Building a Front Porch

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Most homeowners dream of relaxing on their front porch and watching the world go by. Tina and Brett Mealer had the same dream, so they employed a contractor to transform their ho-hum, bare basics porch into a showpiece.

"We had some ugly wooden posts holding up the porch overhang, and the kids kept jumping off the porch area," says Tina Mealer, a resident of Wauseon, Ohio. "We wanted to create more of an enclosure that we could all share together plus add ‘curb appeal' to our home."

The Mealers got their dream porch when local contractor Steve Roth installed Fypon PVC Column Wraps to surround the wooden posts and added Fypon balustrade systems to enclose the entire porch area. Made of synthetic materials, the low-maintenance porch pieces resist warping, all forms of insects, decay and rot.

"The column wraps went up easily," says Roth. "Each one comes in a kit and includes a semi-assembled, two-piece wrap with the cap, base, installation cleats and caulk adhesive. The external cleats make installation a breeze. I had each column wrap up in under 15 minutes."

After installing the three PVC Column Wraps, Roth moved on to the structural balustrade system. The Mealers selected an Ashley design that connected to the column wraps and enclosed the entire front porch.

Made of non-corrosive parts with fasteners that are hidden to provide clean, classic looks, the Fypon balustrade system features reinforced baluster rails, newels and porch posts. "The rail system went in as effortlessly as the column wraps," says Roth. It's impressive that these pieces connect together so well and each piece is so uniform. For the Mealers, the best news of all is that maintenance over the years will be simple. With this porch system, they really can enjoy their dream of relaxing and watching the world go by!"

For more information on porch components, visit www.fypon.com.