Remodel Cladding ideas anyone?

Hope this picture loads right...this it the dwelling I had posted previously needing design assistance.

First- Removal of all cedar siding and roofing a must. Exterior finish idea- Stucco was our first option...Next idea was to brick...next idea was to ACM with a silver metallic finish lots of new floor to ceiling glazing. Stucco is the only one that has been abandoned.

We desire to raise the severe angular roof pitches and flat roof it. Volumize and level out the half cathedrals inside to 18 foot heights. End result the structure should appear box like, metal finishes, large glazing, white and stainless accents. Stone walls to be raw concrete with stainless brads. Simple, minimal, smooth lines.

Now how to I get there in an economical fashion?

ANY, I mean ANY ideas are most appreciated. Thanks in advance for any input.

Bunnie

Bunnie - gulp! Think twice. That looks like a real period piece you have there. Look before you jump, and possibly screw up a nice house.

Wow. I agree with Greg. Sans cedar shakes, I think that house would look amazing. People pay big dollar to get an elevation like that.

I agree as well. You might do well to just remove the cedar siding and find a smoother cleaner treatment, as you say. I bet you will find it cleans it up a lot and you will not have to really tear into it.

I like the design as well.

So what's a good choice to re-side it? Hardiplank perhaps?

I like the cedar shakes - its a classic look for this era modern house, but they also wear out and look a mess as they start to go. I'd guess the house is looking a bit shaggy. The nice thing about this style is that the rough texture of the cladding contrasts with the strong geometry of the house. I would lean towards something that has a similar relationship.

There are several houses with this geometry in far north Dallas and they all have a white stucco exterior. I think it is a nice look that plays up the geometry of the house. This house reminds me of either the Sea Ranch condos or the Gwathmey Residence and Studio, both of which have a vertical wood siding either stained or weathered to grey.

I quite like the cedar shakes as well. It seems like anything less natural would leave the building looking rather austere. To get more of that modern feel you're looking for, what about keeping or replacing the cedar shakes, and adding a metal roof?

take a look at this jaffe house in the article, imo, your house looks like
it's perfect vintage (a really good one to boot) - just reconsider before
you tear into it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/11/garden/11jaffe.html

btw - just from your photo there are a couple of thoughts that strike me if you
must go down the path of changing the spirit of the house...but read the article
and see the multimedia piece first - best to your project.

The slatted rainscreen jives well with the shingles - I did not expect that. That may make a nice mix for recladding.

Thanks to all of you and your participation. It is refreshing to have such a captive supportive audience for the style of our new home! The style in Tulsa is French Normandy...EVERYWHERE! We know we have a jewel...just a very few appreciate it as you do!

We do appreciate the modern structural lines but abhore the distressed worn out shingles. You were right Lavardena, it is a bit shaggy-almost furry. You see they are somewhat organic now...when it rains they come alive! Green thick living abounds on the roof, and this green stuff washes down the walls. So we have this house that should be a shade of cedar...but with age is mostly grey...and after a rain a beautiful fertile green hue abounds. Come on gang...give me permission to redress this thing!

I am attempting to load two more photos...one more chance to put your collective creative minds to work...I desperately need your input. Keep in mind that this house sits on the last 3 acre parcel in a sea of these French Chateau monsters...it will not live past a resale. Demolishment will be its fate as square footage is only 3000. These monsters are 5-8000 sq ft.

NextModernFacilities-thanks for the article. It did open our eyes to the respect this design should garner. Very very similar.

If I promise to keep the roof lines...can I reclad it? Come on gang...are you up for one more round?

Attempt at adding another photo:

Here is one more, a refreshed summer shot. Most of the ground shagginess has been removed. There had not been a recent rain when these last two photos were taken...had there been, the house would be as green as the sod!

Thanks again to all of you!

You have to see if you can find out who the architect was and if there is any pedigree!

It sounds like you have a lot of moss growing on the shingles which also is not unusual. Is the roof still water tight? I mean the cedar roof shingles are not leaking, are they?

I understand your dismay at the worn look of the cladding. They are probably split shakes which have a much more uneven and textured appearance than sawn shingles. All those irregularities promote the weathering. But the fade from cedar to grey is the natural progression with this stuff. You can try to seal it or spray it with preservative but its a loosing battle. But it does sound like you would feel differently about it if the shingles looked fresh and new.

Here is a suggestion. If the cladding is still sound, meaning it is not leaking and causing damage then try an experiment with rejuvenating the shingles. Pick an area of the house that you have good access too, but not right on the front face. Rent yourself a professional power-washer for a weekend and try cleaning off a section of your wall. Do it carefully, increasing pressure a little at a time, letting sections dry out so you can see what you took away at different pressure settings - make notes. Make sure you don't jet a ton of water behind the siding, spray down ward so the momentum is in favor of the water running off. Split shakes get fairly soft on the surface when they are weathered and you can easily bring them back to fresh wood grain with a power wash.

If you like what you get you can get a pro to come back and do the whole house. I think the roof can be done as well, but being careful here is even more important - you can pump gallons of water under your shingles in a blink. But getting all of those growys off your shingles will also stop the soiling green run-off. A cedar shingle roof can last for 50-100 years. It may be worth giving it a second chance.

OK, I think what I dislike is that there's just too much texture.
I think you'd see a drastic improvement just with adding some textural contrast...i.e. something smooth and visually quiet. I notice now that the roof is shakes as well..IMO, it's just too much of one thing. If the architectural purists say the shake cladding should say, I'd argue for a metal roof and maybe selectively changing out some of the shake siding for something smooth that highlights those darker spots. Right now it seems like most of those great nooks and crannies are getting lost.

Anyway, that is one fabulous house.

Combining some of the above ideas:

1) Standing-seam metal roof. Corrugated could also work, but might give your neighbors heart attacks.

2) White or pastel stucco for wall surfaces that are flush with the outside envelope of the house.

3) Cedar shiplap siding for wall surfaces that are inset.

-Steve

Our architect r-e-a-l-l-y wanted us to do the cedar shakes with the metal roof. We opted for other materials, but I found this image when I was researching shingles:

http://www.watkinsawmills.com/history.htm

If you scroll down to 'CEDAR HANDSPLIT SHAKES' there's a pretty cool house. It was the only 'modern' residential architecture I could find with this specific exterior treatment.

Jennifer

Just looked through the book Modern American Houses (collection of houses that made Architectural Record's annual residential issue over the last 50 years). There are several examples of houses that are of the same style as CasaBlanca's house. Here are the treatments I noted: Several have shakes on the exterior with asphalt shingles for the roof. A couple have shakes on the roof with vertical wood siding. One had white stucco on the exterior with a standing seam metal roof and one had vertical wood siding with a corrugated metal roof. All the houses were built from 1967-1977. On my way to wrk today I saw a building with a similar style and it was done in a very light grey stucco with a bright blue standing seam roof. Very sharp, but I am not sure it would compliment your landscaping so well.