Haha 1985. Amazing. I remember those years. My parents jumped on the vinyl train in the 90’s

and paint downspout same color tone as brick to reduce visibility.

Did you finish painting? Would love to see it.

@hellogardener no, haven't painted it. i decided i'm going to replace the vinyl siding with vertical hardy board and paint it the Urbane Bronze. I'll post when it's finished :)

@hallettco so the bottom half is SW Oilcloth. pretty sure it is the color you picked on my previous photo with all diff colors. i think I will go with this or with Urbane Bronze. I have a question re the siding - a previous commenter suggested i do NOT do board and batten, just vertical. not quite sure what that is, and do you have an opinion on that?

V groove tongue and groove pine or t111 plywood were both commonly used in this application. Since you have white vinyl windows your trim needs to be white. The urbane bronze would be too much contrast. This color looks good.

if i do want to use urbane bronze, what would you suggest for the windows? @HALLETT & Co. I really appreciate and trust your advice!

You have white vinyl windows?

Just one little vote here for Anderson Erickson 'dark bronze" exterior windows with Sherwin Williams Urbane Bronze paint on the siding. The dark chocolate bronze windows warm up the grey of Urbane Bronze. I think white windows look unfinished on a modern dark grey home body. Some examples in this article: https://www.brickandbatten.com/sherwin-williams-urbane-bronze/

@HALLETT & Co. yes, white vinyl windows @kl232 thank you!

I am going to replace the siding with vertical hardie board and change the windows to casement. I thought I had decided on Urbane Bronze but I'm going back to @HALLETT & Co. original suggestion of just making everything white. If i go with the Urbane Bronze then I would need to have dark windows and frames, if that is even possible. @kl23 do you have any pictures of the windows you suggested above?

@kl23 is this it?

@Dana Martin that looks like the dark bronze I had in mind to go with Urbane Bronze, but I don't vote for dark bronze windows with "white everything else"...just for the record.

@kl23 oh, I know! Either all white or all dark;)

With your style house, yes. My opinion. Don't let kill your dream though.

@Dana Martin I think the key is dark windows for your era of house. The windows are more important to restore back to their dark color. If you reeeeeeeealy want light colored siding, after that, do get vertical. And see how light you can go without going all the way to white. I'd try shades of grey. Light grey and chocolate are awesome together. Just look at silver-wrapped Hershey's Kisses, partly unwrapped. And grey goes well with orange brick. Does that sound like a reasonable compromise?

If it were me, I would be using a visualizer to try out different shades I like. Hardie Board has one. I used PowerPoint for my own home.

@kl23 I have such a hard time picturing it along with a hard time with decisions

@Dana Martin can you ask your contractor or the sales person to show you color options on a visualizer? You aren't alone in having trouble visualizing. Few people have that gift, especially in three dimensions. That's why those electronic helpers are so popular.

I am struggling today to post pictures. I don't know if this will work. It is supposed to be a picture of your house with grey siding and bronze windows. Then you can tell me if you like lighter siding or more blue or what.

@kl23 no, didn't work :( and i just realized that if i do dark windows then i'd need to replace all of them ($). if i do a light siding with white trim windows, i'd only replace the 4 front to casement and leave the others (they all are white vinyl currently)

Another image I posted earlier eventually showed up. I'll hope for the best. I faced the same question at one point. I decided to invest in windows and use less expensive siding. It looks good but won't last as long as Hardie Board. But it didn't cost much and can be replaced without much fuss someday. I found out Hardy Board needs to be painted periodically. I didn't want that.

@Dana Martin it's showing now. 😁

@kl23 oh wow - thank you SO MUCH! looks so much better than the viewers i have tried using. the dark color i want to use is SW Urbane Bronze. if i go light/gray, possibly SW Roycroft Mist. What siding did you end up using? Above, Hallett & co sent a pic of vertical siding that is NOT board and batten but as far as i can figure out, the only vertical Hardie siding IS board and batten.

also, if i use urbane bronze, what about making it all the same color with the windows, if that is possible. like this :

Swannanoa Residence · More Info

I'm glad you liked my attempt. I used PowerPoint and put individual rectangles in to simulate boards. Do you want the color lighter? Darker? Redder? Bluer? Greener? I like the way this color picks up some grey bricks.

I can't see your picture right now but will keep checking. I am starting to think this is a Houzz problem this weekend, not a me problem.

maybe darker @kl23 Is it possible to have windows without trim or trim the same color as the paint color? like have the windows be flush with the siding

If you get new windows in a bronze color, make sure the trim is thinner than what you have now. And no grids, if possible. Then your idea to use Urbane Bronze- or something similar - will look more MCM, which is the era I think your house belongs to.

It’s adorable, and what you’re planning will be a big improvement.

