Hot mess...needs serious help!

First, I would turn the house right side up. Next, you need to show us the view from the porch, before it collapses.

Front porch pic, which we just (almost) finished....

Just working on lattice...

Thanks, fawnridge...I will take that pic in the morning...and I know, the porch is awful! Can't wait to replace it! :)

Well i have to say your front porch is beautiful ! Did you do it yourself ?
How about Pinterest ? I would look there for inspiration . Just put it in the search bar .
I have no suggestions as I'm am horrible diy-er. But good luck !

Hi, What a beautiful house.

I think your question is a bit too wide open. What do you want to use the space for? What is in keeping with the house? Can we see more views? Budget? Climate?

Thanks! Front porch we did ourselves. Tried to match original railing as much as possible!! (Budget = two teacher salaries - 3 active kid expenses!).
Douglas Fir decking and Cedar spindles. House is a large 1870's Victorian farmhouse.
Back porch does not have to be "period" as much as the front, since it's not original anyway. Still, I'm thinking gray decking (TimberTech? Trex?) and white railing to stay in keeping with the front.
I live on Houzz but spacially, I have a hard time transferring other people's backyards into mine.
No way a backyard designer is in our budget....would be lovely if it was!
Husband/Dad/friend can build the deck, no problem.
Back of the house faces south--so lots of sun

My questions:
--how big a deck? Current on is 5'X8'. (Can't go further to the right as that's our exterior basement access)
--want it to look homey and cottage-like in this area--welcoming (which it doesn't right now!)
--The peeling red small barn is ours (original) and I would love to incorporate that somehow in the design...plus, that gives some shade. Patio?

Goal overall is: somewhere for the grill, somewhere to sit at a table with chairs and umbrella, and a cozy feel.

Thanks!! I LIVED on Gardenweb through my kitchen remodel years ago (2006) and always come here for help! Best place!!
Sarah

View from back deck facing down walkway to garage/rest of backyard on left. Will be re-doing fence...

More views

One more (sandbox is saying goodbye as well!)

Please learn how to take pictures so they post right side up.

Or edit them after you take them.

there is a landscape design forum that discusses decks and landscaping.

Oh dearâ¦serious case of envy here. Are you in NE? Love, love, love old farmhouses.

My question is, can you extend the yard at all, i.e.: take the chain-link fence out, break up some of the asphalt, and expand the grass area and are for kids to play? I ask because I think a rather large deck with wide, gradual-grade steps and no rails would be really nice there, but you'd need more space for the gradation of the steps. I have to say, I have a large deck that was never finished, i.e.: no railing was put in, and there is one spot that is somewhat high so I warn people with toddlers ,but I LOVE not having a railing. Something like this:

Here's a pin photo of a deck with built-in removable panels for basement access --- might work for you -- and then you could build one across the back of the house ....

... if you click on the photo it may take you back to the original project -- or not -- depending on the link at Pinterest .....

Here is a link that might be useful: Pinterest -- pin of deck with removeable panels

I think your big front porch gives you enough of an outdoor wood surface to maintain, so I would not double my work with a deck. Having just spent all summer stripping, sanding, scrubbing, brightening, and, in progress, staining our cedar deck, I wish we had put in a flagstone patio instead. We had to strip and brighten this year due to a bad stain product, but we have to clean and stain it every year. Fortunately, no railings. With a farmhouse, I wouldn't want to use the artificial wood decking. I also don't think you have a lot of room for extending it out, and I don't think I'd like the corner deck so much, confined in with the vinyl fence.

So I would put wide steps down to the ground level and put in a flagstone patio in the lawn area. Plant gardens around it to feel enclosed in flowers and foliage. Plant a shrub under the window and sweep the planting bed around the corner to the entire side of the barn, with a path to the barn door going through the bed. Center a small tree like a Japanese maple to the corner of the house and barn, but not planted deeply into the corner, and make that a shade garden. In about 10 years, it will be a lovely sitting area! Leave the rest of the backyard open and grassy for the kids, with additional plantings as needed.

