What color to paint my house

From a purely physical viewpoint, light colours absorb and radiate heat slowly, dark colours do so quickly. If you want to help your house be cool in summer and warm in winter, and save on any energy costs involved in keeping it that way, you'll go for large wall and roof areas of light colours, and save the darker colours for trim and accent.

On the other hand, if conservation of energy and money is not a consideration (either you have so much insulation or so much money that you just don't care) then forget I spoke.

 

My tin roof is a lovely bluish-green, as is the trim all along the bottom.

I accidentally painted the front deck (which is covered, enclosed on one end and pretty large) a camphouse red (that's what I get for misreading the label on the sealant cans :no: )

However ... it looks pretty darned fab. Esp. against heavenly blue morning glories, wild poinsettias, pinks and (hopefully this year) yellow cone flowers. Among other things

I'll be residing here in the next year or so, and will probably choose a cream color to make the blue-green of the roof and trim and the red of the deck stand out even more.

 

I'm in the same boat - will need to paint my (wood siding) house soon and am trying to pick a color scheme.

It's a little house surrounded by woods and no other houses - I want something that will blend in so that pretty much leaves out the light colors.

I thought about light-beige for the body of the house - but it seems that every-other house around is that color. I want a color that vinyl siding doesn't come in.

I'm seriously considering a medium-beige. The roof is dark ('onyx') and the trim will be white - and maybe a brightly-colored front door (just for fun).

Give us a little more detail about your house - where is it located?? In the woods?? Country?? Other houses close by or not?? Do you want it to blend in or stand out??

 

Our is barn red. Been that way for 100 years I see no need to change it.

 

What color is the roof? That will need to be taken into consideration.

My home is a dark beige. I opted for a forrest green trim color that has a lot of bluish tone to it. One paint sample chip difference and it looked terrible against the siding. The one choosen looks good. I think this spring I will add some touchs of a Victorian dark red/burgandy to the green for another color layer.

When I reroof it will be a medium to dark brown to absorb the winter sun. I can stand the summer heat, but not the winter cold.

The window planter boxes will be ??? color.

 

I think light yellow with dark red trim is pretty, or a darker yellow with bright blue trim.

My house is log--no color scheme.

Stacy in NY

 

I think a nice sunny yellow with windsor green shutters would look nice with your warm colored flowers. Also, what kind of climate do you live in? What looks good on a house in Florida would look garish here in Ohio, but my white house with green shutters would look drab there. Even a nice clean white with colorful shutters would look great. Especially if you put up a trellis with some climbing roses or clematis in front of the house. If you painted the door the same color as the shutters, hung it with a colorful wreath, and flanked it with big terra cotta pots filled with red geraniums, it would look cheerful and inviting! Some of the big paint stores have those programs where they can scan a picture of the house and try out different colors too. Good luck! There are so many possibilities!

 

Barn red, huntr green shutters, cream and white trim and a green door (very boring- the door that is) that's my last house. I wanted lavender on the trim, but the house painter refused and my hubby concurred......... The one I am in now is white siding (big yucko) green tin roof (love it!) with a lavender front door. The porch floor is a light green, but will soon be a darker green. Franklin Co. red mud does not look good on the green. The red looked good against the trees, cozy in winter and absolutely gorgoeus in fall. I love a red house.

 

Pink & Green !

 

I vote for a pretty yellow for the main body of the house, medium green shutters and doors, and white white trim to offset the dark.

ALthough I do like a pretty white house with bright red shutters and doors--VERY eye catching, to me. And just about any color of plant looks good up against it (I have a 1950s ranch/starter and have azaleas, camellias, and the like as foundation plantings, so I know that they are green most of the year--which would also look good against the yellow walls....or white.....

HTH

Rachel

 

There was this house done the road that was done in a pale lemon yellow with dark hunter green shutters. Directly around the windows was a dark burgundy, the frame around the windows was done in a dark royal blue. The combination sounds strange, but it really worked on that house. The new owners painted it over, it just doesn't have the punch that the 4 color house did. It gave it alot of detail.

We live in a 1950's bungalow too. It was white & red. We painted it sand w/2 different dark brown trim colors (around the windows) & black shutters. It needs to be done again before we sell it..guess what color it's going to be? GRAY. hahahahaha There are huge houses being built in the old strawberry fields across the street POOOOOOO they are UGLY!!!...just trying to make it fit in for the new owners. Heck, I just want it to sell FAST so we can get the heck out of here.

I've heard good things about Sherwin Williams Duration & also Home Depot's The Gripper paints.

Best of luck! Take some before & afters for us!

KAT

 

There's one in my neighborhood that is a nice spring yellow with forest green trim and lavender shutters.

We call it the Easter Egg house....

I vote for teal, with white trim and a terra cotta door! ^_^

It's very easy to be creative when it's someone else's house!

Cait

 

Debbie, I've noticed that you put a tarp up for a roof. Also all of the effort that went into it in another thread.

A tarp in the sun and wind should be considered VERY temporary. Unless this is a heavy canvas tarp, it may be shredded before you even get your chicks.

I do wish you the best with it, but consider a permanent roofing material of some kind to take its place.

 

my house need painting too thats on the top of my to do list. Right now it is the color it was as a barn, RED with black trim. my color for the new job is Toudor brown with black trim.... everything. i mean if its wood, its getting shot with toudor brown. I want it to melt into the landscape. this RED is an eyesore.
Once its done i will link to before and after pics, please do the same with yours!
I'm investing in a better spray gun, no way am I gonna brush this ark again.

 

One of my neighbors had her house painted last summer, when I saw the painters starting the job, I thought, what is this woman thinking? Well after the job was done, you would have thought this is exactly what the architect had in mind when he designed the house. It just looked so natural for the bungalow to be a terra cotta red and trimed out in black. She even had the roof reshingled in black and the gutters painted black as well. Now I want my own home to be the same, but alas, she is too close and it would look like I would be copying her stlye.

Right now I have a coffee mocha tan and trimmed in white (boring).