After helping his father scrape and paint the family home on weekends as a kid, Tom Jamison knew that it was something he did NOT want to do when he became a homeowner. “I was convinced that there was a better way to spend those precious weekends than on outside home maintenance,” Tom recalled.  Yet when he and his wife Sue were looking to buy their first home, what did the busy, dual-career couple like best? A wood-frame, English revival style home built in 1927 with its original, wood cedar-plank exterior intact.

“The home was freshly painted in a dark color that set it off from the other homes,” said Tom. “It had great curb appeal and we believed that it would be at least five or six years before we had to do anything with the exterior,” he said.

Imagine the couple’s dismay when the outside paint started flaking off after only two years. “The build-up of lead-based exterior paint over the years made it impossible for new paints to bond to it properly. We knew the time had come to find a long-lasting solution for our home’s exterior,” said Tom.

The couple wanted to preserve the look that attracted them to the home in the first place – a cedar-grain texture exterior with the charm and distinction of a dark color. Yet when various contractors came in to discuss the project, none would recommend nor guarantee a dark-color vinyl exterior.

How Demographics Affect Color Choices

“Young” Color Choices

A little out of the ordinary and individualistic.

“Baby Boomer” Color Choices

Influenced by their parents’ choices but also asserting their own tastes.

“Mature” Color Choices

Been there, done that, “settled down: consumers.

Source: Pat Verlodt, Color Designer for Alcoa Building  Products and owner of Color Services and Associates, Inc.

“We were advised not to go with a dark color because of the problem of fading. We heard the horror stories of color changes and contractors would not guarantee that the deep color would be there ten years from now,” said Tom. “Also, our parents were skeptical about a dark color and urged us to go with a lighter one saying we would have to live with that color for a long time,” he added.

Then Mike Sikora of Dayton Home Improvement Center, Inc., introduced the couple to the Mastic QUEST3 Series of vinyl siding that had been recently expanded with new dark colors.

As a consumer products manufacturer, Alcoa has to be alert to the changing color preferences of succeeding generations. According to the company’s color consultant Pat Verlodt, younger couples, such as the Jamison’s, see color as a way of expressing their individuality. “Their color preferences are not going to be the ordinary ones,” she said. “The color choices of younger consumers are going to be more individualistic and not the ones favored by parents, older friends and relatives.

“Adding dark colors to the Mastic QUEST3 Series is Alcoa’s response to the way that changing demographic trends in the general population are affecting consumer color preferences,” Pat said. (See “How Demographics Affect Color Choices”.)

While both Tom and Sue agreed the dark green vinyl exterior was their favorite, the couple still wanted reassurance that color fading wouldn’t be a problem they would be facing in later years.

“They really liked the QUEST3 Pine Needle dark green because it best matched the existing exterior, not only in color but with a natural, cedar plank look,” said Sikora. “What really gave the homeowners peace of mind was that the Alcoa name was behind the fade resistant guarantee of the Mastic V.I.P. Lifetime-Limited Warranty,” he said.

Mastic quality begins with its exclusive Duranyle formulation which enhances durability by making siding more resistant to cracking, impact and thermal distortion. The compound provides uniform color all the way through the panel so scratches and nicks don’t show. To this, Mastic adds the right performance-enhancer modifier to assure toughness and weatherability for all its offerings. Whether it is GELOY®, a high performance polymer from GE Plastics to fight against fading of standard dark colors, Kynar® to protect new dark color choices, or an acrylic film for natural cedar-look products, Mastic guarantees the beauty and durability of its products for years to come.

Mastic QUEST3 also incorporates the T3Lok® System with its tornado tough nail hem, extra panel rigidity in three critical areas and a wider, stronger and more positive siding locking system for exceptional performance.

“After the job was completed, neighbors, friends and family all complimented us on the dark color choice and the distinctive appearance of the house,” said Tom. “A passing motorist even stopped and asked us who the manufacturer of our siding was because he wanted to use it for a historic home renovation project,” he said.

The couple now spends its much anticipated weekends with things other than exterior home maintenance. “Cold water from the hose washes it clean and the vinyl trim and accessories make the outside virtually maintenance free. That is the way it should be,” said Tom.