How to Protect Your Home for the Long-Term

In today's housing market, homeowners, especially those who secured lower interest rates in the last few years, are choosing to stay in their current properties far longer than they might have anticipated. For many, that can mean their starter home is becoming their forever home, or at least a home that they'll live in for a while longer.

This shift means that homeowner's focus must move from quick, cosmetic fixes to thoughtful, long-term protection of their most valuable asset. The lifespan of your home now directly impacts your future financial security. Ignoring critical issues like peeling siding, water damage under windows, or a failing roof is simply not an option when you plan to stay put for the next 10, 15, or 20 years.

We recently encountered a 1960s colonial that perfectly illustrates this point. The homeowner wanted an aesthetic exterior upgrade to modernize the home, but as we walked around the property with them, we were able to point out the deeper issue that was beneath the surface.

When dealing with a home that still wears its original 60-year-old cedar shingles, you know you’re going to find issues beneath. Cedar shingles, though beautiful, are porous and when exposed to New England rain, snow, and ice, the cedar repeatedly swells as it absorbs water and then shrinks as it dries out with each season. This stress can cause the wood to split or warp, creating new pathways for water to penetrate deeper into the structure. Even with proper finishing, over time the water compromises the wood and slowly deteriorates the integrity of the siding.

On this particular home, not only were these shingles very old, but the layers behind the shingles weren't properly finished to withstand time. During the 1960s, many builders switched from the traditional clapboard underlayment to plywood sheathing. If you've ever driven by a 1930s or earlier home being remodeled, you've likely seen the original clapboards if they've stripped away the siding. This hearty clapboard is much more durable than fabricated plywood, because it was milled from very old trees.

Did you know that older trees produce a much denser core, making it naturally more resistant to rot, insects, and decay? Modern, fast-growth lumber contains a softer core, which is porous and lacks those protective properties. This is why we rely on engineered barriers like pressure treating to achieve longer-term durability today.

On the left above, you'll see a home with it's original clapboards exposed (borrowed from a Reddit thread called Century Homes). On the right above, is our the home we renovated. This photo was taken after removing the siding to expose the original plywood and tar paper underneath.

Once we removed the old cedar shingles from this home, we were able to assess the full extent of the water damage. From here, we took a few important actions to address the issues.

Water damage from the original cedar siding and old windows had been occurring for so long that it bled into the plywood sheathing beneath. We removed and replaced all damaged plywood to ensure a clean, dry surface to build upon and mitigate the risk of mold in the walls.

One easy way to identify water damage on your home's exterior is to take a closer look at your windows. If the siding just beneath your windows is warping, peeling or soft when you press on it, it needs to be replaced. If left untouched, this damage compromises the entire wall, both inside and out. 

In several instances, the water damage had seeped past the plywood sheathing and into the framing studs and rim joists, which are essential components of the home’s load-bearing structure. Compromised studs and joists can lead to serious instability. These elements were carefully assessed, reinforced, or fully replaced depending on the scenario, restoring the structural integrity of the home.

Unfortunately, the only way to know if your studs or joists are compromised is to open up an exterior wall (like we did here) or an interior wall. When evaluating contractors, it's important to ask them how they plan to address any underlying issues that may be discovered as the project unfolds and have a solid plan forward (pun intended) that you're comfortable with. 

The failing "doghouse" structure to access the basement of this home was not salvageable. This particular structure was extra vulnerable to water because the window to the right was too close and all rainwater converged down the right side of the doghouse as it poured off the side of the home. We completely removed the doghouse, replaced all plywood and one stud behind it and installed a new bulkhead, creating a secure, dry seal for the foundation that would easily shed water off and away from the home on rainy days.

On the left above, is the original doghouse. You can see how the window to the right is overlapping with the doghouse roofline, essentially doubling the amount of water that would pour down off that part of the house. On the right above, is the renovated home with a new bulkhead no longer compromising the window.

Once the structure was sound, dry, and protected, we began the aesthetic makeover the homeowners were most excited about. This phase was all about installing durable, modern materials that will stand up to constantly fluctuating New England weather for decades.

When we were initially contacted for this project, the homeowners hadn't planned to replace their windows and doors, but after walking around the home and discussing further, they decided to take advantage of this opportunity.

The best time to replace your windows is when you're residing your home because you can install new construction windows rather than replacement windows.

• A replacement window simply slides into the existing wall frame, relying solely on caulk and foam seals that fail over time. The former owners of this colonial had installed replacement windows only 10 years prior and they were already failing and causing the water damage we ended up repairing.
  
  
• A new construction window, however, features an integrated nailing flange that sits on top of the housewrap. This flange is then sealed with flashing tape and covered by the new siding, creating a shingled, layered, and permanent moisture seal with the wall system that is impossible to achieve with a slide-in replacement unit.

The entire home was sealed with a full housewrap. You've likely seen housewrap like Tyvek on homes that are being remodeled. The housewrap provides a secondary defense, acting as a breathable moisture barrier that prevents wind-driven rain from reaching the structural sheathing while also allowing the house to breathe.

For this project, we were only opening up the exterior of the home, not the interior, so there wouldn't be an opportunity to replace any old insulation in the walls. This is why we recommended that the homeowner use insulated vinyl siding. The added insulation behind the vinyl panels dramatically increases the home's energy efficiency without having the replace interior walls.

On the left above, is the original home. On the right above, is the renovated home.

Last up were new soffits, fascia, gutters, downspouts, new interior trim for the new windows and doors, and exterior lights to deliver the clean, modern look the customer wanted.

Now that we’re finished, this 1960s colonial is sealed, sound, and built to last for decades in New England weather, giving the homeowners confidence that their largest asset is protected for the long haul.

Need to ensure your home is protected for the long-term? Contact Reilly Brothers Construction today to discuss a structural and aesthetic exterior renovation.