old house guy logo
Try Our Old House Guy Virtual House Painting Service. See a photo of your house in numerous historic paint colors.
Learn More

Yankee Gutters, K-Style Gutters, Built-in or Box Gutters

by 56 Comments

What Type of Gutters Should I Use for a Historic Home? We all know or should know that gutters are a necessary feature on a house. Gutters divert water away from the house to prevent damage to your home and foundation. While many houses may not have originally had gutters, they are still recommended to [...]

The Metal Porch Roof

by 21 Comments

Do you have a metal porch roof or asphalt? Is your porch roof the original design? You may have a very authentic vintage home but there is a good chance that your porch roof has been not only replaced but changed over the years. What looks original may not be. Some porch roofs were not [...]

Roof Flashing – What You Need to Know

by 29 Comments

Roof flashing is a very important part of a house. When working on paint colors, I have noticed that houses with newer roofs seem to have more flashing than houses with older roofing. Roof flashing is now more noticeable than it used to be and that's not good. I’m sure there are very good reasons [...]

Resources

Historic Restoration Carpenters - Window Restorers - Consultants - ETC. by state. Historic Archived Catalogs & Brochures from 1794 to 1961 Books - Important Websites - Other Resources

Death of a Cottage

by 45 Comments

The cottage. A Bungalow, a Cape Cod, just any modest cosy dwelling in a traditional design. After house shopping for a long time you finally find the house of your dreams. It's the cutest cottage you have ever seen. Just like something out of a story book. At one time there were many cottages like this. [...]