Window and siding replacement in Collinsville
What the code and the permit desk actually require here — and what the houses in Collinsville tend to be hiding behind the siding.
- People
- 24,031
- Homes
- 11,644
- Size
- 15.4 square miles
- From downtown
- About 12 miles east
- ZIP codes
- 62234
- Founded or incorporated
- 1850
German-American settlers arrived by Conestoga wagon in 1812; the town adopted a village charter in 1850 and became a city in 1872. The Brooks Catsup Bottle water tower, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is the city's best-known historic structure.
Collinsville
The housing here is mostly mid-20th-century, with only about 17% of homes predating 1940.
What that vintage turns up
Original single-pane aluminium and wood units, most of which have been replaced at least once by now — which means what you are usually looking at is a first-generation replacement window from the 1990s, not the original. Aluminium frames of this age conduct cold straight through and sweat in January, which is what people are describing when they say a room feels draughty in a house with no measurable draught.
Aluminium siding was the default for years and a lot of it is still up. It does not rot and it does not burn; what it does is chalk, so the factory finish oxidises to a powder that comes off on your hand, and it dents and never un-dents. The honest decision on aluminium in decent shape is repaint against replace, and repainting is often the right answer. Later in this window, hardboard and wood-composite lap started going up, and that material has a litigation history rather than a maintenance history.
The one to watch on a house of this age
Plywood and board sheathing under this vintage holds up better than the OSB that came later, which means rot found here is usually local to a flashing failure rather than general. Find the leak, not just the soft spot.
Lead paint. Likely on anything built before 1978, and the rule does not care how much paint there is. 62.2% of the homes in Madison County were built before 1980, and on anything pre-1978 the EPA renovation rule applies to both of these trades. Window replacement is never exempt from it, at any size — a single window triggers it. A whole-house re-side clears the twenty square foot exterior threshold on the first wall. What the rule actually requires of a contractor.
Next door
Collinsville shares a boundary with Maryville, Pontoon Beach, Fairmont City and Caseyville. Where we have a page for a neighbour it is linked; where we do not, the rules there are still different from the rules here.
The rules in Collinsville
Siding replacement Permit required
Collinsville names siding directly in its permit types, and its one general exemption is a money threshold: “Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to require a permit… for any minor repairs made at a cost of less than five hundred dollars.” Any real re-siding job clears that.
Window replacement, same opening Conditional Enlarging or cutting an opening Permit required
Windows are named alongside siding in the permit schedule. A single window under $500 can fall inside the minor-repair exemption; a whole-house replacement never does. The city did not amend the 2021 IRC exempt list, so the base code applies and it exempts neither.
Illinois sets this, not Collinsville — and we are not going to print a number we have not read
Collinsville’s own ordinance names the 2018 energy code, which is two cycles behind what Illinois now enforces. It does not matter: state law fixes the residential energy standard for every Illinois municipality and forbids a local one that is weaker or stronger.
The unamended 2024 code figure for this climate zone is U-0.28. But Illinois publishes its own amendments to that code, it has amended that very table before, and we have not been able to open the current amendment document. So we are not going to state U-0.28 as the number enforced here. Buy to the ENERGY STAR figure below and the question does not arise; if you need the exact legal minimum, the Capital Development Board’s energy code office is on 217-685-4079.
For comparison, ENERGY STAR asks for U-0.25 or lower with an SHGC of 0.40 or lower everywhere in this metro, which is stricter than every code edition in force here. And the code only bites when the sash and the glazing are replaced together — replace the glass alone in an existing sash, or add a storm window over the top, and it does not apply.
Contractor registration No
No local contractor registration, business licence, bond or insurance requirement appears on the Building Permits and Inspections page, the Code Enforcement Division page, or the permit application forms. An authorised representative signing for the owner must have 'a signed contract or document from the owner allowing them to sign on their behalf.'.
What the permit costs
A flat $50 permit covers roofing, siding and windows regardless of the cost of the work.
Local quirks
The $500 exterior-work threshold is published as a guideline with the caveat 'although there are exceptions.' The city straddles the Madison/St. Clair county line. Roofing (but not siding or windows) triggers a state Illinois Roofing Contractor licence check on the application form.
Who to call
- Building dept
- 618-346-5200
- Official
- Kendrick Soer, Chief Building Official (618-346-5200 x1123)
- Permits
- Department page
How Collinsville compares with the rest of Madison County
Same county, same climate, same houses. Not the same rules.
| Place | Permit to re-side | Permit for a window | Window must meet |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collinsville | Yes | Depends | — |
| Alton | Yes | Yes | — |
| Edwardsville | Yes | Yes | — |
| Glen Carbon | Not published | Not published | — |
| Granite City | Depends | Depends | — |
Work we have done in Collinsville
Not yet — Collinsville is on our list rather than in our records. We will say so until that changes.
Where these facts came from
Everything on this page about Collinsville was read off a published source. Where a question has no published answer we have said so rather than filling the gap.
Sources: library.municode.com · collinsvilleil.org · collinsvilleil.org · collinsvilleil.org · collinsvilleil.org · library.municode.com · cdb.illinois.gov · cdb.illinois.gov · cdb.illinois.gov · regulations.justia.com · regulations.justia.com · law.justia.com · law.cornell.edu · energysense.uillinois.edu
Work coming up in Collinsville?
We will tell you what the rules here are, including when they work in your favour.
Tell us about the house
We answer the phone. If we miss you, we call back.