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Should I use horizontal or vertical skirting on this cottage?

Currently renovating this riverside cottage and want to hide the underside with skirting. Thought horizontal would look best, but want others opinions as well - thinking about the streetscape. The skirting will be boards. So, would vertical or horizontal look best?

I've taken photos including my neighbours' houses for perspective. One is art Deco flats, the other a traditional Queenslander being renovated. The skirting will be painted Dulux Vintage Beige like the walls. Any other comments welcome. Thank you.

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Comments

JacobZ

Hi @wealth42,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you with us.

It really depends on your preferences.

Horizontal skirting boards can visually ground the building and give a clean, contemporary look. They tend to blend well with weatherboards, especially when painted the same colour, but they can accentuate any unevenness in the ground.

Vertical skirting may be more appropriate as it helps disguise uneven ground levels. They also enhance verticality, making the home appear taller and more traditional, which could better match neighbouring properties like the renovated Queenslander.

Personally, I would choose vertical skirting, but that is just my preference.

Allow me to tag @Dave-1, @AlanM52, @Herrenovacation and @EleventhCoastal to see what they think.

Let me know what you think and if you have further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Jacob

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/55479#Comment_55479

Thank you JacobZ. I appreciate your detailed reply. I actually like both vertical and horizontal, but I want my choice to be the best look for this cottage and the streetscape - I guess that's why I'm torn. If I preferred one over the other, my choice would be easy : )

JacobZ

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/89993#Comment_89993

Honestly, I don't think either option clashes with the surrounding homes or yours in a significant enough way to rule it out.

Though, if it were my place @wealth42, I would use vertical battens. I just think adding more horizontal elements when you already have a weatherboard facade could make them blend into one another, especially if you are painting it the same colour.

By using vertical slats, the change of direction in materials would add interest to the facade without making it look too busy.

I am probably a bit biased, though, having grown up in Brisbane, where I saw a whole lot of old Queenslanders with vertical skirting to conceal their stumps.

I'm sure the others that I have tagged have opinions that they will add shortly.

Jacob

Dave-1

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/89993#Comment_89993

Good afternoon @wealth42

🙂 Well I will throw a spanner into the works and say horizontal would be my preference. Mainly because the boards on the walls are horizontal in the first place. It will also match the style of the cottage 🙂

Dave

AlanM52

Hi @wealth42,

That's a lovely cottage... I mean lovely riverside cottage.

I would do the complementary thing and go vertical.

Cheers

EricL

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/55485#Comment_55485

Hello @wealth42

Being from Brisbane most of the houses I have seen have them vertical. I will place my vote to vertical to give it a nice contrast.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/110836#Comment_110836

Thanks, Dave - 1. That was my instinct as well, plus I thought it might make the cottage look somewhat bigger, to sit more comfortably amongst the neighbours - sizewise. Having said that, vertical is more the era of the cottage (it is in Qld), whilst horizontal is more modern, I think. Down the track, I will have a fence and gate and at this point, I think it will be vertical slats. I have seen examples of vertical fence, horizontal skirting. Thank you greatly for your input. : )

Herrenovacation

@wealth42 Firstly what a beautiful cottage you have.

I think both would look nice. If it was my place I would lean towards vertical as well but use much smaller boards / slats of timber similar to what i have in the picture shared.

If horizontal id keep it the same as the current weather boards.

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/55488#Comment_55488

Hello Herrenovacation. Thank you for your response, and the picture helped a lot, because from the verandah down in your picture - i.e. the steps, railings etc is exactly how I had planned to change the front, and how it would look if I did, so that was good info. I'm also considering canopy awnings - as seen in your picture - over the windows and front door, so that was handy too. I see what you are saying about the thinner slats, and I agree. Time for some reconsideration. Thank you for your help.

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/55485#Comment_55485

Thank you, AlanM52. Vertical seems to be the popular choice, and it would look nice too. : )

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/89996#Comment_89996

Hello EricL. Trying to decide on the skirting, I have seen many photos of gorgeous homes in Brisbane, and I agree most of them are vertical. : )

EleventhCoastal

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/122798#Comment_122798

Hi there,

I have to agree I love the idea of Vertical here, it will not only draw your eye up but also give your stunning little cottage a sense of height in between the two taller structures, I think having vertical slats on your gate and fence would really compliment it all, my vote is on vertical with this one.

Good Luck with the decision

Cheers

Kirst

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/130612#Comment_130612

Thank you, Kirsty P. Looking at all your replies, vertical has it. I do want to look my best in between my 2 grand neighbours : ) Now I need to do some fancy figgering on materials, and maybe find somewhere in the workshop that shows how to instal vertical skirting. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed! Greatly appreciated.

EricL

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/135429#Comment_135429

Hello @wealth42

Please allow me to direct you towards this discussion - Ironbark vertical batten fence by @DIY4Knuckleheds. I understand that it is a fencing project, but I believe this installation is applicable to your skirting project. The height and post distnaces acan be adjusted and the materials to be used does not have to be exactly the same. But it is an excellent way to build your vertical skirting under your house.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

DIY4Knuckleheds

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/138665#Comment_138665

Hi wealth42...I would go for vertical slats as opposed to the horizontal option. I think the horizontal would make the house look blocky. Vertical slats underneath the house will break up the look of the house and it would also mordernise it to a certain degree. Bilding the front fence with vertical slats oiled also tie the project together. Good luck with it. Cheers 👍

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/138665#Comment_138665

Thank you, Eric : )

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/138665#Comment_138665

Hello EricL. Thank you. I had a look at this project - very handy ... and also because I will be building a front fence down the track. One question that occurred to me - because my project is vertical slatting under a house, do I cover the stumps or build between them? (Apologies if this should be a separate post)

JacobZ

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/140817#Comment_140817

Hi @wealth42,

I think covering them would look better, but it really depends on how the stumps line up with the weatherboards. If the battens protrude past the weatherboards, it would look a bit odd, and you would run into issues with water pooling on the top of the timber.

To run the battens over the stumps, you would need to have room to run both horizontal rails and your vertical battens in front of the stumps. If you had around 100mm of space from the front of the stumps to the weatherboards, you could use 90 x 45mm H3 Framing and then 42x42 battens over that framing.

If you didn't have any space from the face of the stumps to the face of the weatherboards, then setting the structure inside the stumps would work better.

Let me know what you think.

Jacob

wealth42

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/142406#Comment_142406

Thank you, JacobZ. Yes, I will have enough room to cover the stumps - you are right - it will look better. Not only does the house overlap the stumps, but there is also a metal continuous strip, rolled over, which runs around the house ... you can just see it in my pics with the ladder ... and it sticks out even further from the house. I'm not sure if it is an old fashioned type of ant capping (?) but the slats will not be touching it. Cheers.

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