The new old front porch - HGTV pro article

By Marcia Jedd
As more porches sprout in front yards in neighborhoods across the country, the builders of the homes behind them meet the wants of today's homebuyers with a kind of architectural back to the future. Popping up in both renovations and new construction in many parts of the country, it seems to be all about the new old-fashioned porch.
"On one hand, there's a comeback in vintage or traditional-looking homes and front porches are inherent to those homes," says Paul Buum, AIA, associate with SALA Architects, Inc. architectural design firm in Minneapolis. "On the other, porches are very popular because of the resurgence of urban living that we see in many cities in which people want to reconnect to their neighborhoods and the social aspect is a big part of that."
In fact, some new master-planned communities are even requiring front porches, he adds.
Bigger is better Porches are also larger these days, Buum says, often spanning the full length of the front of the house. Depending on the style of home, many production builders also are making front porches standard and building them wider than a decade ago—eight to 10 feet wide instead of four to six feet.
"In both remodels and new construction, full lengths are nice for homes facing a street, and so are wider porches to accommodate tables, chairs or the old-fashioned porch swing," Buum says. He adds that wraparound porches with screened-in portions are popular in rural settings and on farmhouse-style homes.
Design considerations Ensuring continuity with the architectural style of the rest of the home is a key design consideration. A porch should be consistent in detail and character with the rest of the house. "This is particularly true with front porches," Buum notes, "since it's the first introduction a person has to the home."
Buum outlines these porch design trends:
More color. Design elements emphasize color. "You see a lot of multi-color palettes today. You can have one siding or cladding color, another trim color and an accent color on window sashes," Buum says.
Bolder columns. Architectural columns often are on a larger scale for design or aesthetic purposes while enclosing a smaller structural column (typically 4x4 or 6x6 posts), as long as the columns are scaled appropriately to the home. "Columns can be round, squared or tapered and sit on the deck of the porch or a pier."
Durable materials. A well-designed porch typically will encompass the same exterior material as the rest of the home, such as stucco or brick, or synthetics such as fiber cement siding products by James Hardie, Maxtile or CertainTeed's WeatherBoard siding.
Flooring. In addition to traditional pine or cedar floors on front porches, an increasingly popular choice is ipe, a Brazilian hardwood that is an incredibly strong wood, resistant to insects, rot and mold. "Ipe is moderately priced," Buum says. "Installation can be more expensive than other wood floors, because it's more time-consuming given the very dense wood, which requires pre-drilling."
Especially in remodels, Buum advises contractors to consider how views from the inside of the home will be altered from front windows and how an expanded porch could alter light flow inside the home.
Buum stresses that porches should be pitched to drain away from the home. He also recommends floor venting to prevent moisture build-up and the many accompanying problems that result. "It depends on the base of the porch, whether it's on piers or a continuous long low brick wall. In any case, we vent from underneath the porch, at the base or perimeter walls, to the sides or front so you allow air movement to keep the joist space ventilated and dry."
Marcia Jedd writes frequently on design and construction issues.