Feb 20 2005
Utilizing new developments in plastics engineering, Rollex Corporation has introduced Manchester vinyl siding, which boasts the darkest vinyl siding colors in the company's 50-year history.
The Manchester series includes four "premium dark colors": medium-brown Carmel; gray-blue Blue Granite, brown-gray Acorn, and medium-green Sage. In addition, Manchester comes in 14 light and mid-range colors.
The siding also has a newly designed nailing hem to aid contractors and installers.
"The homebuilding industries, particularly custom builders, remodelers, and architects, are demanding richer, darker colors in vinyl siding," says Jennifer Thompson, Rollex's marketing director. "Their customers want the low-maintenance of vinyl in a broader color spectrum. Recent advances in plastic resins allow us to meet that demand with confidence in the product's long-term durability."
Colorfastness and thermal stability have been the traditional obstacles to darker vinyl siding colors, Rollex says.
Manchester's dark-hued panels utilize a new, highly fade-resistant top-layer material from chemical giant BASF Corp. This capstock, an acrylic copolymer resin, won't "chalk" and provides 99.5 percent UV protection to the underlying vinyl siding, BASF says.
In addition, Rollex has developed a proprietary vinyl formulation that protects panels against warping from solar heat absorbed by dark colors.
Manchester vinyl siding has a subtle wood-grain texture with a low-gloss finish resembling exterior latex paint.
The siding offers Rollex's first "rollover"-style (folded-over) reinforced nailing hem, which effectively doubles the thickness of the vinyl around the fasteners for a secure installation. The vinyl itself is 0.044 inches (44 mils) thick, more than 25 per cent thicker than the Vinyl Siding Institute's requirement for certification.
Also new is a calibrated nail guide, laser imprinted along the hem, to help installers locate wall studs.
Manchester is available in three profiles: double-4", double- 41/2" Dutch lap, and double-5". The "legs" of the panel profiles project outwards 5/8-inch, providing rigidity for a straight appearance on the wall.
For more information on siding and cladding, click here.