There's a difference between a contractor who sells whatever's in the truck and a siding company that installs one system and knows it cold. Alpine Exteriors is the second kind. We install James Hardie fiber cement siding exclusively across Lithia, Florida — no vinyl, no LP SmartSide, no engineered wood alternatives. That focus shapes everything from how we estimate a job to how our crews are trained, and it's the main reason homeowners in Hillsborough County call us instead of a general remodeling outfit that treats siding as a side offering.
This page isn't a rundown of siding materials — you can find that elsewhere on our site. This page is about us: how we work, what our warranty actually covers, where we service, and what a Lithia homeowner should expect from first call to final nail.
We start at your house, not over the phone. A siding estimate that doesn't include a walk-around of your exterior, a look at your soffits and trim, and a conversation about moisture history isn't a real estimate — it's a guess. In Lithia, where lot sizes tend to run larger and homes range from newer FishHawk-area construction to older acreage properties, every house has a different story. We check for existing water intrusion, rotted sheathing, settling cracks, and anywhere your current siding has failed, because those issues affect the scope before we ever talk product.
You get a written proposal that spells out the James Hardie product line (lap siding, board and batten, or shingle-style panels), the trim package, the color/finish system, and a real timeline — not a range that could mean two weeks or two months. We walk you through ColorPlus factory finishes versus field-painted options so you know the trade-offs in maintenance and touch-up before you decide.
This is the step corners get cut on, and it's where we don't. Old siding comes off, and we inspect the sheathing and framing underneath. Any soft wood, water damage, or improperly flashed windows gets addressed and documented before a single piece of Hardie board goes up. Covering rotten substrate with new siding just hides a problem — it doesn't fix it, and in Florida's humidity that mistake shows up again fast.
James Hardie publishes specific installation requirements — fastener spacing, clearances above rooflines and decks, house wrap and flashing details, caulking at butt joints. Installing outside those specs doesn't just risk a worse-looking job; it can void the manufacturer's product warranty. Our crews install to that spec on every job, every time, which is a large part of why we don't diversify into other siding materials — doing one system correctly beats doing four systems adequately.
Before we consider a job finished, we walk the exterior with you. We point out what was done, answer questions about care and cleaning, and make sure punch-list items are handled before final payment, not after.
We get asked fairly often why we don't offer vinyl or LP SmartSide as a lower-cost option. The honest answer is about long-term performance, not sales margin.
Standardizing on one product also means our crews aren't relearning installation methods from job to job. That consistency is where quality control actually comes from.
Lithia sits inland in Hillsborough County, along the Alafia River corridor between Riverview and Brandon — far enough from Tampa Bay that storm surge isn't the primary concern homeowners here worry about, but close enough to the Gulf that every named storm still means real wind and rain exposure. That inland position brings its own siding stressors:
None of that is unique phrasing for marketing purposes — it's genuinely how we scope a job differently here versus, say, a tight coastal lot in Pinellas County.
| Coverage | What It Covers | Who Backs It |
|---|---|---|
| James Hardie Product Warranty | Manufacturing defects in the siding material itself (30-year limited warranty on most Hardie lap and panel products) | James Hardie, contingent on spec-compliant installation |
| ColorPlus Finish Warranty | Fade and chip resistance on factory-applied finishes (separate term from the product warranty) | James Hardie |
| Alpine Exteriors Workmanship Warranty | Installation quality — flashing, fastening, water management details, trim work | Alpine Exteriors, licensed under FL RB29003900 |
The distinction between the product warranty and the workmanship warranty matters more than most homeowners realize. A siding company can sell you a product with a great manufacturer warranty and still install it incorrectly — and manufacturer warranties routinely exclude damage caused by faulty installation. We carry our own workmanship coverage specifically because we're accountable for the install, separate from what James Hardie stands behind on the material.
Lithia is unincorporated, which means addresses here often get grouped with neighboring communities on paperwork and searches. We work throughout the area, including FishHawk Ranch, FishHawk Trails, and the broader stretch along Fishhawk Blvd and Lithia Pinecrest Road, as well as neighboring Riverview, Valrico, Brandon, and Sun City Center. If you're within a reasonable drive of Lithia and outside that list, ask — we still may cover it.
| Factor | Why It Moves the Price |
|---|---|
| Home size and story count | More square footage and second-story access change labor and equipment needs |
| Substrate condition | Rotted sheathing or prior water damage found during tear-off adds repair scope |
| Siding profile | Lap siding, board and batten, and shingle-style panels have different material and labor costs |
| Finish choice | ColorPlus factory finish versus primed-for-paint changes both material cost and long-term upkeep |
| Trim and detail work | Homes with more architectural detail (gables, dormers, decorative trim) take more time per square foot |
| Access and lot conditions | Mature trees, fencing, or difficult equipment access on larger Lithia lots can add setup time |
We don't publish a flat per-square-foot number because these variables genuinely change job to job — that's exactly what the on-site estimate is for.
Alpine Exteriors holds Florida license RB29003900. We carry liability insurance and workers' compensation coverage appropriate to residential siding work, and we pull the permits your project requires rather than treating permitting as optional. When you're vetting any contractor for exterior work in Hillsborough County, confirming active licensing and insurance directly — not just taking a company's word for it — should be step one.
If your siding is aging, storm-damaged, or you're simply ready to move to a lower-maintenance exterior, we're glad to walk your property and give you a straight answer on scope and cost. Reach out for a free, no-pressure estimate using the form below.
A general contractor often installs several siding brands and materials, switching methods project to project. A specialized company like ours installs one system exclusively, so crews follow the same manufacturer spec on every job instead of relearning techniques for different products.
Ask for their Florida license number and verify it's active, confirm they carry liability and workers' comp insurance, ask whether they pull permits themselves, and ask what happens if they find rotted sheathing during tear-off. A contractor who can't answer the last question clearly usually hasn't planned for it.
For most Lithia homeowners, yes, over the ownership period, because fiber cement holds up better against Florida heat, humidity, and storm-driven wind and debris, and it doesn't warp or fade the way vinyl can. The upfront cost is higher, but repainting and replacement cycles tend to be longer.
ColorPlus is a factory-applied, baked-on finish designed to resist fading and chipping better than field-applied paint, and it typically comes with its own finish warranty separate from the product warranty. Primed siding needs to be painted after installation and repainted on a normal exterior paint cycle.
Somewhat. Storm surge isn't a factor this far inland, but wind-driven rain, high humidity, and mature tree canopy on many Lithia lots still demand careful flashing and water management details. We scope every job based on the specific property, not a one-size-fits-all coastal or inland assumption.