skip to main content

Renovating Design Dilemma Exteriors

Help! Advice wanted to change 1980s house exterior. Suggestions?

5 years ago

Hello,

I've been impressed by the advice given on this forum and would like to tap in to your expertise if that's OK :-)

I've never liked the look of this house, but it ticked boxes for cost, size and location. It was built in the early '80s and had a brick porch and a side extension added about 10 years ago.

Here's a picture of the street scene

I think the main problems are the uneven windows and the mismatched brickwork on the porch and extension.

I recently had the roof cleaned, which was an improvement.

I've written to the local Planning Authority and the say as I'm not in a conservation area, as long as I comply with Building Regulations I can change the exterior.

Ideas I've had so far are:

Change the windows to a more uniform design.
Paint the brickwork.
Tint the bricks on the porch and side extension to match the main part of the house.
Demolish the front porch and replace with something larger and more in proportion to the house.

Any suggestions gratefully received. Please don't hold back, I won't be offended!

Featured Answer

Jonathan

5 years ago

If it were mine I would do the following:-
Replace the porch with a much bigger rendered porch. Personally I think it is too difficult to match either the roof or the brick to the main house so I go for a flat roofed rendered porch- I might even choose dark render.

Personally I think you only need to change the the bathroom windows so that they all have a vertical division.

Add some planting to the front- in my humble opinion it is too plain and I think you need a border on the drive side, a wide path to the front door and oversized pots to signpost the way.

I would also plant something tall next to the extension or grow a climber up it to disguise the pipes.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (21)

User
Original Author
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Thanks for your input Jonathan, great to have another opinion. I'll explore those options.

Here's how it used to look. The image below was taken before the previous owner's changes. I agree more green is good!

Any more input from other board members most welcome.
Related Discussions
Help / Advice on how best to change layout of bungalow
Q
Comments (16)
I totally get the following the sun idea -so agree the kitchen and dining area move to the right side of the house is a good one ! Also agree that laundry room only really needs access from hallway not kitchen in this instance. Also like storage and hot press opposite laundry - makes sense ! Think you might maybe want to consider a glass door from kitchen to the inner hall - to bring some day light into that area and to give access to kitchen without having to go through dining room... Also, with a bit of re jigging of the ensuite and laundry room sizes you might be able to turn your bed to face the patio ? ( install patio doors) And have a dressing area behind bed ? Morning sun might just get to that patio in time for breakfast alfresco in the summer ? This is the sort of project we often get call in to help with as we produce whole floor plans and perspectives etc ! And we go through similar process as on this thread - we enjoy a challenge too - just like you are finding !! There's something satisfying about taking a space and making it work better isn't there ! One last thing ... it's worth asking a contractor to take a look at the plumbing implications before you get too far into your project planning !
...See More
Colour palette advice for House exterior
Q
Comments (3)
Hi Allison, You may need to consult your local planning authority if you plan on changing the appearance of the house. www.pwjarchitects.com
...See More
Changing the exterior of our 1970's house - advice needed!
Q
Comments (7)
Hi Ciara I love the idea of full height doors for the garage conversion but would consider the practicality of it, think about where the desk will go. It will not add to pavement appeal if the desk is against the glass and you can see the messy bits that tend to gather under a desk. Crittal style steel windows are exorbitantly expensive, but I agree with Jonathan the house lends itself to multi paned windows. You might want to look at good quality PVC options. I would suggest the roof gets a jet wash as the green moss should come off and reveal the colour of the roof.
...See More
1980s external porch cracking
Q
Comments (4)
it looks like the porch was enclosed with the door after the original build. looking at the cracks it probably is the case that the new wall was built to provide the new door and window entrance area. the new wall was probably built without a foundation or with a shallow foundation. the plants that are close to the porch may be causing some localised shrinkage in the soil. the result may be that the new wall is settling differentially. if the cracking is wider at the top than the bottom then it is settlement, if it is wider at the bottom then it is heave. In addition to the above the wall looks as though it was built without a brick starter being fixed to the main wall. you should dig a hole next to the wall to find the bottom of the foundation for the wall. if it is shallow you could get it underpinned locally, but you might prefer to have it removed and rebuilt, which is probably going to be the same cost or cheaper than the work to underpin the area. hope this helps!! Rowland
...See More
Daza
5 years ago
there's something about the setting that makes me think black weatherboard cladding on the extension and porch would look good.

