Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
WOW! Thanks so much for all of your replies!
We are very excited about the house as we've been living apartment-to-apartment in NE, ME, NY, and DC for the past 6 years.
Roof will be new so we get to choose the shingle color (well, at least we get SOMETHING)!.
Tore out the bushes this weekend (glad to hear everyone agrees they need to go).
We are now living in Southern Indiana (Bloomington); OhioG- not the Artic but does a black roof make a ton of difference? I guess it gets hot here in the summer....
KBldr--- yep- landscaping is high on the list--- right after roof, HVAC and vapor barrier/drainage fix. I cant wait! Groundswork is my favorite part.
GentleA--- I cant decide about the brick undertones- there is red, orange, blue, gray, yellow, purple, brown, black, beige. I will hit up SW. I was thinking dark gray / charcoal as well.
Silibran- so kind of you to say "charming"!
PittC--- yes---roof first---
nuts2--- we have yet to commit on the shigles.
Question on the shutters- How does one determine the correct shutter size?
I did some color searches today -
Shutters should be equal to the width of the window, otherwise they look "off". For example, a 36" window would have shutters that are 18" wide. A double window should not have shutters, because each one would need to be 36" wide. Some people are not at all bothered by slapping up a random strip of colored vinyl and calling it a shutter, but I hate it.
On your house, I would take them down and make it all about the front door, with landscaping to frame the front door. No random flower pots either. I would like you to get a door that is beautiful, rather than so plain, but I know you have priorities right now.
Where are the pictures of the torn out shrubs? Don't keep us in suspense. Looks like you're going a little crazy on those color choices.
Shutters should be equal to the width of the window, otherwise they look "off". For example, a 36" window would have shutters that are 18" wide. A double window should not have shutters, because each one would need to be 36" wide. Some people are not at all bothered by slapping up a random strip of colored vinyl and calling it a shutter, but I hate it.
On your house, I would take them down and make it all about the front door, with landscaping to frame the front door. No random flower pots either. I would like you to get a door that is beautiful, rather than so plain, but I know you have priorities right now.
Where are the pictures of the torn out shrubs? Don't keep us in suspense. Looks like you're going a little crazy on those color choices.
Thanks for the info about shutters! Learn something new everyday! One problem solved- the shutters go. Nice- I don't need to worry about a color for the dmd things anymore.
Yes- a beautiful door. That was my instinct so thanks for the validation. I'm sure we can take care of that soon- if only I had an epiphany in regards to what will make the door outstanding....
No random flower pots? Jeeze- that means I need an actual PLAN for flower gardens...
Photos of the house sans bushes will be up tonight.
Eddie- I would do a dark roof, trimming and add mulch/plant some flowers to break up all the brown/green. I wouldn't take out those bushes entirely...the house will look naked. I'd definitely leave the shutters. Heck, with the right landscaping the house could look good as-is. Is the roof bad?
K'ledgeBldr No! A black roof DOESN'T make a ton of difference. If the insulation in the attic is adequate and up to standard, the color of a shingle will make no difference. The heat in an attic is radiant heat- that has nothing to do with color!
I've built enough houses over the years to know that if you want a house (with that color of brick) to have that elegant appeal black shingles is the way to go. There are a few variations- like charcoal grey, or architectural grade that has dimensional shading added to it. Browns, beiges, red/browns, weathered wood, medium greys do not look appealing at all with that color of brick.
Just do a search of Google, Pinterest, or Houzz for "red brick house" or "red brick home" and pay particular attention to the color of the roofs- then let us all know what YOU think looks best.
__________________________________________________ _____________________________________
Eddie- yep-the roof must be replaced- at least our homeowners insurance says so--- and sorry- bushes are gone--- flowers are on their way---cant wait to get into the landscaping.
KBldr- I have ruled out anything other than dark grey or black - it's great to know that I'm thinking correctly. The shingle samples are all so busy looking- even the black /dark grey look busy and we do not want that with all the patterning in the brick, right? Well hey- I'll attach the PDF with the shingle choices. Oh dear- I guess not- the attachment is too large.
The OAKRIDGE (Corning/Owens) is standard. Here are the upgrade choices:
OPTION ONE: Artisan Colors ($2 more per square)
ADDITIONAL COST FOR YOUR ROOF: $71.00
OPTION TWO: TruDefinition® Duration® Shingles ($10 more per square)
ADDITIONAL COST FOR YOUR ROOF: $355.00
Last edited by marska; 04-20-2015 at 01:27 PM..
Reason: add attachment
Thanks for the info about shutters! Learn something new everyday! One problem solved- the shutters go. Nice- I don't need to worry about a color for the dmd things anymore.
Yes- a beautiful door. That was my instinct so thanks for the validation. I'm sure we can take care of that soon- if only I had an epiphany in regards to what will make the door outstanding....
No random flower pots? Jeeze- that means I need an actual PLAN for flower gardens...
Photos of the house sans bushes will be up tonight.
Since you so patiently listened to my shutter rant, can I please give you my door rant now?
I'm not saying you would, but please do not get a front door with a lot of swirly art nouveau leaded glass in it. Stay with a design that is in keeping with the craftsman or contemporary design of the house.
Looking forward to seeing everything when you're done.
I very rarely use 3-tab anymore.
For the small amount of up-charge for the 30yr architectural grade shingle its well worth it! Not only for the better look, but also the warranty and its significantly denser composition making it quite tough to fight severe weather.
The thing about removing the shutters is that if you take them off, the brick under them will likely be a different color than the rest of the house. The shutters have probably been on their for 30-40 years or since the house was built. 90%+ of homes around here have decorative shutters that wouldn't be wide enough if they were functional. It's only a big deal if you're of the 1% that are purist in to old historically correct homes....to everyone else, you're home will look worse.
For example:
Last edited by eddiehaskell; 04-20-2015 at 09:40 PM..
Ranches are actually one of my favorite house styles. Our house before our current one was a ranch and I really loved it. They can be so very, very charming with just a tiny bit of work. Personally, I'm all on board with getting rid of foundation shrubs and going with flowers. Plus, you have that charming courtyard up front and it will look quite nice if you employ an interesting landscape plan. Me? I'm a huge hydrangea fan but then I'm married to a landscaper so it's easy for me to change my mind and get whatever I want.
YES to the dark gray or black roof. Looks sooo much better but I would advocate getting the architecture shingle versus the 3-tab. Just wears better over time, looks more up to date, and gives the home a bit more 'class' so to speak.
I would also consider a fun color like orange or turquoise or a royal blue or bright yellow for your front door but I would advocate keeping your shutter color simple if you go that way. Something like a Charleston green or black.
Your home looks very nice. You get to do the fun part now.
I would definitely leave the shutters in place...There will be too much brick without them...Your home has great curb appeal! If you keep the shutters white you can change annuals you plant to different colors as the summers pass. I think red geraniums in big pots would look stunning!!!
Look again at the 2 pictures of the house with and without shutters that Eddie posted. Even with the double windows the picture with shutters looks nicer than the one without
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
