean
Van Booven-Shook has lived in the Northeast for 10 years with
her husband and three children. During that time her projects
have included conducting an architectural survey for the St.
John Corridor Plan, faux painting, hardwood floor restoration
and repair, stained glass work, stonework, and research on the
history of Northeast and its housing styles.
