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whiterosesinbloom

Help, new siding, sideways 60s ranch needs curb appeal

whiterosesinbloom
10 years ago

My 1960 ranch sits sideways on the lot. First challenge: how to liven up the very plain side of the home that faces the street. The gable vent will be eliminated. Options might be a non-functional gable vent, band board (does that work on wider gables like this?), wide trim, crown above the garage and window. A 1-2 foot wide roof all the way across above the garage door might work, or shingles above, normal siding below. I'd love to add a door here, but I think that might raise my assessment. A bump out to the left for storage would be nice. The garage door will be painted to match the trim.

Then the front: don't know what's under the wide aluminum trim at the top of the brick, maybe dentil? What would you replace that with, crown? What about the 9" wide blank space either side of the triple window? What to do around the front door? Those siding sections are 8-3/4" wide. Would like to replace the storm door with a full glass version, but worried about the new insulated fiberglass door warping from the sun, this side faces south.

What do you think of a subtle tan with off white or cream, siding/trim + gutters combination, possibly vinyl straight-edge shingles on parts. Will those colors look ok with the red brick?

Get rid of the shutters all around, or are some needed for interest/contrast?

What width shingle - 5, 7? 7 would be closer to the original wide wood shingles still on many homes in the tract.

Next door is dark grey, white trim, black shutters. Across street is white, black shutters. Nearby is light yellow, green shutters and medium green, white, black shutters.

From SidingIdeas
From SidingIdeas
From SidingIdeas
From SidingIdeas

This post was edited by whiterosesinbloom on Fri, Jun 14, 13 at 22:15

Comments (10)

  • egbar
    10 years ago

    window boxes and some nice big pots of flowers strategically placed would add a lot of pretty detail. I like the idea of making a decorative lattice box for the air conditioning unit and adding perhaps a decorative bench or a fence or trellis in places for more structure. I noticed your screen name. Roses everywhere would be very pretty and come in all heights and forms. no shutters, the wider siding would be more in keeping with the original and be easier to maintain. I lived in a house much like this for 20 years. Had roses and hostas, hydrangeas all over the place. you can get that front storm door with UV protection or add a special film so that the new insulated door is protected from the sun. best wishes

  • whiterosesinbloom
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Yes! Window boxes! Thank you! The planter stand under the tiny window keeps the rabbits out of the lettuce. If the budget would allow, a pergola might be nice... someday...

    The deer love the hostas. I will look into UV film.

    I played with Dream Designer and came up with the designs below. What do you think of the band board? The color is Rye with Pearl. Not sure yet about how that color works with the brick, or whether the front should be shingles or regular siding. I can't take a better photo of the front because of the neighbor's privacy fence.

    From SidingIdeas
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  • egbar
    10 years ago

    the pergola/porch looks great! undecided about the colors, I am sort of a traditionalist, white always looks right to me. you could use a few trellis's or an arbor in places to give more structure if you needed until you could swing the pergola? keep us posted as you progress!

  • Nancy in Mich
    10 years ago

    I am confused. Is the long side with brick facing the street, the long side with siding facing the street, or the short end with the garage doors facing the street? Well, obviously the garage side is connected somehow to the street, but you know what I mean.

    Anyhow, the thing I have to add is that I ran into a problem with my decorative full-view screen door when it was a few years old. The big screen frame would not stay stuck into the channels of the door any longer. It was as if all those times I opened the screen door with my body up against the screen, instead of my hand on the frame, came back and bit me in the butt. Looking at it, though, I could see that there was room for a lot more than just the spline that was supposed to be holding the screen in place in that slot with the screen. That gave me an idea. So I measured the width of the screen and went to Lowes and got a piece of plexiglass that was wide enough to fit into the screen door opening and partway into the slot on each side. I got it a couple of feet shorter than the screen panel, however. When I got it home, it snapped right in with the screen into that slot. It snugged the screen up tight again, too. I left a foot of screen open below the plexiglass and a foot of screen open above the plexiglass. That creates a chimney effect, drawing cool air into the space between the doors and up and out of the space at the top. Ta Da! No more saggy screen frame, a strong surface to lean against when I enter and exit with full arms as I did everyday for work, and an air-cooled front door. Since I put the plexiglass on the inside of the screen, you can't even see it until you are right up near it. This is the solution I found for using the Full View storm door with a nice fiberglass or steel front door. I got the strength of having the glass panel in place during the hot part of the year when I could not use the glass but had to use the screen insert in the storm door.

  • whiterosesinbloom
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Everyone who comes here gets confused - some think the rear door is the entrance!

    The brick is on the "front" of the home. The "front" faces the neighbor's privacy fence (which used to be a row of pines... don't get me started on that!).

    The garage faces the street.

    The "rear" with the living room window wall faces the woods and ravine. This part is somewhat more visible from the street than the "front".

    The home was built sideways because a ravine with a creek runs through the lot. It's a 25 foot drop-off and sandy soil on the edge. There's only 16-20 feet from the home to the drop-off in some places.

    I almost never use the "front" door. The storm door is original to the home; it has no closer or spring, and the latch is broken, so there's a loop and a hook that can only be hooked from inside. If one forgets to hook it, the wind will open the door, bang it against the house and break a pane. Right now I just leave both doors shut to keep the creepy crawlies out, too. I use the back door from the garage into the kitchen.

    Interesting solution with your plexiglass. I'm thinking more of full glass rather than full screen. I've put a lot of effort into air sealing, insulation, new windows etc and have minimal energy use. The new door would have to seal well enough to keep bugs out and keep drafts out. I have plenty of ventilation without a full screen door, but could use more light, so I'd like to open the front door and have the full glass storm door to let in light. But this side faces south, with the brick on it, and the white privacy fence about 17-18 feet away. Amazing how much heat that thing reflects. Definitely thinking that glass has to be tinted.

  • Nancy in Mich
    10 years ago

    I can't imagine that tinting alone could keep the space between a glass storm door and a inner front door cool enough in the summer on a south facing door to keep from warping the door. But what do I know? Maybe the tinting can do that. I know that on my Pella, the warranty is voided if you leave the glass in over the summer. You have to change to the screen in order to keep the inner door from warping. Be sure to check out all of these things before you buy.

  • whiterosesinbloom
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Ah. Ok, I'll look into that. Thank you.

  • whiterosesinbloom
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Gee, I wonder if a Warm Window shade on a full view storm window would solve the heat problem?

    Here is a link that might be useful: Warm Window

  • raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
    10 years ago

    Before you close up the gable vents, think about how you will ventilate the under roof area and keep it cool and dry. Those vents are important to the home's overall comfort and the life of your roof. Moisture that enters the space from the living areas below need a place to escape, and air flowing through the vents helps the house stay cooler in summer.

  • whiterosesinbloom
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks - you're right - I've already addressed that problem.

    The previous owners not only skimped on siding, they had a bad roof replacement job. The ridge vent was nailed shut and the soffit vents were plugged or nonexistent.

    The ridge vent has been replaced. The soffit vents will be opened up and a fully vented vinyl soffit installed with the new siding. (I had a different contractor try to open up the soffits before this, he didn't know what he was doing and ruined the fascia trim, hence the new siding and trim job.)

    And new bath fans and kitchen fan have been installed, to remove excess moisture.

    Then, someday, a new roof. Another big project to look forward to. Sigh.

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