scragin

Well, yes if you have soffit vents. If there is a different ventilation system for the roof, then no you don't need vented soffit panels. Tom There is vented soffit where there were vent openings before. I had them tear out the old metal grills in the old vent holes, too. But there is none on the overhangs which didn't have vents before. I hope that makes sense.

The soffit is a remodel over existing stained panel (I wanted to go maintenance-free). Should vented have been used? Yikes, another thing to worry about...

It was Firefox. Here are some pics. If you can't tell, the siding is between 1/4 and 1/2 inch inside J-channel. Click to Enlarge 42.73 KB Click to Enlarge 30.62 KB

The forum won't let me upload pictures, though I am logged in and it will let me post. I've contacted info@inspectorsjournal.com for help.

Is the following what you originally wrote? My screen shows some strange characters instead of the dimensions in the excerpt below. I'll try to get some pics posted today.

Thanks, guys. I appreciate the viewpoints. I'll see if the local installer can provide the installation standards. And even though I'm not happy with the gap in some places, I'll work with the the installer and try to be reasonable. It seems like the 2" J is really designed to allow for "slop" and that the installer took advantage of that. Anyway, thank you all again.

So the standards provided by the Vinyl Siding Institute (http://www.vinylsiding.org/; and every other installation guideline I could find online) that call for a 1/4" gap are incorrect or unnecessary in your opinion? So long as you can't see the edge of the siding when looking straight-on at the J-channel, it's fine? I guess that applies in the dead of winter. Everyone agree with that?

Thanks, Brandon. The manufacturer only works through "authorized installers" and the installer says if it's inside the J-channel, it's OK. They cut off contact with me because I was persistent in trying to get an answer. I did report them to the BBB for their stonewalling. Just how easy should it slide? Continental claims to have a special attachment system that prevents the need to leave the 1/32 gap. I haven't tried to move any myself. Guess I'll give that a try. I'll try to get some pictures uploaded. Bottom line sounds like your opinion is that the siding should be at least 1/2" inside the J-channel.

The manufacturer has refused to answer the question saying only that their installers are trained to take "all factors" into consideration such as length and temperature. The problem is that on my job two courses adjacent to each other of the same length and installed on the same day will have as much as an inch of difference in the gap inside the J-channel. I believe the problem to be shoddy installation and am just trying to find out if I'm being reasonable since everything I've seen calls for a 1/4" gap, not the 1 1/2"+ gaps I've seen on my job. What do inspectors look for when evaluating a siding job? Is the siding good to go so long as it fits inside the J-channel, even if barely so? Remember my J-channels are 2" deep so barely inside means that the siding can be 1 1/2"+ from the back of the J-channel.

I just had a job completed with Continental XL-29 insulated vinyl siding. Now that the job is done, it is clear that there are large gaps between the ends of the horizontal siding and the back of the J-channel in a number of places. Everything I have found calls for a 1/4" gap (3/8" if installed below freezing). The J-channels on my job are 2" deep. The installer is claiming that as long as the end of the siding fits inside the J-channel, it is OK. This means that there can be gaps between the siding and the back of the J-channel of nearly 2 inches. Is the installer correct? If not, just how big a gap is too big a gap? Aside from the loss of insulating capacity and a greater likelihood of moisture infiltration, are there more downsides to having the end of the siding barely inside the J-channel? I suppose it could pop outside in the winter when the temperature goes down. Any comments or opinions are most appreciated. I'm still sitting on their final payment until this issue is resolved. Thank you in advance.