I agree with mayflowers, not another deck.

We have a small egress porch (deck) from the doorway leading onto our paver patio. We incorporated landing-style steps for safety when carrying items and as an accommodation to seniors needing assistance. In our case everything was DIY so you can do it too. Since you say this will be the primary home access, the step style might help carrying groceries and other items.

If you like the concept, add a small roof above matching the house style.

Here is a link that might be useful: Our Patio and Back Lawn

Yes -- a deck without railings (and an access panel to the basement entrance) -- and wide easy wood steps would work well ..... and then you could add a gravel-and-paver-stone pathway to the barn ......

Here is a link that might be useful: Pinterest -- decks without railings

Thanks for the input!
I had no idea the pictures weren't right side up--they look it to me on the thread! Are you still seeing them sideways or upside down?

This isn't really the main "hang out" since we usually congregate out by the garage. We have dogs so while we will be replacing the ugly fence, we won't be eliminating it all together. We put in an electric fence ourselves that does our two acres, but it's nice to have a fenced in area with three dogs as well.

I like the idea of a patio, but I've never put one in and neither has hubby. Would be a bit of a learning curve and I'm not sure he wants to scrap the whole deck idea all together.

I was hoping for a deck with some type of large egress--either a big wide stairwell or a way to have it with no railing stepping down to the flagstone path (we already have those stones) plus a side walkway over to a small flagstone patio by the red barn? Right next to the red barn gets shade in the afternoon--the rest of the deck wouldn't for a few years (tree had to be cut down that gave us some shade--I'll be planting a new maple soon).

Location is upstate, NY, and I definitely don't want more painting or staining in my future! We removed the aluminum siding on the house a few years ago and had it painted last year. I hand painted 30+ spindles, top & bottom rail, and the deck of the porch. Plus I personally have painted all 3200 sf of the house myself inside! Ugh--no more!!

Any other pics or ideas are welcome! Thanks again!

Sarah from Albany, NY

If you go with a wood deck, don't paint or stain it. Just let it weather naturally, and every three years, all you have to do is wash it and spray rain repellant sealer on it. It's very easy. When building it, use stainless steel screws (they're expensive, but worth it), and NOT nails. If a board goes bad, just take the screws up, and put a new board down.

Use the inexpensive pressure-treated pine.

Patricia's idea of a patio is an excellent one, IMO.

My first thought was that you have a great spot for a small cottage and kitchen herb garden against or near your red barn. I'm also assuming you want to keep this spot fenced and that your little ones have another spot to use on your acreage as a play area. Since you already have the white fence on the left and you wouldn't want to build into that, I'd build the new deck similar to what Tibbrix posted with a step down to the grassy area, or as may flower suggested make it a corner garden with a dwarf Japanese Maple the centerpiece of a little garden. You could extend the deck slightly into the yard but not too far as you don't have much room to work with and then use the flagstones you have to widen the path to the garage and to the barn. I'd make that at least 3-feet wide. Then use a stone border to make an herb garden by your red barn. Be careful with large maples as they have shallow roots.

For the replacement fencing, there is some pretty nice 40" powder coated aluminum fencing you can put together yourself at Lowe's if you don't need anything taller.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?partNumber=254097-16418-504018&langId=-1&storeId=10151&productId=3028522&catalogId=10051&cmRelshp=req&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

Thanks! I think we have finally decided on a 12X16 deck maybe 14" off the ground (possibly 18") with no railing and then another step up on a relatively large platform into the house--a box step, if you will. This will leave us plenty of room for a future patio (white fence will be moved back to open more side yard) and I'll continuer whatever stone we use along the red barn for some cute seating and planters.
No railing is saving us about $1500, and that also nixes the in post lighting I wanted ($1000), so the only real "splurge" is the TimberTech decking.
Phew! Moving forward!! :)
Thanks for all the help!