Screening in your porch is one way to transform it to the local hot spot. Photo Credit: a∗dizzle

In wintertime we tend to hide away. We bundle up by the fireplace, consume hot beverages, and try not to venture outdoors unless we're well prepared. Summertime, on the other hand and as far away as it sometimes seems, is a different story. In summer we migrate outside, shed our parkas and ski caps for swim trunks and flip-flops. Our hibernating smiles and youthful vigor awaken and rise high with the summer sun.

In those warm summer months we can't get enough of the outdoors, our spare time spent sipping our cold beverage of choice on the front porch. Ah, the porch: it is like our throne during the long, sunny days and months. The porch is more than just some floorboards and a rocking chair. It is the outdoor extension of our home, our most prime summer real estate...or, at the least, it could be.

Here are five ways to transform your porch in preparation for yet another summer to be.

1. Screen it In. If there is a downside to summertime for most of us (entomologists and Gary Larson excluded) it is the bugs. Fortunately, some relatively minor alterations could convert the porch into a bug-free zone. Screened-in porches are more common on the backside of the house, so as not to block the architectural appeal of the street side. Screened-in porches also allow more versatility; you can hang out into the evening, have worry-free meals, and keep the critters out.
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Read the full article in the CalFinder Remodeling and Home Solar Power Magazine