Well, we\'ve got the existing old school 7 layers of peeling yucky painted siding and we\'re trying to weigh our options. So here\'s my questions:1) Is it cost effective to replace Aluminum with Vinyl?2) Is Vinyl truly as costly as we keep hearing? **Home is small 1,100 sq.ft with a 2.5 car Garage**3) Is painting this existing siding a wise choice since the current paint job on it looks terrible? We just need to make it more a home, right now it\'s gorgeously all new and redone inside and on the outside it still resembles the day we bought it in forclosure. Aside from my green grass I busted my butt on last summer.Please advise.Vinyl siding, the kind that is single thickness with no backer, will bend, buckle, and distort in about 5 years. The vinyl siding with foam backer is somewhat better but not much. It will look badly in years to come. . Just drive around and look at some of those homes built just a couple years ago with that stuff on them. Notice how twisted and buckled and bent and crooked that stuff has become. Plain terrible I think. Paying that much for a house, it should last a lifetime. There are COATING companies around that will come and clean your existing aluminum siding, They will remove dents, apply a 2 part epoxy primer, and then a two part Vinyl coating that will last for 30 years under a warranty. These coatings can also be applied to wood siding, they give it a renewed look, and no painting ever again. You cannot do this yourself. It is done with airless type sprayers and it lasts literally forever. I had this done to my aluminum underhangs and gutter and wood window wells on my brick house. That stuff is so tough and smooth that even dirt or dust doesnt stick to it. Look under Vinyl Coatings in the Yellow Pages. If there is a home show in your area, go to one of those and you can see these new coatings. They are really superior to any painting you can do yourself, Yes, they cost a bunch more but they are well worth it in the long run. That Aluminum on there is 100 Times better than any vinyl will ever be. It will last indefenitely. Dont be fooled by some vinyl salesman\'s pitch of insulating qualities of vinyl with that thin 1/4 inch of foam on the back. That is nonsense, that thin of a foam in a side wall means nothing on insulation value for your house. Stick with your Aluminum and your wood siding and window trims, get it coated and you will be very happy with that.Aluminum Siding Vs Vinyl SidingVinyl is final. Change your siding. It will cost a little more now, but you will save a lot in the long run. If it buckles like one of your other answers, It means that it was installed improperly. Vinyl should not be nailed to tight. It needs to expand and contract with the temperature changes.get the siding. its not that expensive and you will never have to paint again!Other related question