Renovated and extended 1960s house in West Sussex · More Info

Wolfram Close · More Info
smartypantsnancy
5 years ago
I would render the side extension to match the flat roofed rendered porch (just as Johnathon suggested) I would then paint the windows frames the same colour..I like the windows. I think the house would look ace
PRO
Desiign
5 years ago
Hiya,

Hugely depends on budget!! Not my expertise at all but my thoughts;

Parents have a similar house in Bristol. People in the road are going to black frames all around with new consistent windows.
If the window frames were black it should offset the extension.

Porch I think needs to be bigger - The window is always going too be cramped.

Also, can electrical box move?
PRO
Desiign
5 years ago
Hope that helps a little!:)
PRO
User
5 years ago
As the windows are odd sizes, I would change the frames to dark blue / black aluminium. Coupling this with blackened, weathered boarding you will then not notice the window sizes so much.
User
Original Author
5 years ago
Many thanks to all of you for your ideas, great to be receiving so much feedback! Still open to as many suggestions as possible.

Man About The House, that's a great picture, thank you so much for that! Definitely gives me food for thought.
yvona9
5 years ago
take it down and build something nice
Emily
5 years ago
I wish there was a dislike button for last comment :(
Emily
5 years ago
Regarding house facelift I’ve recently painted my house in dulux version of F&B Railings and the difference is incredible. Everyone said don’t do it but they’ve all said it’s great since. I love how bold Maths dark navy suggestion is but I’d just say if you do something so bold I’d make sure your new windows are fab and you update the porch so it looks like you’ve totally committed if you know what I mean.
Emily
5 years ago
I was looking for a real life weather boarded house painted dark blue and so far this is all I found but I like it. I’m sure the flags just there for Fourth of July or some holiday.
Tryphic
5 years ago
I would suggest as others have, a bigger porch, will allow you more storage as well,particularly when it's wet outside. Also, perhaps render or paint the extension and porch to tie them together, but to do the whole thing might be too blocky and monolithic. Do the windows work for you from the inside? You might find that if, for example, you do the porch and extension in white, the windows aren't so obvious. If they don't work for you, look at making them larger and more symmetrical. They seem quite small for the house.
Lainey Grey
5 years ago
Hi, with five different types of mis-matching brick at the rear of our house and a diminished budget, we took the decision to paint. A lot cheaper than boarding and we are really happy with the effect. Would love to replace the windows but maybe we’ll paint them too!!
Lainey Grey
5 years ago
And this is what we did at the front....

Before and after-
Jonathan
5 years ago
An earlier post mentioned moving the meters box. Painting it a brick colour will help disguise it and is cheaper than moving it.
Anthony (Beano)
5 years ago
It’s a hard one, fo me the second pic that daza has posted of the two grey/black centre side extensions has a great balance, possibly I’d have replaced the front tiles cladding in black too but over all it looks really well, the all black is way too much for me! If your game enough that pic is the basis I would aim for! Real smart.
Anthony (Beano)
5 years ago
In fact, I’ve just went and looked at the rest of the pics of that extension! Fantastic, great to see a real life extension, really well exicuted and bet the owner is well chuffed, some really nice touches there, makes a change from the box bolted onto a Victorian mansion :-)
PRO
Richards Architectural
5 years ago
Hi - you can transform your home by changing windows, rendering and using sidings... we're specifying this alot - look at Cedral Sidings, they come in so many colours .. K rend is a colour inherent render, mix with new windows ... give us a shout if you'd like some 3D colour drawings as this will help you make an informed decision. Exterior transformations are very popular with your style of home, Nikki
User
Original Author
5 years ago
Thanks for the ideas everyone. Hoping to start the project in the next couple of months.

Nikki, it would great to see some 3D colour drawings, thanks! Please feel free to PM me, or post on here.
PRO
Richards Architectural
5 years ago
Hi - Let me send you something when I'm back in the office .. Nikki :-)
PRO
Richards Architectural
5 years ago

Ok so here's one "before" .. forgive me this is a work in progress and I'm new to Houzz...

We draw up the existing...

Then present our vision for transformation ..

Hope this helps show you how you can transform your home. Nikki :-)

Sponsored

More Discussions

Proposed floor plan help please

35

How can I make this wall look less bare?

15

Too much blue. what other color is right here?

33

Opinions and suggestions on Howdens Kitchen Design

9

Kitchen diner garage access help

1

United Kingdom

Tailor my experience with cookies

Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.