Siding contractors for West Roxbury homescolonials, capes and leafy lots

West Roxbury joined Boston in the late nineteenth century but stayed largely rural until streetcars and later automobiles made it a commuter suburb. Most of its houses went up between the 1910s and the 1960s: Colonial Revival houses, Dutch colonials, capes, bungalows and ranches, along with some Victorians near the older village centers and two-families closer to Centre Street.

Lots are larger than in most of Boston, with front lawns, driveways, detached or attached garages and backyard trees. Houses usually stand apart from their neighbors, so all four walls are exposed and reachable. That makes re-siding simpler in some ways than in denser neighborhoods, but it also means four full walls of siding plus garages and additions.

Original cladding was wood clapboard or wood shingles. Many houses were re-sided with aluminum in the 1950s through 1970s and with vinyl later. A good number still carry aluminum that is now dented, chalky and faded, often over original wood that has not been seen in decades.

Most siding calls from West Roxbury are about whole-house re-siding. A typical colonial or cape has four exposed walls, one or two gables, perhaps a dormer and an attached or detached garage. Compared with a triple-decker, the walls are lower, staging is simpler and access around the house is easier, so jobs move faster. The details still matter: window flashing, trim proportions, clearances at the foundation and garage, and integration with any additions.

Owners often choose between vinyl for low upkeep and fiber cement for a painted look that suits Colonial Revival houses. Insulated vinyl is popular for drafty capes. Some owners of older Victorians near the village centers restore wood clapboard and shingles.

Removing aluminum usually reveals original clapboard. If the clapboard is sound, some owners choose to restore it. More often, it is left as the base or removed, and new barrier and siding go on. Original paint almost certainly contains lead, so lead-safe practices apply. ^[4]

Many West Roxbury houses have a detached garage at the end of the driveway or an attached garage added later. Garage walls often get the least attention and the most abuse: car doors, bicycles, snow blowers and splashback from the driveway. When re-siding the house, owners usually want the garage done too, so colors and materials match. Garage walls sit close to the pavement, so clearances and kick-out details at the base are important.

Detached garages may not have housewrap at all, and their framing can be lighter than the house's. A contractor will check the structure before adding heavy materials like fiber cement.

Capes in West Roxbury often gained shed dormers to add space upstairs, and many houses have rear additions, sunrooms or family rooms. Each creates places where a roof meets a wall. Step flashing and kick-out flashing should direct water away from the siding there. When they are missing, a stripe of rot forms below the roof edge, often hidden behind vinyl or aluminum.

Dormer cheek walls, the small triangular side walls of a dormer, are especially prone to leaks because they sit right on the roof. Re-siding is a good time to rebuild those details correctly.

West Roxbury is one of Boston's greenest neighborhoods, with large oaks and maples along streets and in yards, and the Stony Brook Reservation bordering it. Trees shade walls, drop leaves into gutters and, in storms, send limbs onto houses. Heavy wet snow and strong winds are the usual culprits. After storms, check walls facing large trees for cracked siding, crushed gutters and damaged trim.

Bellevue Hill, the highest natural point in Boston, and other high streets catch more wind than the valleys. Houses at the top of hills may see more wind damage to siding during nor'easters.

Most West Roxbury houses were built before 1978, so original paint likely contains lead. Federal rules require firms paid to disturb it to follow lead-safe practices. Aluminum siding itself does not contain lead, but removing it disturbs the painted clapboard beneath. Some mid-century houses also have asbestos-cement shingles, which should be left intact or removed by a licensed abatement contractor.

West Roxbury is part of the City of Boston, so siding replacement needs a Short-Form permit from Inspectional Services, with electrical permits for fixture changes. ^[3] West Roxbury borders Dedham, Newton, Brookline and Needham, which are separate municipalities with their own building departments. Houses near those lines should confirm jurisdiction.

Massachusetts requires Home Improvement Contractor registration for most work on owner-occupied one-to-four family homes. ^[5] Check the registration on the state's Contractor Hub.

Vinyl is the most common choice for full re-sides on West Roxbury's colonials and capes. Fiber cement is popular for owners who want a painted look and impact resistance. Cedar shingles suit bungalows and shingle-style houses. In shaded yards, factory finishes and lighter colors resist mildew staining. For capes with cold upstairs rooms, insulated vinyl or exterior foam can help.

Many West Roxbury capes and colonials have little wall insulation. A re-side is the best time to add continuous rigid insulation outside the sheathing and seal air leaks around windows and penetrations. Insulated vinyl adds a modest amount. Massachusetts energy assessment programs such as Mass Save can help owners plan insulation upgrades alongside siding.

