Planning a full exterior renovation in Downers Grove? Order of operations, bundling savings, and how one contractor handles your entire project in DuPage County.
If your Downers Grove home needs more than one exterior project, the order you do them in saves money and rework. This guide covers what to do first, what homes in different parts of Downers Grove tend to need, and how to plan it over one season or several years.
Downers Grove homes at a glance
Downers Grove is known for its Sears catalog homes, mail-order kit houses built in the 1910s and 1920s, and for the bungalows and four-squares near the BNSF line. It also has postwar ranches and a steady stream of new homes built on older lots.
The bungalows here have dormers, shallow porch roofs and deep eaves, all places where ice dams form. Ice barrier and proper attic insulation at the eaves do more than any shingle upgrade.
Owners of Downers Grove's Sears homes and bungalows usually want to keep the original look: wide casings, divided upper sashes, wood inside. We match the grille pattern and trim profile instead of fitting a generic white window.
On an older Downers Grove house the details carry the look: corner boards, frieze boards, the width of the lap. We match the original exposure so the house still looks its age.
What Downers Grove homes usually need first
Near downtown and the BNSF line, including the Sears catalog homes, start with water. Roof, flashing and gutters come first, then rotted trim and siding, then windows. Old houses hide damage under layers of later material, so set aside part of the budget for repairs that cannot be seen until the old siding or shingles come off.
In the ranches and split-levels built after the war, the bones are simple and sound. The usual priorities are a roof if it is due, then windows and the entry door for comfort, then siding and gutters to finish the look. These homes are small enough that doing two projects in one season is realistic.
On the blocks where older houses have been replaced with new construction, the scale changes the plan. A complex roof, a large window package and several doors are each major projects. Most owners take one per year, starting with whatever is letting water in, and keep products consistent across phases so the house still looks like one design.
Where we would start in Downers Grove
For a Downers Grove bungalow, the order is roof and ice protection at the eaves, then the wood: rotted sills, fascia and siding. Windows come next, in a style that respects the house. Owners of newer rebuilt homes have a different list, mostly maintenance items at the 15 to 20 year mark such as fogged glass and first-generation gutters.
The right order for exterior work
- Roof. Everything below it depends on it. Roofing crews also drop debris, so the roof goes before new siding and gutters.
- Windows and doors. They are flashed into the wall, and that flashing sits behind the siding.
- Siding and trim. Installed after the openings so it can be fitted and sealed around them.
- Gutters, soffit and fascia. Hung last, on the finished roof edge.
If you can only do one thing this year, do the one that is letting water in. Water damage grows; faded siding does not.
One season or several years
Doing everything at once has advantages: one crew schedule, one set of colors chosen together, flashing details done once and often a better price. Phasing spreads the cost. If you phase, tell your contractor the full plan up front so this year's work is built to accept next year's. We keep measurements and color selections on file for that reason, and 0% financing for 12 months is available on approved credit.
Choosing colors that work together
Start with what is not changing: brick, stone and, if it is staying, the roof. Pick siding to sit comfortably with those, then trim, then the front door as the accent. Our exterior designer lets you try combinations on three house styles before you commit.
Permits in Downers Grove
Permit rules are set by the Village of Downers Grove. We check what your project needs and pull the permit when one is required. See everything we do in Downers Grove, or read the guide for Wheaton.
Common questions
Call (331) 250-3726 or request a free consultation in Downers Grove.