How to Repair Wood Siding on a House

Whether your wood siding has suffered hail damage or merely an inconvenient collision with a baseball, the damaged portion needs to be replaced. Siding not only helps to protect the structural components of your home, it also can change your home's appearance. If you have only a few damaged pieces of wood siding, you need to know how to replace just the damaged portions.

1. Remove the damaged pieces of siding carefully. While you may be able to pull some of the nails out of the siding with a hammer, you may have to cut some of them if they are deeply embedded or if the siding is older. If only a small portion of a panel is damaged, you may be able to cut the damaged area away and replace only the damaged part. If you do cut the panel, cut it carefully and only remove as much as needed to replace the damaged portion.


2. Measure the areas that need a new piece of siding.


3. Examine the coverings under the siding to see if there are holes or exposed areas that need to be covered. If so, use pieces of the same type of covering that are larger than the hole to cover the exposed areas.


4. Cut the new pieces of siding according to the measurements you took earlier. Use nails to secure the replacement pieces in place.


5. Use caulk to seal the edges around the replacement pieces of wood siding.


6. Use primer designed for exterior wood siding and allow it to dry according to the package directions.


7. Paint the siding to match the existing siding and allow it to dry according to the package directions.