new siding with energy retrofit, builders question

jasonandjen

New Member
we need to reside our house. we closed in our carport into a garage and its been in the "tyvek" stage for almost a year. its past due. but i have a few questions on how to handle the project. we want to do an energy retrofit. add foam to the outside. since its an old house with windows made for 2x4s, i assume to add 2 inches of foam we would need to replace the windows with "new construction" windows made for a home with 2x6s, or 4 " of foam use windows 8" deep. am i on the right page with this thinking?

or.. if we choose to keep the old single pane/storm windows for cost savings, how much foam can i add simply keeping the old windows, just 1/4 inch or 3/8th of foam?

we have a very small amount to side on the front of the house where people see when they pull up, so i was thinking of upgrading to vinyl "shakes" instead of horizontal siding? do you think thats a good idea? something positive for looks and resale value?

any advice on where to look for windows with a very good r value (or low u-factor, same thing) for a decent value, maybe even triple pane or just really efficent double panes?
 
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