Lithia sits inland in Hillsborough County, east of Tampa and south of Fishhawk, in that stretch of rural-turned-suburban Florida where new construction communities like FishHawk Ranch and Starling border older acreage homes, horse properties, and pole barns. It's not a coastal town, but it isn't spared from what coastal storms bring inland either. When a hurricane or tropical system tracks up from the Gulf or crosses from the Atlantic side, Lithia still takes wind-driven rain, humidity spikes, and the kind of sideways weather that finds every weak seam in a home's exterior. A siding contractor working here has to think about that first, then about looks.
Alpine Exteriors is a licensed Florida contractor (RB29003900) that installs one product category: James Hardie fiber cement siding. We don't sell vinyl, we don't sell LP SmartSide, and we don't sell engineered wood siding. That's not a marketing angle — it's a decision about what actually holds up in a climate like Lithia's, where heat, humidity, sun exposure, and wind-driven rain are a year-round test, not an occasional event.
Every siding material is a set of trade-offs. We made our choice based on what we've seen perform over time in West Central Florida, and we're upfront about why we don't carry the alternatives.
Vinyl is inexpensive and easy to install fast, which is exactly why so many production-built neighborhoods around Lithia have it. But it's a thin plastic product that softens and can warp under direct, sustained Florida sun, and it flexes and can crack in high wind events. It doesn't hold paint, so your color options are locked in for the life of the product. For a home that's going to sit through decade after decade of Florida summers and storm seasons, we don't think it's the right long-term investment.
Engineered wood products use a wood-strand core, and wood-based cores are simply more moisture-sensitive than fiber cement by nature. In a climate where humidity sits high for most of the year and afternoon thunderstorms are a daily summer occurrence, we don't want to install a product whose core material depends on a perfect, uninterrupted paint and caulk seal to keep water out. Any gap in that seal — from a nail pop, a caulk failure, or a impact — puts moisture directly against a wood-based substrate. That's a maintenance burden we don't think homeowners should have to carry.
Fiber cement is a mix of cement, sand, and cellulose fibers, engineered specifically for climates like ours through Hardie's HZ5 product line. It doesn't rot, it's not a food source for termites or wood-boring insects (a real consideration in rural Lithia), and it stands up to wind-driven rain far better than a wood-based or vinyl product. It holds factory-applied ColorPlus finish far longer than field-applied paint on other materials, and it carries real Class A fire ratings. It's heavier and more labor-intensive to install correctly — which is part of why not every contractor wants to work with it — but that installation difficulty is exactly why hiring the right contractor matters as much as the product choice itself.
James Hardie siding is only as good as its installation. A huge share of the siding failures we get called out to inspect in the Tampa Bay area aren't product failures — they're installation shortcuts. Here's how we handle a Lithia project.
We walk the full exterior, check the current substrate and sheathing condition, look for existing moisture damage or rot (common on older Lithia homes with original wood siding or aging vinyl), and take precise measurements for material ordering.
You'll get a written scope of work and a walkthrough of Hardie plank profiles, textures, and ColorPlus finish options. We explain trim, corner, and fascia details specific to your home's architecture — ranch, two-story, or the Craftsman-style builds common in newer FishHawk-area developments.
Before a single plank goes up, we install or verify the water-resistive barrier and flashing details around every window, door, and penetration. This step is where most bad installs go wrong, and it's the step we don't rush.
We follow James Hardie's published installation guidelines for fastener spacing, plank overlap, and — critically in Florida — proper clearance from grade, roof lines, and other transitions to prevent standing moisture against the bottom edge of the siding.
Corner boards, trim, and caulking are finished to a clean, factory-look standard. We inspect every joint before calling a project complete.
We walk the finished exterior with you, point out warranty registration steps, and answer any care questions before we consider the job done.
Every home is different, but here's a general framework for how siding costs break down. These are broad ranges to help you plan, not a quote — your written estimate will reflect your home's actual size, condition, and trim complexity.
| Cost Factor | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Home size and story count | More square footage and second-story access both add material and labor time |
| Current siding removal | Tear-off of old vinyl, wood, or damaged siding adds labor versus new construction |
| Substrate repair | Rotted sheathing or existing moisture damage found during tear-off must be repaired before new siding goes up |
| Plank profile and texture | Hardie offers multiple lap widths and textures (smooth, cedarmill) at different price points |
| ColorPlus vs. field paint | Factory-finished ColorPlus costs more upfront but eliminates a full-home paint job |
| Trim and architectural detail | Homes with more corners, gables, and window trim take more labor time per square foot |
James Hardie backs its fiber cement siding with a manufacturer's limited product warranty, and ColorPlus factory-finished products carry their own separate finish warranty covering fading and peeling. On top of the manufacturer coverage, Alpine Exteriors stands behind our own installation labor. We'll walk you through the specific warranty terms and registration process for your project in writing before work begins, so there's no confusion about what's covered by whom.
We work throughout the Lithia area, including FishHawk Ranch, Starling, Fishhawk Trails, and the surrounding unincorporated Hillsborough County acreage properties, as well as neighboring communities like Riverview, Valrico, and Brandon. Whether you're on a quarter-acre lot in a newer development or a larger rural property, we service both without treating either as an afterthought.
We schedule an on-site visit, walk the exterior with you, answer questions about the Hardie product line, and provide a written estimate — no pressure, no inflated urgency tactics. If your project needs a permit through Hillsborough County, we handle that as part of the process.
If your Lithia home's siding is showing its age, or you're planning ahead for a project, we're happy to take a look and put together a straightforward, honest estimate. Reach out anytime for a free, no-pressure consultation.
We build our business around one product because we can guarantee our installation quality and stand behind it fully. Vinyl's lower upfront cost comes with trade-offs in heat performance and wind resistance that we don't think serve Lithia homeowners well over the long run, so we chose not to offer it rather than sell something we wouldn't put on our own homes.
You can look up any Florida contractor's license status directly through the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation website using their license number. Alpine Exteriors' license number is RB29003900, and we're happy to provide it upfront — a legitimate contractor never hesitates to share this.
James Hardie offers different lap widths and surface textures, including smooth and cedarmill finishes, and the right choice usually comes down to your home's architectural style rather than performance differences. We'll walk you through which profile fits a ranch-style home versus the Craftsman look common in newer FishHawk-area builds.
Not really — while Lithia doesn't face direct coastal surge, it still takes full wind-driven rain and tropical storm force winds when systems track through Hillsborough County, and inland trees add debris risk during storms. We install to the same Hardie HZ5 specifications regardless of exact distance from the coast, because the wind and rain exposure during a storm doesn't change much once you're this close to Tampa Bay.
Timelines vary with home size, existing siding removal needs, and any substrate repairs found once old material comes off, but most single-family homes move through the full process within a couple of weeks once work begins. We'll give you a project-specific timeline in writing as part of your estimate so you know what to expect before we start.