It’s been a while since we’ve been able to do a large DIY project. Since the pandemic, my husband George and I had put our home projects mostly on hold. Although we’re seven months into the pandemic, things with our business and money situation still seem very uncertain. That said, we’ve also been in the house a lot more and the dirt we were tracking in was driving me nuts. So for my sanity, we decided to scrape together some money to rebuild our small back porch on a budget.
If you follow me on IG, you know we did recently build a chicken coop, which was a fairly big project that I forgot to blog (d’oh!), but that’s for another time. And speaking of the chicken coop, that was the real catalyst for us finally fixing out back porch.
When we had new siding installed a couple of years ago (yikes! it’s been that long?!), we had to tear down our rotting back porch, so we’ve lived with mismatched bricks/concrete blocks for a long time. The only problem was that our chicken coop is now right outside our back door. With the coop, we’ve been tracking dirt in from the yard and the coop for the last several months. I was mopping every day and vacuuming multiple times a day.
Let’s take a look at the before, shall we?
And after!
The Biggest Cost for our Small Back porch on a Budget
The biggest cost came with the pressure treated wood needed to build the structure. It is constantly exposed to the weather, so the boards had to be pressure-treated. And pressure-treated wood doesn’t come cheap.
But with the exception of the doormat and the light fixture, I managed to upcycle old stuff we had lying around our house or yard to complete the look.
It’s nice to save money with upcycling and sustainability is one of my values. So I did several small DIYs for this small back porch on a budget. I built a plant stand by simply taking two broken cement blocks, spray painting them and putting a spare board on top. The planters I already had on hand, but I did repot a few of the plants.
The cabinet we had bought a long time ago. It was supposed to go in the bathroom, but it didn’t quite fit. I cleaned it up and sprayed it with a matte, clear spray paint, so it wouldn’t rust any further.
We now use the cabinet for chicken food storage and for a few plant tools like fertilizer and pruning shears.
George whipped up the bench with some leftover boards and I painted it with leftover paint.
Finally, the plant stand was left here from the previous owners. I spray painted it and added the bucket and plant.
The Full Cost of Our Small Back Porch on a Budget
And since I love transparency and I always wonder what these big DIY projects from bloggers cost, here’s the full details.
| Wood | $373.97 |
| Corrugated metal | $64.65 |
| Wood stain | $42.98 |
| Screws | $15.12 |
| Matte spray for cabinet | $8.76 |
| Black spray paint for cement blocks | $1.98 |
| Paint brush | $7.96 |
| Paint roller kit | $5.98 |
| Tape for masking siding | $3.98 |
| Gutters | $40.24 |
| Potting soil | $15.96 |
| Plant | $12.98 |
| Gravel | $14.94 |
| Light fixture | $5.98 |
| Doormat | $14.50 |
| Total without tax | $629.98 |
| Tax | $44.09 |
| Total | $674.07 |
The Final Cost of our Small Back Porch on a Budget
Is that more than you expected from a DIY, budget project? If I’m being honest, it’s more than I expected. But I did manage to upcycle almost all the styling or storage solutions, so I am proud of that. Upcycling is important to me because it’s more eco-frienldy. AND I do think everything on the porch looks beautiful and most importantly, the porch and roof keep my house cleaner!
I hope you all are doing well and staying safe. Thanks for letting me share a project that I’m proud of.
That looks amazing!
Thank you!
You guys did such I good job, love it. I really like the color you stained the porch. Also, I vote Bambi should be in every pic!💛
Thank you! I try to keep the same wood tone for most of the house. And she would love to be in every pic 😉
Wow! This is so impressive and I think the fact that you did all that for only $675 is insane. You are both so talented!
Thanks so much! It was definitely a labor of love!
Looks beautiful and I love love love your cost breakdown! I don’t think some people think about the cost of stain or screws etc when they set out on a “simple” project! It’s an excellent insight on how the small things add up! Great job!!
Oh totally agree! And thank you!
Looks amazing, can I ask what stain you used
Hi Michele, it was the Cabot Pre-Tinted Cordovan Brown Semi-Solid
It turned out awesome!
Thanks so much Amanda!
It’s really refreshing to see a blogger sharing realistic projects again…not a $100k kitchen remodel they got completely sponsored. Especially right now.
This looks so cute, and I hear you on tracking in mud – we have zero clearance from our back door to our kitchen floor (so no floor mats) and our dogs track in everything…
Thank you, Devon! I’m trying to be the change! I just can’t read about another blogger that did a remodel that cost more than my entire house. It’s just not inspiring to me.
Wow, the budget and the result! Love the plants and the little furry helper.
thank you!
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Hi there,
You have renovated it in a very beautiful way. The way you raised the old one and made it one, it is praiseworthy. It’s an excellent insight on how the small things add up! Great job!!
Thank you!
Wow. This looks great, and so much bigger!
Thank you!