The very hospitable Miller's came to us wanting a porch covering solution to help protect the front door and any visitors standing at the front door from the effects of inclimate weather (rain, sleet, snow, etc.). The setting sun also shined on the unprotected porch window causing a blinding glare of which that heated the kitchen area, rendering it quite warm. The existing home had a 24" overhang for their home's eaves throughout and it didn't afford the portals much protection from the elements.







Even though the Millers knew that they wanted a porch covering, they were quite uncertain as to what porch design would 'look good' with their home. They were thinking that a porch with a gabled roof end would be what they wanted considering that the front wall faces of their home had gables, but they weren't married to that idea.










To help them make an informed decision before they embark on their costly endeavors, we procured several 3D vector rendering models of several different porch designs (a service of ours). 

Keeping with the 'gabled end' concept, we designed several different approaches to their home improvement project using a basic structure not littered with ornaments and details for a basic idea.






The gabled end designs were of one porch roof free standing- unattached to the main structure; another one a free standing unit attached to the main roof at the back of the porch; and another one set on beams with no post support built onto the main structure. They had questions on each design of which we answered for them.

We also included a simple shed roof design that we felt would serve their needs best in design, cost, and function. After a brief survey of all the models, they came to a decision quite quickly, choosing the shed roof design over all the others.




We began by pulling off the sheet siding on the side walls in which where we set and braced a double 2"x12" beam that's going to support the new shed roof across the front's open span. We set the beam approximately 6 ft. away from the front wall allowing a minimum of a 3"/12" rafter roof pitch for the new shed roof. The fascia board was a 1"x6" cedar board. We decked and shingled it with matching 3 tab shingles.

Note: Building a lower pitch roof and roofing it with 3 tab asphalt shingles will negate the shingle's manufacturer's warranty and create water problems in the near future. It would've also required the use of a different roofing material such as a roll on membrane roofing of which would've destroyed the continuity of the homes look (making it ugly).
 





The eave's soffit was of 3/8" fir soffit material attached to the rafter tails, creating a sloped soffit. The inside corners of the original soffit made a symmetrical inside 45° angle with the original roof pitch. We wanted it to also do the same with the new added pitch which gave it a long angle on one side and a short angle on the other. This we achieved of which the homeowner's were tremendously grateful for.














We squared off the bottom of the beam to the house and covered that with soffit material also. 1"x cedar trim was used at all the corners and seams. With fresh siding on the walls, everything was primed and painted to match the original. We reused the 'not to old' gutter system and trimmed it down to fit the new roof extension, saving the Millers a little money by recycling existing material (as long as it's not damaged and looks bad).

The Millers are very pleased with their new front and grateful of the extent that we went to in helping them achieve the porch covering that they desired without building it by trial and error.







To see their testimonials on this project, please click here.


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