In this week’s Retro Design Dilemma, reader Nita tells us that she must add exterior insulation to her 1952 flat-roof ranch house in Alaska — and she wants ideas from us for siding. What to suggest? Continue for Nita’s story and our ideas –>
Nita writes:
First, a little about me. My name is Nita, and I live in Alaska. My house was built in 1952 and is concrete block construction. It has survived temperatures as low as -70 and as high as 100, and even a big flood. While our average temperatures aren’t quite that extreme we do regularly see temps ranging from 45 below to 85 above. For me, this means that when I renovate parts of my house it has to be efficient and functional as well as beautiful and vintage-inspired, which is why I need some help.
Second, some history:
In 2010, I went on a mission to find a house. The recession was finally starting to hit us up here in Alaska and the local housing market was getting peppered with foreclosures and inexpensive properties. Being the frugal person that I am, I went about trying to find the perfect house while getting the most bang for my buck. In August 2010, my search ended when I stumbled across a foreclosed 1952 fixer-upper in the middle of the perfect residential neighborhood.Sure, the front yard was tiny and the last owners appear to have half-bleeped every repair they attempted, but it felt like home. I knew it was right for me as soon as I stepped inside for the first time. Original hardwood floors, brick fireplace with quirky concrete base, plaster walls, arched (swoon) doorway into the hall, cedar lined closets….. I could go on, but I’m sure you get the gist.
Since buying it I have put in countless hours repairing and restoring it. The basement has transformed from the scene of a bad slasher movie to a usable living room with an attached guest bed and bath. I have repainted every single wall in the house. I’ve repiped the entire Hydronic heating system. Currently, I’m working on stripping and refinishing my Homart steel cabinets and planning on renovating the main floor bathroom.
The biggest change I’ve made (aside from the basement) has been the windows. With temperatures in interior Alaska reaching lows of -50 and highs of 90, the original single paned, wood frame windows couldn’t stay. As you’ll see in the pictures I’ve had them replaced with new, high efficiency windows with interior grilles that mimic the look of the originals. I cannot tell you how much these have saved me in heating costs so far this winter.
On to my plea for help…
Anyway, my next big project is going to be the exterior, which is what I’m writing you guys about today. You see, I just can’t seem to decide on a suitable option when it comes to siding. I want something that gives the look and feel of being midcentury while also being functional at extreme temperatures. So I’m asking for advice and suggestions from everyone in the Retro Renovation community.Here are the things I want the siding to accent:
-The flat roof. I have the only flat roof house on the block and I want something that will complement that shape.
-The brick porch. I love my brick porch and have plans to build a second tier of brick planters that will hide the concrete block portion of the porch.
-The brick accents below the windows.
-The red walkway. The original owners stained the concrete walkway to match the red bricks and I love it.I’ve included pictures taken today (at -35 degrees) and a picture from when I first bought it in the fall of 2010. Now, some people may be wondering about the visible insulation around that front window… The concrete block construction, while being extremely sturdy and virtually impenetrable, isn’t a very good insulator. Before I put up siding I will be firring out all of the exterior walls in order to add 2” of rigid insulation.
Finally, thank you so much for even taking the time to go over this. I’m at a loss as to how to proceed and appreciate any help you guys and the readers can suggest.
Sincerely,
Nita
Readers, what do you suggest for new siding for this house, after Nita adds more insulation?
When Nita wrote and asked for our help to choose a siding for her house, Pam and I reminded her that we are not experts in insulation or exterior siding/materials in any climate — especially in one so diverse as Alaska. As always, we suggest that Nita check with properly licensed professionals to determine which siding will work best with the insulation that she is adding in her climate.
[Update: Alas, somehow along the way some of the photos illustrating our ideas for this story disappeared from our database — internet poltergeists ate them!]
When it came to the “exterior decorating” portion of Nita’s questions, Pam and I felt more able to help. To begin the transformation of Nita’s exterior, Pam recommended that Nita continue the brick knee wall from the porch planter all the way along the front of the house. This interesting detail will help make the house feel grounded and continue the horizontal line from the flat roof along the base of the house. It looks as though Nita’s brick may be roman brick, which may be hard to match since it is out of production to my knowledge. In that case, she may want to replace all the brick with a similarly colored standard brick.
Pam suggested that Nita use stucco for the rest of the house’s siding — of course she’ll need to check with a professional to make sure this is a viable option first. I would then paint the stucco a deep olive green (such as Sherwin Williams Houseplant), which will work well with the brick and provide color in the snowy winter months in Alaska. To warm up the white trim, Nita could paint the rooflines, window frames, door frame and carport supports a warm cream (such as Sherwin Williams Morning Sun). Then to add some pizazz to the entry, a new door from Crestview Doors — the Delwood — would reinforce the mid century style. Painting the door a deep red (such as Sherwin Williams Red Tomato) will help the entry door be the showcase of the front of the house.
Depending on what hardiness zone Nita lives in, she may be able to plant several of these Red Twig Dogwood shrubs from Fast Growing Trees — that are leafy and green in the summer and in winter, the stems turn a bright red — which contrasts nicely with the snow, compliments the house color and coordinates with the red door. Having a few shrubs near the corners of Nita’s house will also help anchor the house, provide winter color and hide the utility box that is on the front corner of the house near the carport.
