Front Porch Design

Once you've decided you want a front porch for your home, you should also decide how you want that porch to work for you so you can find the right front porch design to match your needs. While you might think of a porch as a wood floor with a couple posts and a roof, front porch design is more complicated than that and will dramatically influence the effect and function of your front porch.

Open and Screened Porches
This is usually the first and one of the biggest decisions you'll need to make for your front porch design. Open porches are by far more popular for front porch design, as the front porch represents one of the first things that will greet visitors. An open porch tends to be more welcoming, and widely designed steps can help enhance the inviting effect of this porch. This porch can still be used to extend the living space of your home but obviously the weather will reduce the period of its practicality. Some homeowners like to install a wide porch and add a second entry door into their home. This can expand the possibilities and dynamics of interiors and functionality.

Creating more of a sense of privacy, screened porches tend to be used more widely in back porch design. These porches are more about extending the livable space of a home but are still largely at weather's whim. If you really want a porch that you can use on a consistent basis, a sunroom might be a better way to go, unless you live in a particularly mild climate. One thing the screen will do is to keep bugs and other pests from getting into your porch area.

One of the reasons you might consider a screened porch for your front porch design is for storage. You can keep your bike or other outdoor equipment in your screened (and locked) porch, allowing you to reclaim space in your garage. Obviously, this won't keep the criminals at bay, but a well-built screened porch can safely keep neighborhood kids and the casual passerby from getting ideas.

Other Design Considerations

+ The vast majority of homeowners prefer hardwood for their porch installation, but if you're looking for cost savers, faux wood is a viable option and can easily be manipulated and designed into an appealing interlocking tile.

+ Another invaluable part of your front porch installation is the decorative elements of the trim. You'll want to make sure that it adds not only to the appearance of the porch but to appearance of your entire house.

+ Gabled porch roofs can add depth and style, especially for smaller porches. Often, gables are used when the house has matching gables. Flat roofs can save space but won't last as long.

+ Discuss the design of your front porch with a professional before you get stuck on one idea that may not be the best fit for your home.