Front porch questions

[aspentosh]

I think the next project on our home list is fixing the front landscaping and hardscaping. The railroad ties are horrible and we have hated them for 11 years, but now they are starting to really show their age... In discussing some options, I threw out a front porch and H doesn't hate the idea.

Has anyone added a front porch to their home?

-How deep did you do? Google says 6' minimum but 8' is ideal. I'm not sure I want to take up that much of the front yard (we play out there a lot). Our garden beds are just over 5' deep so we threw out 6' to get the discussion going. 

-We have a larger slope on the left side of our house. Does concrete make the most sense, with something pretty to cover it? We'd obviously do landscaping in front of it- Japanese Maple or something similar at the corner, maybe.

-Or looking at the photos, does it just not make sense?

PDQ the home photo  

[deadwing]

I haven't put in a front porch, but my house has one. It's 6' from the side of the house to the railing and I definitely wouldn't go narrower. I don't have any furniture on mine (yet... it's on my list), but I'm pretty sure you'd have to scoot sideways to walk past a chair out there. Now, if yours would be ground level without a railing, you wouldn't have that issue and 6' would probably be plenty.

Would you actually sit on your porch or would it just be an aesthetic feature? Lack of furniture aside, I don't see myself ever using my porch because I have a lovely patio. Also, it seems awkward to sit facing my neighbor's house.

[simpsongal]

Would it be weird if I take a pic of my neighbor's/friend's house?

They have a similar colonial and they added like a 10x10 front porch off the side (it covers the door and two windows, and I think it extends a little beyond the house?). They did it b/c it mirrors the cul de sac shape, but the size also makes it more usable with company. That could look nice on your lot w/the drop off there, make that space a bit more usable. Plus, you'd be blocking less light to the first floor windows (which is a big tradeoff when you add a porch).

We have a 5 ft 2-story front porch, and it is tight. DH and I sit side by side in rocking chairs, but not for super long stretches or with company or anything. But it's a nice place to sit to say high to neighbors and watch the kids play in front.

[maudefindlay]

If your kids play out front a porch would be awesome, some day you will be able to sit and watch them play. You definitely want to go as deep as you can to make it a functional porch with furniture, a swing, etc. Make it big enough and you could have a daybed swing, you and your kids would love reading on that.

[aspentosh]

We think we'd keep the right side of the porch open as an entry/exit point. We usually park in the garage, but being able to scoot onto the porch from the driveway seems like a nice idea. And we'd move our walkway down some so we could have some greenery between the porch and the walkway. Something similar to this, but probably larger:



We do have a nice patio out back with more trees/plants as a view. But we regularly (almost daily) play frisbee or soccer or lacrosse out front. Right now it's just the front stoop and when one of us takes a break it's very uncomfortable. The view out front isn't anything amazing- typical suburban neighborhood, so a street and a neighbor- but I've always loved wraparound porches or even just sitting porches so there is that draw. We did say a swinging daybed or even side-by-side rocker would be amazing on the far left.

simpsongal , if you're willing to take a photo, I'm all eyes Losing sunlight is a HUGE concern I have. Our front faces mostly west, so we get a lot of afternoon sun which I love, and is the main reason why we do not have a huge tree in our front yard!

[brooklyn]

I’d go as deep as possible! Another idea would be to do a stone patio area at the front of your house.

Here’s what we have (slightly different furniture and landscaping now, but it’s all I could quickly find on my phone)

[scm1011]

We added a front porch last year and ours is 9' deep. I LOVE it - it really feels like an extension of our house and we're out there all the time. 6' seems really tight. 

Before & Afters 

[maudefindlay]

Wow scm1011 that looks like a different house, very nice and I bet you get a lot of use from it.

[scm1011]

Thanks, maudefindlay - that was the idea lol. We bought the house in 2021 and while its super functional for us it was 1000% not our style. The porch definitely helped improved outdoor aesthetic, and we use it constantly. One side has a sectional and tables and the other side has the kids sandbox and some outdoor toys.

[deadwing]

scm1011, ditto maudefindlay! I can't believe what a difference the porch made.

[definitelyO]

love a front porch - or agree with brooklyn, i fyou're concerned about a lack of light - a stone patio could also work great.
we have a narrow porch - only 4' and it's not enough... we have a flower garden in the front so we can take steps in there to get by if we're both sitting in the front.

[sandandsea]

We added a front patio to our house as part of our landscape renovation and I love it. It created a very useful area in an otherwise boring area of our front yard. We didn’t choose the depth because the landing and front steps were already predetermined but it is 7.5ft (from the front of the window to the edge, it’s about a foot more on the edge where the window isn’t jutting out) and it works nicely since it has an open front. If there were a porch railing around it I would want it a little deeper.

[Susie]

We have a center hall colonial with very similar look, and we also have a portico on the front.  A couple neighbors have similar homes with a full porch.  Some actually do sit out on their porches, but most don't.  For me it would be a significant expense (vs. just redoing landscaping/hardscaping) that I would not want to take on without a plan to really use it.

Personally I prefer not having it, because I really like as much natural light as I can get, and a porch would decrease the amount of natural light I'd get into the front rooms, which include my home office.

Our last house had a small porch (side hall colonial) and we just used it to store firewood and keep it dry.

We spend time in the backyard instead, where we have a deck and a stone area with a fire pit and Adirondack chairs.