Since Nita lives in a snowy climate, she may want to look into adding a railing to her front steps. Of course she would need to check local building codes to see if railings are recommended and what specifications they would have to meet. If Nita does decide to add a railing, we suggest a black iron railing that would be placed on the right side of the stairs — so as not to obstruct access to the planter under the front window.
We also discussed board and batten siding — as an alternative to stucco — which would add vertical lines to contrast the horizontals of the roofline and brick knee wall. Either the board and batten siding or the stucco would look lovely on Nita’s mid century “mini martini” house.
Hopefully we’ve given you a few good ideas Nita — best of luck with your exterior remodel — please let us know how it turns out.
Eartha Kitsch says
Super cute house! I love the mock-up in the video with the red and green. I also think that the board and batten would be perfect. The utility box definitely needs to be hidden somehow but keep in mind that if a meter reader has to come by and read it, it can’t be completely hidden. If we hide ours here in Nashville, the meter reader “estimates” what to charge…and you seriously don’t want them estimating. : )
Nita says
I’ve been thinking of ways to hide it, and I think maybe some sort of decorative box that matches the color of the house would work, but I’ll be sure to check with the electric company about their policies for hidden boxes before I do anything.
Nita says
I’m sure you’ll all be pleased to know that it has warmed up significantly and it is not 3 above.
Nita says
***It is now 3 above.
Jody says
I know nothing about insulation, but I just have to say that is the cutest little house ever. I love it! And the carport–beautiful!
Larry says
I’m not the biggest fan of stucco. I keep thinking that the stucco with the brick would make for too much cold masonry together. I really LOVE the look of board and batton and think maybe the vertical lines of board and batton might compliment the horizontal lines you have going on with the roof line and brick. I know wood might not be so conducive with your weather, but perhaps they can do the look with fiber cement.
Robin, NV says
Thank you Larry for saying “no” to stucco. In my opinon, stucco has its place and it’s not Alaska. I think it would look out of place there. But to each his own I guess. Nita should do whatever she wants.
And yes, fiber cement (Hardy board) can mimic wood if that’s the look you’re going for. Personally, I’d stick with plain Hardy board with a horizontal placement or faux wood Hardy board for a board and batten placement.
Sarah @ Crafty Waffles says
My first thought was to follow the horizontal lines with overlapped wood planks – in Alaska you guy should have plently of wood for this. Wood is also a pretty good insulator, and should handle the weather up there well. Alternatively Hardi board could be a great option if you want a more indistructable (concrete but “woodlike” or smooth) product.
JKaye says
I’m still stuck on how Nita says the temperature is minus 35.
kelly brickey says
Congrats Nita, on a great house and all the hard work you’ve put in already. I own a small flat roof commercial building converted to live/work space and totally believe in the spray on foam roof. It helped so much I didn’t need to insulate the block walls. That said, It isn’t in Alaska, and I don’t know how the foam holds up under a huge snow load.
About the carport… I love that it isn’t the same height as the roof line of the main house. Frank Lloyd Wright loved to vary the overhang heights and depths to increase visual interest. Maybe you could build up the profile of that overhang so it would match the thickness of the band around the house roof line? Then you could bring the brick element from the porch over and encase the steel carport support poles to unify everything.
Nita says
Within days after I took the photos the temperature dropped to a frigid -50. It was one of the coldest Novembers on record up here. Luckily, it’s been warmer ever since Christmas. And by warmer, I mean actually above zero. The weather is bizarre here. One day it could be 35 above and two days later it drops 80 degrees to -45.
But the summers…. The summers are the reason anybody stays up here. They make every -45 day worth it.
Kate says
We’ve been getting wild temperature swings here as well for about the last two years. The first four years I lived in Wisconsin, the temp didn’t get above zero for the whole month of Jan and half of February. Today it is 40, tomorrow is supposed to be 52, then Saturday is supposed to be 28 for the high. This fall we had days where it was in the upper 70s in the morning and 40 by afternoon. wacky weather for sure.
Dawn says
Hello there! Just piping in for the stucco crowd! My 59 ranch is pink stucco. I live in Central Ohio which of course can not compare to Alaska winters, however, my stucco is 54 years old and still going strong. Winters can get wet, snowy and cold here, and I have relatively few issues. And as near as I can tell the stucco has never been painted (Something I myself am looking into!) There is a small patch near the base taht has come off and needs repaired and a few cracks in teh back that have been repaired, but over all, my stucco has had no maintenance in all its 54 years. So it could definitely give you the look you want as well as HOPEFULLY being pretty low maintenance for the extreme weather conditions you live in! Good luck! I love your house! (I have a car port too which I absolutely ADORE!!!)
Jackie says
I second Christa. Hardie Plank is an awesome product. Most of the new builds where I live have this as siding. It looks great and should last a long time, if not forever.
Aletha says
I know nothing about what you should do with the exterior of your home, but I do know that it is adorable! Congrats on the great find in Alaska(!) and have fun making it your own!
Christa says
you could maybe do a rigid foam board type insulation with a vertical plank. A brand like Hardee Board ( which is like a concrete, fiberglass blend) has both Vertical board and batten, as well as color impregnated. Since it’s concrete, bugs don’t mess with it, it doesn’t rot, and think they might even have an insulated version. Good luck! Super cute house!