Siding Choice

[Jon R]

I am trying to decide on which type of white siding to order on a new Grandby - smooth or corrugated. I don't have a strong preference about the appearance. I've been thinking that three advantages of the more expensive smooth siding are 1) easier to clean, 2) easier to maintain sealant and to seal any penetrations for new things I might install in the future, and 3) might help resale value/desirability.

Do you agree the above advantages exist, and are there any advantages or disadvantages I haven't considered beyond appearance preference?

Thanks for your advice and opinions.

 

[Durango1]

Like you, Jon, "I don't have a strong preference about the appearance" either! However...

To play Devil's Advocate here are four possible disadvantages of flat siding: 1) More money (DUH!), 2) corrugated will be better at 'breaking up' the expanse to hide scratches, 3) I'm guessing may be stronger and 4) won't have the issues of being 'wavy' like flat siding can be.

I will say I've never had an issue on the (few) occasions I've cleaned the corrugated siding of my FWC's. Best wishes and have fun deciding!

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

I believe the rough, lap style siding is also easier and less expensive to repair if you don’t want patches on any penetrations.

 

[Kolockum]

The corrugated siding on my FWC is easy to clean and seal. It also hides the scratches really well.

 

[Missing Link]

Also, I believe that i have read on this forum that the corrugated aluminum is lighter.

 

[Jsoboti]

The flat siding looks so much better IMHO. It was worth the extra $$ for me!
If you're already spending big $$ on a camper, might as well enjoy the aesthetic as well!

 

[AWG_Pics]

We have flat siding on our 2019 Hawk. Looks good and so far has not been too susceptible to scratches or dings. Ultimately it is a cosmetic choice. I am a bit biased because I worked at a mobile home factory after high school for a couple of years. It was a crap job building crappy homes. For about 6 months I did the siding, and man I just could not stand the thought of looking at the corrugated wavy stuff on my pop-up.

 

[longhorn1]

If I was buying a FWC today, I would choose one of the flat aluminum siding and pick one of the colors.

 

[Kolockum]

Is the flat aluminum thicker than the corrugated?

 

[Jon R]

I don't know the thickness, and I suppose I could ask the dealer to find out.

An internet search seems to show a common thickness for both flat and mesa rv siding is 0.024 inches, and they are the same price at that thickness on the All-Rite web site. Thicker gages are significantly more expensive. The $895 FWC upcharge for flat siding seems to imply that they might be using a thicker gage of flat siding, but maybe the installation labor is much higher for flat siding for some reason.

On the other hand, the FWC build and price page adds no weight when you select flat siding, while they do add even small weight increments for other options, such as 3 lbs for rear flood lights.

Maybe Stan will see this and comment?

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

The original Mesa Siding (corrugated) is typically stronger, hides scratches better, is less expensive (on new camper orders), and MUCH easier to repair if you ever damage the camper. It's a great long term choice for durability and ease of maintenance.

But that said, most (many) customers are choosing the new smooth aluminum siding because it looks clean, looks more modern, and comes in a variety of colors. The smooth siding just seems to show the scratches a bit more and is pretty hard to repair if you have damage.

Hope this helps.

 

[camper rich]

My Grandby has the corrugated, but the overhang is the smooth siding. I made the mistake of leaning my Extend & Climb ladder against the smooth siding on the overhang while I was strapping my kayak up top. When I removed it I had vertical creases in the siding. Now I make sure the ladder goes against the top edge so I don't dent it anymore. On my old Ranger II, it was corrugated on the overhang also which is why I was used to leaning a ladder there.

I would imagine every little dent would show on the smooth surface and the camper would look beat up after a few years. Little dents and scratches happen if you use your camper like I do.

 

[Jon R]

Stan - can you tell us the thickness if the two types of siding?