With large trees overhead, gutters clog quickly. Overflow soaks the same section of siding each storm. Downspouts should discharge away from foundations and driveways. Many re-siding projects include new gutters, leaf guards and downspouts so the new walls stay dry.

Spring and fall suit siding work best. Summer works well too, with long dry days. Winter jobs are possible but slower. Leaf season brings gutter work and is a good time to plan exterior projects for spring.

West Roxbury streets often have consistent house styles. Keeping trim proportions and lap reveals close to the original helps a re-sided house fit in. Colors are a personal choice, as West Roxbury has no local historic district covering most streets.

West Roxbury's bungalows and some colonials have front porches, deep eaves and exposed rafter tails. Porch roofs need step flashing and kick-outs where they meet walls, and porch floors need clearance from siding. Deep eaves protect walls well, but rafter tails rot if gutters overflow.

The streets near the VFW Parkway and toward the Dedham line include ranches and split-levels from the 1950s and 1960s. These houses usually have long, low walls, wide eaves and attached garages. Many still wear their original aluminum or an early vinyl. Re-siding them is straightforward compared with older houses, but details at the long eaves, garage doors and patio slabs still need attention. Split-levels have extra roof-to-wall joints where the levels meet, and those are common leak points.

Because these houses were built with plywood or board sheathing and often with building paper, a tear-off usually finds a sound wall with localized damage at windows and bottom courses. That makes them good candidates for adding exterior insulation during a re-side, since the walls are simple and the trim is easy to extend.

Many West Roxbury owners replace windows and siding together. Doing both at once lets new windows be flashed directly into the new barrier, with sill pans and head flashing integrated properly. If the windows were replaced recently as inserts, the contractor will flash around the existing frames and rebuild exterior trim to suit the new siding thickness. Either way, plan the window decision before materials are ordered, because trim widths and J-channel sizes depend on it.

A smaller number of Victorians and late-nineteenth-century houses survive near the old village centers along Centre Street and South Street. They often have clapboard, decorative shingles and porches similar to Jamaica Plain's Victorians. Owners frequently choose to restore wood details or replicate them in fiber cement and PVC. Lead-safe practices apply to all paint disturbance on these houses.

With driveways beside many houses, plowed and shoveled snow often ends up piled against the foundation and the lowest courses of siding. That keeps the bottom of the wall wet for weeks and can crack vinyl when chunks of ice are thrown against it by a plow or blower. Keeping snow piles away from walls, and making sure siding stops a proper distance above the driveway and soil, protects the wall. Some owners add a durable trim board or a different material at the base of the wall beside driveways.

Houses that back onto the Stony Brook Reservation and other wooded edges see heavy shade, leaf litter and occasional wildlife. Walls facing the woods dry slowly and grow mildew. Rodents and insects may find gaps at the base of siding. Sealing gaps, keeping a clear strip between vegetation and walls, and choosing finishes that resist mildew help houses near the woods.

Ask whether they plan to remove the old aluminum or vinyl and what they expect to find beneath it. Ask how they will handle lead-safe practices on the original clapboard, how they will flash windows and dormers, and whether the garage is included. Ask who files the Short-Form permit, how long the job will take and where the dumpster will sit. Check the Home Improvement Contractor registration and get the scope, materials and colors in writing.

Colonial Revival houses traditionally wear white, gray, yellow or soft blue clapboard with white trim and dark shutters. Many West Roxbury owners keep that palette when re-siding, while others choose deeper greens, blues or charcoals with white trim. Vinyl colors are fixed for the life of the siding, so take time with samples on the house in different light. Fiber cement can be repainted later if tastes change.

Ice dams on West Roxbury capes and colonials often trace to heat leaking into the attic. While a siding crew is working at the eaves, it can be a good time to address soffit venting, fascia repairs and gutter replacement. Attic insulation and air sealing are separate trades, but coordinating them with siding work helps protect the new walls from ice dam leaks.

Closer to Centre Street and the commuter rail stations, West Roxbury has two-family houses on smaller lots, some with stacked porches like those in Roslindale and Jamaica Plain. They share the triple-decker issues on a smaller scale: porch ledgers without flashing, layered siding and tall side walls in narrow yards. Owner-occupants and landlords often re-side them in vinyl for low upkeep, while condo associations may choose fiber cement for a more finished look.

After a storm, walk the house and look for limbs on the roof or against walls, cracked siding where branches hit, and gutters pulled away from fascia. Check the garage too. Look at the windward walls on hilltop streets for lifted or unlocked panels. Photograph anything you find and call before the next storm.

Some West Roxbury two-families have become two-unit condominiums. The exterior is usually shared, so both owners must agree on siding materials, colors and timing. A single plan for the whole building avoids mismatched walls and gives both owners the same protection.