Remodeling a 1970s Ranch House Interior

The seventies are back and as amazing as ever. More and more homes that were built in the seventies are being purchased, restored, and remodeled.

70s homes have architectural and design features that are very specific to the era they were built in. Being familiar with these features, and some of their quirks, will help you restore and refresh in the best way possible.

Seventies Colors

Colors in seventies homes are likely to be darker, more muted tones that are rich and warm. If your home hasn't been remodeled before, it's likely got a lit of wood surfaces and most of that wood is dark, warm, and sometimes red-toned.

Seventies homes also feature very low ceilings, so combined with these warm, dark colors, it can feel smaller than it actually is.

Restore

If you want to restore a seventies home to a true seventies look, you are going to want to restore what you can. Countertops may need to be redone and your wood floors may need to be sanded, stained, and refinished.

If you have seventies carpet in your home, you may need to special order it but look for anything shag or patterned carpet with warm, muted hues.

The darker walls, if they're not wood-paneled, will also need a refresh of new paint and you can have your current paint color-matched at a paint store. Tile elements might need cleaning or regrouting.

Renovate

If you're looking to modernize your build, start by lightening the space up. Seventies ceilings are low, so use bright, flat white paint on the ceilings and other bright, light colors on the walls.

Give the kitchen a bright makeover with new countertops and cabinet colors. You don't have to go all-white to make the rooms feel larger, but lighter colors that bounce sunlight will help make the room feel larger.

Seventies Windows

The windows in your seventies ranch reno will likely be smaller than modern picture windows. These smaller windows may have custom, non-traditional pains throughout them. These windows, if original may still be in good condition, but in some homes, the glass may be warped or hard to see through.

Restore

If you want to renovate your home, keep the same shape and style of window, just upgrade the glass. Upgrading the glass will give you a nice, clear view and it will likely cut down your power bill.

If you want traditional seventies windows with panes that match yours, you may have to find a custom window store to work with.

Renovate

Make your seventies home more modern with larger windows. It's a big undertaking, and it's not cheap, but it makes a huge difference. Bringing more light into your home with larger windows will help your home feel bigger than it actually is.

You can also add skylights to your home to bring in more light if expanding your wall windows isn't an option. You can add new tube skylights that connect to your roof, bringing direct sunlight through a reflective tube and into rooms that wouldn't otherwise have natural light.

Seventies Layouts

In the seventies, open floor plans weren't very popular, so you've got homes with lots of walls and sectioned-off spaces. These dedicated spaces are a hallmark indicator of seventies spaces and are something people either love or hate when renovating a seventies home.

Seventies homes also featured several large split levels in larger homes. Ranch-style homes were usually only one floor but were built so that they could be added onto in the future.

Restore

If you want to restore your home, don't touch the walls. Patch up what needs to be worked on or fixed but leave the layout the same. If the layout doesn't quite work for your modern lifestyle, consider switching up the purpose of some of the rooms but don't change the layout to keep things authentic.

Renovate

If you want to renovate your seventies home, start knocking walls down now. Check to make sure the wall isn't load-bearing and then start opening up the space as best you can.

If you do encounter a load-bearing wall in a place where you'd like no wall, try shortening the wall and taking part of it down. This will open up the space without causing demolition disasters.