Detached Garage Siding Replacement — Match the House or Not
The house got new siding years ago and the garage out back is still wearing the old stuff, rotted along the bottom and peeling on the alley side.
Detached garage siding replacement is a two- to three-day job: old siding and trim off, sheathing checked, house wrap and flashing on, new siding with the overhead door jambs, header and service door trimmed and capped. JMB Builders re-sides detached garages across the Twin Cities metro, matched to the house or in a material of your own. Licensed MN contractor BC809005, priced per project. Send photos and we reply within one business day, or book a free in-home estimate.
- Two to three days for most two-car garages
- Overhead door jambs and header trimmed and capped
- Matched to the house or its own material
- Free in-home estimate
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
Send photos and hear back within one business day — or book a free in-home estimate.
A detached garage is a small siding job with all the same parts. The walls are short, there are no second-story windows, and nobody lives in it, so the whole thing is done in a few days. What makes it worth doing right is the bottom foot: garages sit on a slab at grade, snow piles against them all winter, and the siding and the bottom plate rot from the ground up. The alley side and the side facing the neighbor are usually the worst because nobody looks at them.
We strip the garage one wall at a time, check the sheathing and the bottom plate, and replace the framing where the rot reached it. Then wrap, flashing at the service door and any windows, and the new siding with the bottom edge held above the slab. The overhead door opening gets most of the trim time: the jambs and the header are trimmed and capped in aluminum or PVC so the door seals against something that will not rot, and the weather seal is replaced while we are at it.
The material question is whether to match the house. If the house has newer siding in a current product and color, we match it and the garage disappears into the property. If the house is due for siding too, the garage can wait and be done with it, or go first in the material you plan to use on the house. A garage on its own can also take a cheaper siding than the house without anyone noticing: vinyl on the alley and the neighbor sides, the house material on the side you see from the kitchen.
What you supply
- Photos of each side of the garage, a close-up of the bottom edge and one of the overhead door frame
- A photo of the house siding and the brand or color if you want the garage to match
- Material and color choice, or a request to match the house
- Cars out of the garage during the job and access on the alley or side-yard side
What JMB supplies
- Removal and disposal of the old siding, trim and any rotted sheathing
- Bottom plate and stud repair where rot reached the framing, with a treated plate on the slab
- House wrap with taped seams, flashing at the service door and windows, drip cap over each opening
- New siding and corner trim, bottom edge held above the slab and sealed
- Overhead door jambs and header trimmed and capped in aluminum or PVC, with new weather seal
- Soffit and fascia wrap on the garage eaves, and gutters re-hung, when on the quote
- Mounting blocks for the exterior light and any outlet, re-set by a licensed electrician if the wiring needs work
- Photos of the wrapped walls and the finished garage in your job folder
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos, with a reply within one business day. What moves the number:
- Garage size: one, two or three stalls, and whether there is a loft or a tall gable
- Material: matching the house product vs. the lowest-cost vinyl
- Bottom plate and sheathing repair, common on slab garages where snow piles up
- Overhead door trim and weather seal, and whether the overhead door itself is being replaced
- Service door and window count
- Soffit, fascia and gutters done at the same time
- Alley access or a tight side yard for the dumpster and material
A photo of the bottom of the wall at the slab and one of the overhead door jambs tells us the repair side of the job. Send the house siding photo if you want a match.
How long it takes
A one-car garage: one to two days. A two-car: two to three days. A three-car or a garage with a loft: three to four days. Soffit and fascia add a day.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized reply within one business day. Prefer a look in person? A free in-home estimate is always an option.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
Match the house
Same product, profile and color as the house siding, with the same trim at the corners and the doors. The garage reads as part of the property. We confirm the product from a photo or a loose piece before ordering.
Garage in vinyl, house kept
The lowest-cost way to stop the rot. Vinyl in a color that works with the house, wrapped and flashed the same as any wall. The right call for an alley garage nobody sees up close.
Garage first, house later
Side the garage in the material you plan for the house so they match when the house is done. A good way to see a product on your property at a smaller scale before the big job.
Garage with new overhead door
The siding, the trim and a new overhead door in one visit. The jambs and header get trimmed to the new door, and the door's weather seal lands on new capped wood. Saves trimming the opening twice.
Detached Garage Siding Replacement — Match the House or Not: questions, answered
How long does it take to re-side a detached garage?
Two to three days for a two-car garage with one crew: strip and check the walls, repair the bottom plate where it is rotted, wrap, side and trim the overhead door and service door. A one-car garage is one to two days; a three-car or one with a loft is three to four. Soffit and fascia wrap on the eaves adds a day.
Should the garage siding match the house?
If the house siding is a current product in good shape, matching it is the best look and costs little more. If the house is due for siding too, either wait and do both, or side the garage now in what you plan for the house. A garage can also take a cheaper siding than the house; on the alley side nobody will know. We will tell you what we can match from a photo.
Why is the siding on my garage rotted along the bottom?
Garages sit on a slab at grade, and snow piles against the walls all winter and melts into the bottom edge of the siding and the plate behind it. Siding run down to the concrete wicks water. On the new siding we hold the bottom edge above the slab, seal the cut, and replace the plate with treated lumber where it is gone, so the next thirty years of snowbanks do not do the same thing.
Do you trim around the overhead garage door?
Yes, and it is the main trim on the building. The jambs and the header get new trim boards capped in aluminum or PVC, so the door seals against something that will not rot, and the weather seal and stop molding are replaced. If the overhead door itself is tired, replacing it in the same visit means the opening is trimmed once, to the new door.
Does a detached garage need a permit for new siding?
It depends on the city; some require a permit for residing any structure, some do not for a detached garage. We check with your city and pull the city's permit when one is required, with the fee as a line on the quote. If the garage is on an alley, we also check whether the city has rules about the dumpster placement.
Can you side the garage and do the soffit, fascia and gutters too?
Yes. Garage eaves are low and the runs are short, so aluminum soffit and fascia wrap adds about a day, and the gutters come down and go back up on the new fascia or get replaced. Done together, the garage matches the house eaves and nobody has to come back for the gutters.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners, builders and dealers. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough: a reply within one business day, or ask for a free in-home estimate. Or text the photos to 763-333-4066.
Related jobs we do
Siding Replacement Contractor — New Siding on the Whole House
The siding is worn out, the paint is failing or the hail got it, and you want one contractor to take it to the sheathing and put the whole exterior back right.
Read moreT1-11 Siding Replacement — Sheds, Garages and 1970s Houses
The grooved panels on the garage have gone soft along the bottom foot, the plies are separating at the seams, and paint will not hold anymore.
Read moreMatch Existing Siding on an Addition — Bump-Outs Tied Into the House
The addition is framed and sheathed, and now it has to look like it was always part of the house instead of a box stuck on the back.
Read moreGarage Roof Replacement — Detached and Attached Garage Reshingle
The house roof is fine but the garage is curling and bare — the small tear-off that bigger roofers put at the bottom of the list, done by a crew that shows up for it.
Read moreWrap Garage Door Trim in Aluminum — Capped Jambs and Header
The garage door trim needs paint every couple of years and the bottom is starting to go. Wrapping the jambs and header in aluminum coil ends the painting, as long as the wood under it is fixed first.
Read moreAluminum Siding Replacement — Dented, Chalking Panels Off, New Siding
The aluminum siding has been on since the sixties, the paint rubs off white on your hand, and every panel below shoulder height has a dent in it.
Read morePage reviewed October 2, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All siding pages
Where we work
Siding near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: