Front Porch Fascias and Soffits: Functions, Materials, and Design Basics
Almost all of the categories of building parts that have issues of deterioration and dilapidation with historic rowhomes. Front porches, though, are definitely in the top 10 of the areas of common problems. Unlike most of the core building components, which would generally be made from historic brick, the front porches were most often a mixture of elements. In some cases the front porch floor was made from cast in place concrete. Often the columns or piers were built with brickwork.
In most cases though the roof structure was built with wood. Especially back in the olden days when these homes were built, it wasn’t common that good preservatives were used. In some cases the best preservatives, at that time, were highly toxic.
It isn’t to say that preservatives of today don’t have a degree of toxicity, but most types were worse years ago. When dealing with toxic chemicals, there’s generally a trade-off between the level of safety and the level of efficacy. In many cases materials which have the highest amounts of toxicity also have the highest degree of performance.
One of the principal inherent weaknesses of wood building materials is that wood rots in the presence of excess moisture and humidity. Even before wood gets to the point that will actually decompose and rot, it will often twist and warp in problematic ways. Most types of wood are also inherently susceptible to accelerated damage from exposure to ultraviolet rays. Ultraviolet rays are present and typical sunlight and therefore can also accelerate the deterioration and decomposition of wood materials. Wood is still a very good building material though, it’s just not good for all applications.
Even though it has these inherent weaknesses, it’s very strong for its weight. It’s all about its weight to strength ratio. It has a degree of compressive resistance and more importantly it has relatively high tensile strength resistance.
The picture below shows a relatively typical type of front porch. You’d find front porches like this at many row homes here in Washington DC. Particularly with certain styles of architecture like Wardmans, they almost always had a very similar front porch. There are exceptions and there are some types of rowhome styles that almost never had from porches. In fact, a very common alternative to a front porch is an uncovered cast iron stairway. Close to the capital, for example, there are many homes that are built with just a tall stairway.
Some people explain that in some cases, the streets were raised many decades ago, roughly 100 years ago, to allow for increased slope or grade at the underground drainage pipes. In those cases, the main entry would have been shifted from the English basement to the middle level of the home. That middle essentially became the ground level, but it required a stairway to access it from the street level.
One of the notable details about this particular front facade is that the layout is pretty wide. Essentially, the front facade spans from the property line on one side to the property line on the other side, for the majority of typical row home layouts. This is totally different for end lots and corner lots because they have a different shape, size and re generally longer down the sides of the buildings.
We’ve talked about this particular topic here on our website before. This particular rowhome has a typical layout with demising walls at the property line, The demising walls are normally split between one building and the neighbor. This is particularly true and applicable for side by side rowhome layouts here in Washington DC. We definitely heard a variety of different realtors giving a range of conflicting information, but it makes perfect sense to us that for most cases, the demising wall happens to be split. The property line would be roughly in the middle of that demising wall, for layouts like this.
In the picture below, you can see a close-up of some of the damage and deterioration happening at the underside of the front porch roof. As we discussed, unlike the majority of the rest of the building, which is built with bricks, this particular front porch is mainly built with wood framing materials. Since fascia board and soffits are particularly susceptible to moisture, as they deteriorate they need to be replaced multiple times within a typical lifespan of a row home..,̣
In a second part of this same series, in an upcoming week, we will look closer at some of the damage and into the area above the rotted and damaged wood.
Use a contractor who understands and cares about doing things right. Always, feel free to reach out to us here at Dupont Decks and Patios. We are happy to help with almost all steps of the deck building and design process. A backyard and outdoor space should make a significant, positive impact on both quality of life and home value. We can help with more than just decks, we also build patios, pergolas, ramadas, awnings, gazebos, arbors, and privacy fences.
Let us know about your ideas and talk to us if you have questions about possibilities. We are happy to participate in improving your outdoor space and quality of life! You can call us at (202) 774-9128. You can find us online and you can email us there as well at https://dupontdeckspatiosdc.com/contact-us
