During the summer months we spend lots of time on the porch watching the action on the harbor,
enjoying birds at the feeder
or sharing tini time with family or friends.
Maintaining our special place, however, got to be a real challenge as Maine winters are hard on exterior finishes. Finally, the porch with its rotten boards and never ending demand for paint got the best of us, and we decided to replace it with a synthetic material made by Azek. The hard part was the hubby and me agreeing on color and composition!
That done so began a project that proved to be a major undertaking. Piece by piece the old came out
under the watchful eye of Willow who accompanied her boss to work every day. She wasn’t much help when it came to the installation, but she was perfectly behaved.
The crew worked 12 hour days, and the hubby couldn’t resist getting involved. He proved to be an able assistant. That definitely gives him some ownership of the project as well as a few aches and pains.
In case you are thinking this was an easy job, think again. Every piece that went in had to be carefully measured and cut as nothing of the original porch was perfect.
When all was said and done, however, the porch is perfect and will be much appreciated when next spring no repairs will be required.
Now the birdhouses are back in place,
new plant stands replace a peeling bench and are perfect for a garden vignette.
Best of all, the porch is again ready for tini time! Cheers!
i so appreciate your visit and the comments you leave behind
Lulu's Musings 
Hope you enjoy your porch this fall as long as you can! Yes, fall is lurking around the corner, if not already there!
Sunset is coming earlier and the early evenings are cool, but we still enjoy porch time as the sun sets over the water.
I love your blog. I apologize for being a lurker and not commenting more. How perfect your renovated porch turned out. We used Azec for all the trim when we added a second story to our house near Rockland. We are on the water too and I knew I could not deal with the constant repainting and maintenance of wood. Now I want to get rid of the falling apart wicker furniture on our deck. I’m looking at chairs like yours. Are the chairs comfortable enough without seat cushions, cause I’m sick of putting away and hauling out cushions too, lol! Love it here so much.
Owning a home is pretty much a full time, round the year, job and every project makes you wonder why you waited so long, but your wonderful summer porch space makes it all worth it…just lovely and inviting.
You got one thing right as we are wondering why we were so slow in doing this job!
Looks amazing and I agree, it’s a lot of work and a huge investment but so worth it!! Someday we will do this to our decks as well!! Tina
The ongoing maintenance finally did us in!
What a beautiful way to simplify your porch maintenance! I hope you have many years of enjoyment on your new porch material! 🙂
We have Trex decking on porch, pier and pool dock, and just love it! No more splinters in bare feet, plus it’s softer to walk on! Such a clean look too, I know you’re going to love it! That guy in half a suit in the boat is hilarious!!
Jenna
The porch came out fantastic. Our Maine winters are hard on decks. Every spring I lose a weekend to re-staining our deck. I love our deck but low maintenance would be nice too! I hope you enjoy many relaxed evenings sitting on your porch.
We are happy knowing we are relieved of one winter concern!
The secret to outliving that porch is ‘tini time’!!
Cheers to you and the new porch! Looks great!
Well my hubby is in the middle of a project replacing 2 decks with this new product. He said that once a screw goes in you can’t take it out so he is being real careful with the installation. It’s suppose to last for 25 years so it’s a good choice. Hubby can’t do 12 hour days but it will get done before a family wedding is planned at this home. The color you picked is very nice. About the man rowing with a suit coat and tie???
There’s a real good chance the porch will outlast us!
It’s so funny to me how husbands feel the need to just jump right in there with the workmen. It’s cute, actually! The porch turned out GREAT!!!!!!! We had ours redone with a composite material that has stood up pretty well to the punishing heat and humidity of a Kansas City summers as well as the ice and snow. I’d say it’s “tini time” for us all! 🍸🍸🍸
Enjoy your weekend!
I’m laughing out loud at your comment. Getting involved and making something their own is a guy thing!
Your porch looks great! Great job I hope you got a discount for your husbands help!
I’m loving your bird houses and the one with the shells gave me an idea but don’t hold your breath because I am not a DIY person!But it is so cute.
Love your assortment of planters. Enjoy your porch time!
Hubby’s help just made things go a little faster and he enjoyed being an assistant.
What a major undertaking that must have been! It looks wonderful though! I have such fond memories of time spent there. Enjoy every minute of it!!! Hugs!
More time is waiting.
Life on the porch, and a new one too, and in Maine – what bliss, Lulu.
Bliss indeed. Maine is my happy place.
We loved it when we visited a few years ago. I have a very nice cousin in Richmond.
Great bird feeder, what an awesome garden you must have!
Finally a feeder that foiled the chipmunks! Hope you are enjoying your adventure.
Thank you so much lulu. I hope your amazing garden continues to thrive as well as it seems to be doing now 😉👍🏻
Linda, the porch looks fabulous and I know how good it feels to get a project completed. The guy with the tie, sport coat, and shorts is too funny! Enjoy time on your porch!
I’m enjoying the porch this morning with a soft breeze blowing and a very comfortable temperature.
Love the views from your deck…the sport-coated row boat guy is a hoot…the new deck looks wonderful…enjoy!
You never know what you’re going to see on the harbor!
I could not agree with Barb Bausch more!! Cheers!
Azek is a great product. We use it as the top rail in our desk railings. It doesn’t warp, twist or cup. We have way too much deck to use it for flooring at $100 a board tho.
Pricey, yes, but so was the repairing and painting every year.
Oh, Linda, the new porch looks fabulous. All the “Linda additions” make it all the more beautiful and the views ready to enjoy.
We’re delighted at the way it turned out and P is very excited not to have to do any more repairs. At least that’s what he’s hoping.