A lot of Windsor's housing went up during the town's growth years — the suburban expansion north of Santa Rosa through the 1980s, '90s, and 2000s — which means a great deal of the local stock is now reaching the age where builder-grade cladding starts to give out. Bay Area Siding Company is a Larkspur-based siding and window contractor working across Sonoma County, and full siding replacement is the core of what we do: pulling the old cladding, checking what's behind it, and rebuilding the wall so it sheds water and holds up to the Russian River valley's hot, dry summers.

Want to talk it through? Request an estimate or call (415) 619-5167.

When re-siding beats another repair

Windsor's newer subdivisions were often finished with the economical materials of their era — hardboard, thin fiber cement, T1-11, or vinyl — and those materials wear on a predictable curve under inland sun. A patch here and there is fine until the pattern below shows up across a whole elevation:

• Boards that are swelling, delaminating, or chalking, especially on the south- and west-facing walls that take the afternoon heat
• Caulk joints that keep opening and paint that won't hold more than a season or two
• Panels sounding hollow or flexing under hand pressure — a sign the fastening or the material itself is spent
• Staining, blistering, or a soft spot near a hose bib, window corner, or the base of a wall
• Original 1990s cladding that has simply reached the end of its useful life

One or two of these is a repair conversation. Several of them across an elevation is usually a re-side.

What tear-off actually exposes — and why it matters

Re-siding over the top of failing material is tempting because it looks cheaper, but it seals in whatever is going wrong underneath. When we remove the existing cladding, we're not opening up the framing — a standard re-side takes the wall back to the sheathing and substrate, which is the point where we can actually see the water-resistive barrier (WRB) and the flashing at windows, doors, and penetrations. On homes from Windsor's build era, that barrier is frequently a builder-grade felt or housewrap that was never lapped or flashed as carefully as it should have been, and small detailing misses are what let water track behind the siding for years. Tear-off is the only moment those layers are visible, so it's the moment to correct them before new cladding goes back on.

If the sheathing itself is sound, it stays; if we find damage, that's a separate repair we'll show you rather than bury.

Picking a material

We install a range of systems and will lay out the trade-offs against your home, your HOA's rules, and your budget:

• James Hardie fiber cement — noncombustible, dimensionally stable in heat; the fire angle matters in Sonoma County, and we cover it on the sibling Windsor James Hardie page
• Fiber cement generally — the broader category across manufacturers
• LP SmartSide — engineered wood, lighter to work with
• Vinyl siding — a lower-maintenance option where the look and the exposure suit it

We also work with CertainTeed, wood, and aluminum. In a wildfire-exposed county, material choice isn't only cosmetic — more on that in the FAQ and on the Hardie page.

Windsor specifics worth planning around

Permitting. Siding work in Windsor runs through the Town of Windsor Building Division, which administers permits and inspections under the California Building Standards Code (Title 24). Confirm the scope of your project with the Division early; we handle the paperwork as part of the job.

HOA and subdivision rules. Because so much of Windsor is planned tract development, many neighborhoods carry HOA architectural guidelines on approved profiles, colors, and materials. It's worth checking those before you fall in love with a look — we can spec to match.

Fire context. Windsor sits in a county with genuine wildfire exposure; the 2019 Kincade Fire pushed evacuation orders across much of the town. Whether California Building Code Chapter 7A applies to your re-side depends on your parcel's fire-hazard designation and the scope of work, so it's something we confirm with the Town rather than assume. If noncombustible cladding is a priority for you, say so at the walkthrough.

What moves the price

There's no honest online quote for a re-side. The real drivers are the size and number of stories on the home, the material and finish you choose, how much substrate repair turns up once the old cladding is off, trim and window integration, HOA-required detailing, and site access. We price it after we've measured and seen the walls.

FAQ

Do I need a permit to re-side a house in Windsor? Plan on it. Exterior siding work is administered by the Town of Windsor Building Division under the state building code; we confirm the exact scope and pull the permit for you.

Is my Windsor home in a fire zone that limits my siding choice? It depends on the parcel. Parts of Sonoma County and the hills around Windsor carry elevated fire-hazard designations, and where Chapter 7A applies it favors noncombustible or ignition-resistant wall assemblies. We verify your parcel's status with the Town before speccing rather than guessing.

Can you match my subdivision's approved siding look? Usually, yes. Many Windsor neighborhoods have HOA color and profile standards, and modern fiber cement in particular comes in profiles that reproduce the original tract look while lasting far longer.

How long will the job take? It depends on the home's size, the material, and whatever we find at tear-off. We give you a realistic window once we've measured and scoped the substrate.

Get your Windsor re-side scheduled

We're based in Larkspur and work throughout Sonoma County wine country. Browse the project gallery, see our wider wine country service area, and if windows are on the list too, look at Windsor window replacement. To get started, call (415) 619-5167 or request an estimate.