Please help me decide...keep mud room side door or replace with window

9 years ago

Please help.
Dream home in Nebraska is in framing stage and they need to know if I'm keeping mud room door or not.
I designed house with this door as my husband, son and I continually go outside to water plants, garden, play with neighbor kids, get mail, sledding or shoveling etc. Since all of our shoes and current jackets and coats are in current laundry room/mud room we use vehicle garage doors to exit and keep open until we come back in. Not ideal in summer with wasps constantly entering and in fall or winter with leaves and snow blowing in.
This new house has a separate mudroom door with top window to allow western sunlight in. I saw photo below and it inspired my plans and I fell in love with idea of access to outdoors.
Just found out we have need of a much larger retaining wall costing thousands more. Husband knows I want door and agreed to keep if I choose. My thoughts wandered yesterday to guests arriving, pizza delivery etc. will they attempt to use this handy side door!?!? I want all of. Y guests to use front door and this side door only for my family. There will be constrained chaos with all of shoes, boots, coats, sporting equipment, handbags, hats etc. I don't want guests trying to use this door. My driveway is long...75 feet to garage or front door from curb. Will this encourage guests to use casual entrance?
Please advise. Need to decide if keeping door or returning door to lumber company with hefty restocking fee and ordering a big window for this room. Will I use this door enough to warrant expense, or will I regret people knocking at this door?

Opinions, advice or experience much much appreciated!
Photo attached of inspiration mudroom plus drawing of side of house.
Thank you in advance!
Decision needed:)
Kind regards,
Sara

Featured Answer

User

8 years ago

I would definitely keep the door. You will love the added convenience. According to your plans, the door is well beyond your garages. Most people will drive into the driveway but usually stop when they come to where the house begins (they wouldn’t normally venture onto your actual driveway pad, but park closer to where acess to the front door is easiest). In my view, from the garages back feels like a private family area.

I think that having a properly placed and inviting walkway up to your front door will help pull people in that direction. Making the path nice and wide where it meets the driveway will help steer people in the right direction.

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Comments (6)

Sara Johnson Lipka
Original Author
9 years ago
thegriers
8 years ago
Where is this door located as opposed to the front door? When guests drive up will they be parking near that door or will the front entrance be obvious and close by with a walkway? I had this same problem myself before. The way the house was turned you drove up to the end of the house where garage doors were and it was at an angle so what they saw first was actually the back of the house and they always came in from our deck. After years of it we just screened in the pretty front porch like it was the back.
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swrite
8 years ago
Yes, delivery people, repairmen & guests will try to use that door instead of the front door if it’s visible from the driveway. I’ve seen dilemmas on here, too, with people asking how to remedy it. For this reason after we bought our house & had to replace the fence, I had the fence moved up so that the door was behind it. Still doesn’t stop repair guys or other workers from ringing the bell at that door even though I answered their initial call at the front door & never said to come to that side door or use it. It’s very annoying. Not that you would, but on that note don’t put a freaking doorbell on it like the previous owners of our house did. I agree though you need some kind of access to the outside that’s not only through the garage.
May Bees
5 years ago
Oh yes keep it.

You could put a window in the door.

Solar gain in winter when taking off out door wear sounds good.

I would not hesitate to put a sign on it and also signal through the window or use a speaker attached there that everyone is to come in through the main front entrance though I don’t understand the formality and hesitation around work people??

Also you could put a arbor or an out door divider so door is hidden or a bush to hide the entrance….

Sounds like it will be a lovely home
wynterwynd
5 years ago
Keep the door, you won’t regret it. Lots of good suggestions on how to direct foot traffic above. We placed a ‘locker’ for package delivery near our service door. And, you can have the door areas wired now for video/audio cameras—you won’t regret that, either.