The day the tree hit my grandmother’s modest ranch home in south
Vancouver was one nobody in my family will forget.
I was reminded of this recently when I was out looking for siding for my
new home. The classified ad for the place I was driving to was so simple in a
country way, “siding Vancouver Wa”
was all they managed to write and all I needed to know. The direct and
blunt nature of the ad reminded me of my time in Vancouver and brought back
memories of that fateful day.
My wife had just given labor to our youngest of three boys and everyone was
more concerned about what it’s name would be than they were about the record
breaking thunderstorm that was creeping in from the west. People in Vancouver are
family oriented and nothing gets the town talking like a new baby.
We got careless and we paid the price.
See life out in the country needs your full undivided attention and that was a
lesson that had been drilled into us at a very young age. Nothing else matters
if the homestead was not safe and secure. My grandmother’s words are as clear
now as they were when I first heard them. While the entire family was off doing
a thousand different things to prepare for the arrival of it’s newest member
the wind and the trees around that old house had a plan of their own.
And we would not enjoy it’s outcome.
The damage was immense and the financial consequences even greater. The
gash that tore through my grandmother’s former living room was twelve feet high
and nine wide. The sheriff who first arrived on the scene called it a “big
old hole” and big it was. It was also expensive as hell to have fixed. The
quotes started in the low four figures but by the time it was determined that
the impact had literally moved the home off its foundation we were in five
figure territory.
Lesson learned.
Today me and my wife have a nice ranch style home in Washington and believe
me when I say I made sure to steer clear of any malicious looking trees. I
always look out for the homestead and while their are no huge wind storms like
back home, Vancouver is prone to a hail storm or two.
I was sure to get siding that was hail resistant and had top of the line
state-of-the-art interocking panels that would keep out any excess moisture.
The thickness of the siding was equally important, so I went with a reversed
rolled-over railing hem in order to double the thickness on the surface.
I even went as far as to consult the Vinyl Siding Institute before I made
my purchase. You can imagine their suprise when a regular customer was asking
for advice on home siding but I explained to them that where I’m from you take
nothing for granted when it comes to your house. They recommended that I go
with .046″ thick heavy gauge vinyl and to make sure I got it in a D4 or D5
profile so it can last the longest.
My children will live in a safe home no matter how much research I have to
do or money I have to spend, you can’t put a price on your kid’s safety and
since I’d already spent thousands dealing with a broken wall I’d rather not go
through it again.
The salesman told me this siding can withstand hail and winds of up to 112
mph. He looked at me funny when I asked about the trees.
