Quick & Easy Exterior Fixes

10.14.2010

Quick & Easy Exterior Fixes

Light the Way

Warm and welcoming front-entry lighting provides security for your family and safety for guests. Choose compact fluorescent bulbs to save energy.

Paint Your Garage Door

No matter how many garage doors you have, painting them the same color as your home's exterior cladding will help to lessen their visual impact from the street. Choose a high-quality latex paint; you can brush or spray it on.

Chart a New Path

It's easy to create a walkway from your driveway or sidewalk to your front door. Use a garden hose as a guide for placement. Here, the curved path adds visual interest. Set brick or rocks alongside the hose. Use a yardstick to place the rocks for the other side of the path exactly 3 feet away, then fill the path with gravel or wood chips.

Add a Window Box

Homes boasting traditional architectural styles look great with window boxes. Choose premade boxes or build your own; keep them the width of the windows. You can bolt the boxes directly through the siding and into the wall studs, or bolt supporting brackets to the studs and fasten the boxes to the brackets. If you choose to bolt directly through the siding, run a bead of caulk along the top and side edges of the box where it meets the siding so rainwater can't seep behind the box. Leave the bottom edge of the box uncaulked for drainage.

Install an Arbor

A decorative arbor above a door de-emphasizes it and provides a place to grow climbing plants. Holly Jordan, a partner with Auer-Jordan in Healdsburg, California, recommends using arbors above windows, doorways, and garages to add picturesque architectural elements.

Trim Your Entry

Research your home's architecture and consider adding appropriate trim around your entry door. For example, Georgian-style homes are typically framed with a simple yet decorative crown supported by ornamental pilasters.