Siding in Manchester, CT

Siding in Manchester

Manchester's siding tells the story of Connecticut's suburban expansion in miniature. The Cheney Brothers mill workers' cottages along Hartford Road still wear their original clapboard in some cases — narrow-exposure wood siding that has survived since the 1890s through decades of repainting, but is now reaching the point where the underlying wood has absorbed so much moisture through failed paint films that spot repairs no longer hold. Move east to Green Manor and the story changes completely: over 1,200 homes built in the early 1950s were clad in either wood clapboard or asbestos-cement shingles, and the vast majority received their first aluminum or vinyl siding overlay sometime in the 1970s or 1980s. That first-generation siding is now 40-plus years old — faded, brittle in winter, and hiding whatever moisture damage accumulated underneath during four decades of sealed-over walls.

Manchester's position along the Hockanum River creates specific siding challenges that distinguish it from surrounding towns. The river corridor humidity, especially in the valley from Union Pond through Center Springs Park to Robertson Park, keeps shaded siding surfaces damp longer after rain and promotes algae and mildew growth on north-facing walls. This biological growth is not just cosmetic — it holds moisture against siding surfaces, accelerating deterioration of both the siding material and the wall sheathing behind it.