@RedRyder thank you! What are grids? I'm hoping to get casement windows

@Dana Martin as requested, a rendition in windows to match the siding.

@Dana Martin the way to get the thinner window casing mentioned by @Red Ryder is to get full replacement windows. A lot of window sales people sell what they call replacement windows. They are so much less expensive that most people can't resist. But they are just installing a window inside your window. That makes the casing thick and gives you less glass area. It also leaves you with an old casing and an old seal between your interior and exterior. Getting full replacement windows is going to be more expensive but worth it. Try just getting them for one area at a time. Get a pair for the front of your house, for example. https://www.andersenwindows.com/windows-and-doors/windows/casement-windows/400-series-casement-window/#design

dark grey with a divided casement windows in color to match the siding

thank you!!! now i am seeing what i want. everything in the pic you sent with the divided casement windows but with the bronze trim and narrower, as you explained above. so appreciate all this help!!@kl23 I'm also wondering if I don't bother with casement, how much difference that will make in the look (since it will save me some money on the windows)

So, are you asking me to make one with casement windows in dark bronze and with the dark grey siding?

This is a good example of a casement window without grids/muntins. In bronze.

@kl23 yes, that would be great :)))

i just talked to my contractor. the Florida code for casement windows means that the the trim + frame width is about 3." Or, i could do fixed windows which would add a little more glass (a little less trim, i assume). I don't open those front windows so I'm thinking picture windows might be fine. he seems to think the casement with the trim will look great.

Also, is it the window frame that I want in the dark bronze (as opposed to the white)? Not just the dark trim and white frame, correct?

Another suggestion someone gave me is to replace from the bottom of the current windows to the roof line with all glass (a much bigger undertaking, i realize). any thoughts on that? @kl23 @RedRyder

I think you'll like the casement you can open. Fresh air is nice. I think if you get a full window, you'll like it better than the replacement (insert).

The window and frame will both be dark on the outside

The interior can be white if you want.

what about the fascia and soffitt colors?? @kl23

how bad does this look with leaving the white windows on the side of the house? too expensive to change all the windows :( and that side of the house is not very visible with messy plants preventing anyone walking through there and no need to walk through that way, anyway due to fence in the back.

Get some poster board and paint it the bronze color you’re considering. Tape it to the house and leave it for a few days.

If you still like it, that’s your color. Urbane Bronze by SW is a great color, but check it against your brick. It is a grayish-brown (or brownish-gray) and is rather fabulous. It might work with your brick.

@Dana Martin the soffit and fascia also should be dark. Otherwise they look unfinished. You'll love them dark. Regarding the windows on the side, they also should be dark. If you can't afford to replace them now, you can wait, but keep moving forward but by bit.

What do you think about 2lite sliders vs casement windows? @kl23 @RedRyder

And paint the ceiling of the carport dark, too? I e., everything shd be dark

There are some paints that are supposedly suitable for painting vinyl. So if you can’t swing total replacement for your windows, painting the side windows could get you through till you can replace them.

I like whatever windows you have since replacement windows are expensive. Try the painting suggestions and see how it looks. (And post a photo!)

@Dana Martin easy question first... Yes, paint the ceiling of the carport the same dark color as the other trim.

Window choice, as I recall, the windows need replacing, not just because of color, but because they leak or something like that, right? I looked on-line for advice for you about choosing sliders vs casement. Both are perfectly acceptable for your style of house. Apparently, casement offers greater energy efficiency because they seal tighter when shut; and they give better ventilation when open. Plus they give the cleanest view to the outside because the sliders overlap each other when open. So, if you planted a lovely flowering tree in front, you'd get the best view of it in spring, as an example. Cleaning the outside of a casement window from the inside can require long arms, so you may have to clean them from the outside, so consider that in your landscaping. Probably good that you removed the row of bushes there. The casement style can literally be a pain if above a patio. But I don't think you are considering a patio in front of them, are you? A casement window has a little crank inside I remember being awkward to clean. Either one will have a single vertical bar in the center of your window space, but will be far less noticable with a dark color instead of white.

The biggest difference is function, including cleaning. Can you go to a window store/dealer and ask to see and work with an example of both? I just read the sliders may be less expensive and have lower installation costs than the casement windows. I know cost is a factor. I also think they are perfectly compatible with each other. You could get casement windows where you can imagine opening them a lot for ventilation, and sliders where you think you will only rarely open them, or where you think cleaning from the outside would be difficult.

@kl23 there are no problems with the current windows. Just the color. That's why having such a hard time with the window decision/expense.

The paint color in the pic below looks a little bluer than it actually is. (Couldn't reach the top to paint that's why still the light color;)

Look into paints for your vinyl windows.

Love the new color so far.

Sorry to mis-remember, @Dana Martin

I agree with @Red Ryder regarding painting the windows then.