Temporary Fix for Vinyl on Chimney

[canisius]

Now that summer has begun, the vinyl siding on the bottom half of our chimney has cracked.  I got quotes to fix it that would take a few months to save up for.  However, I don’t like the cracks being open to the side of the house and my wife is refusing to let me replace it myself.  Are there any suggestions to 1.) Bring down the cost of the quote, 2.) A temporary situation to cover it up that doesn’t replace it completly, or just place a tarp over it until we can save the money to fix it?

Thanks

[Dancin'Dog]

How expensive can it be to replace a little vinyl siding? 

If you're still getting sex I'd listen to you your wife, but if not go ahead and DIY.  ;)

[BudgetSlasher]

Any chance you can post of picture of what this crack entails and exactly what work the the quote entailed?

Replacing one piece of cracked siding can be simple depending on the location on the house. Likewise one cracked piece does not require replacing all of the siding and j-channel.

[canisius]

If you're still getting sex I'd listen to you your wife, but if not go ahead and DIY.  ;)

Hey, we didn’t get to four kids by magic ;)

The problem is most of the contractors don’t want to come out for such a small job. That said I’m slowly convincing her it might be something I can easily do. Unfortunately mu father-in-law chNged their water heater when she grew up. Let’s just say they had cold baths for eight years.

I’ll attach photos shortly.

[canisius]

http://imgur.com/y9Azg8e

http://imgur.com/IVZhQtt

[Dicey]

DIY is the answer and your wife needs to get over it. This appears to be mostly cosmetic. Not anywhere close to a water heater. And sorry, I call BS on eight years without a functioning water heater.

DH is professionally known as a Specialty Surfaces Specialist. He is a licensed painting contractor, but for his work he paints, er, coats Very Large Objects. Huge, even. I will show him your photos later today to seek his advice. I suspect some kind of flexible, waterproof sealant will buy you some time and save you a shitload of money for now. What's your climate like in winter? Also, I'm guessing this is only surface cracking?

Funny aside, I got a crazy high quote from a contractor to paint my previous home. I wanted a licensed contractor because I was going to be away on business while it was painted. I am also blessed/cursed with an eye for detail, so I needed to assure quality work, but at mustachian prices. The first guy was a referral from my realtor, after I saw his awesome work on her house. Alas, his quote was through the roof. I kept asking around. A neighbor mentioned a work colleague who was a contractor and painted houses on the side. Perfect. That was the man who became my husband eleven years later. Weird fact: we now live in a house that was built by the guy who gave me the crazy-high paint quote.

[canisius]

DIY is the answer and your wife needs to get over it. This appears to be mostly cosmetic. Not anywhere close to a water heater. And sorry, I call BS on eight years without a functioning water heater.

DH is professionally known as a Specialty Surfaces Specialist. He is a licensed painting contractor, but for his work he paints, er, coats Very Large Objects. Huge, even. I will show him your photos later today to seek his advice. I suspect some kind of flexible, waterproof sealant will buy you some time and save you a shitload of money for now. What's your climate like in winter? Also, I'm guessing this is only surface cracking?

Funny aside, I got a crazy high quote from a contractor to paint my previous home. I wanted a licensed contractor because I was going to be away on business while it was painted. I am also blessed/cursed with an eye for detail, so I needed to assure quality work, but at mustachian prices. The first guy was a referral from my realtor, after I saw his awesome work on her house. Alas, his quote was through the roof. I kept asking around. A neighbor mentioned a work colleague who was a contractor and painted houses on the side. Perfect. That was the man who became my husband eleven years later. Weird fact: we now live in a house that was built by the guy who gave me the crazy-high paint quote.

Correct on surface cracking. A trim came off, but that was easily fixed. Thanks for the advice and asking. A sealant is what I was thinking as well. Winters are very mild. As for the water heater, that actually was the case. That said my wife’s family is from Peru, not the U.S. and lives in the Amazon. All, I’ll say is when I went there a year before we got married, the water heater didn’t work, and seven years later it still wasn’t working. It did last time, but because they got a contractor.