I wanted to post some pictures of my haven, my front porch.
Last edited Tue Jun 10, 2025, 11:12 AM - Edit history (1)
I've been living in this home since 1978. This home originally had an open front porch that was only about 5 feet wide, from the front of the house proper, to the front of the porch. it was not enclosed at all, and the floor was comprised of heavy concrete colored blocks, weighing about 250 pounds a piece.
In the mid 1980's, when I was in my 20's, I decided to enclose this porch. My skills were just ok at that age, but I did the best I could to enclose it by extending the roof rafters by about 2 feet, rendering the width of the newly enclosed porch from 5 feet to a little over 7 feet. The original non-enclosed porch ended where that beam on the ceiling is. The porch is about 17 feet long. I put in some cheap storm windows, and used that cheap T1-11 exterior paneling for the inside walls. I removed the heavy block floor and jack hammered out the concrete perimeter of the previously opened porch. I installed floor joists and then installed just a plywood floor, covered with a carpet. It looked ok when I was done, and it turned into a nice place to sit inside.
In the early 2000s, I decided to further improve the porch. I replaced the T1-11 wall covering and a portion of the ceiling with hand stained and clear coated tongue and groove oak planks. I replaced the storm windows with higher end vinyl replacement windows, and I removed the carpet and replaced it with a laminate floor. I painted the back walls a dark green color (the walls were previously white), and this had the effect of people on the street not being able to see you sitting on the porch through the windows, which lended some privacy. I added a lovely wind chime and painted the non-wood part of the ceiling with a color that coordinated with the green wall. I added some furniture that I had refinished and re-upholstered.
Following are some pictures which start with the second remodel that I did in the 2000s, and the pictures progress to how the porch looks today. It has held up well for the past 40 years. I have slept out there at night. You get a nice cross-breeze when all of the windows are opened, and the wind chimes sound beautiful. There is a little weeping cherry outside of the side window that the birds visit, and I can sit there and watch them up close and hear them sing. I also put a hanging basket of flowers on an outside hook that the hummingbirds visit, and I can watch them from a few feet away. My house is pretty basic, but this is a lovely haven to hang out in, especially when the wind chimes start ringing when a breeze comes through the opened windows,
This place is a nice sitting haven for me now.
This porch has held up beautifully for 40 years now with no shifting or sagging.
The pictures below progress from the second renovation I did in the 2000s, to how the porch looks today.
Thanks for reading, have a nice day.
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It's gorgeous. Congratulations!
but it's mine now! 
Thanks, Harker 
I measured it.
He's going to turn 14 in a few weeks!
Your addition makes it more spacious. It wouldn't feel right without. We did the same thing to our lanai. By adding a few feet it allowed for more use. We covered half of it and put an outdoor table and some chairs there to sit in the rain and still be dry. I take my laptop out there and listen to the birds.
An indoor/outdoor intermediate space is the way!
You did a great job! Love it!
I put an ice barrier on the extended roof, covered with some type of rolled asphalt roofing that matched the existing shingles.
It looked ok, but not great, I had the roof re-done by pros at some point, and they just shingled all the way down to the new fascia.
The original poured concrete perimeter ran deep, and took me a long time to jackhammer. The end with the window on it had a huge set of poured concrete steps. I tried to get a guy who owned a local burial monument company to pull them out and haul them away, but he didn't want to touch them for some reason, so I had to jackhammer those steps as well. That took forever. There were all types of things embedded in those concrete steps. Rebar, old glass soda bottles, etc.
from where you torment your neighbors!
Seriously, nice space, Lucky. Glad you have that refuge to enjoy. And some wonderful mature trees right outside your door. But probably a lot of raking or mulching in the fall. It's a yin/yang sort of deal. We have a similar situation.
that definitely qualifies as tormenting the neighbors!
Good job!
I like the color of the flooring and the wall color!
I also like the wooden chairs with the arm rests.
You may remember that I posted about that some time ago.
That dining room set is currently being used as a work from home office, and with an office chair at the dining room table, as well as a computer and hard copy files, I removed two chairs from the dining room to free up some workspace, and put them on the front porch.
Yes, I remember that dinning room furniture refinishing thread.
I want to clarify that I really like the rich dark green wall color. There's certain items that I gravitate towards that are that color and one of those items are sofa's and loveseats. I'm not sure why, it's just one the colors that I gravitate towards.
I see you posted really early this morning, I hope all is well.
I'm jealous!
Regal Premium Interior Latex
Pearl Finish Aquapearl
Ultra Base 310 4B
https://plan-home.com/color/benjamin-moore-lafayette-green-hc-135
