No matter which type of patio or pool cover is used - awning, canopy or shade sail - each should be a shadowy segue from the inside to the outside of a house. "When erecting an outdoor cover, you have to take into account how shadows will change throughout the day, and also throughout the year, for the best results in terms of coverage." "The sun is always moving across the sky - not only from sunrise to sunset - but also across the horizon with the seasons," he said. With the installation of a pool or patio cover, it is essential to not only compute the space to be shaded, but to also take into account the time of year and time of day the area will be used most often, Dickerson said. When pulled taut, these membranes become hyperbolic arcs soaring above areas that cast shadows and comfort below. Instead of having to erect a large structure to shade a pool or patio, Dickerson said shade can be geometrically achieved by using strategically placed poles or anchor points onto which the edge of each shade sail is fastened. "Not only do people recognize that it is cooler under a sail shaded area, they also enjoy its aesthetic." "The idea of using shade sails as a way to cover outdoor areas at home really began taking off when people started to see these in public areas," said Matthew Dickerson, owner of Tenshon, a decade-old company based in Mesa, Arizona. Using modern tensile fabrics, shade sails are stretched between several anchor points to create cool covers. A canopied structure can also offer more height clearance than a conventional awning.īased on ancient ways of using ship sails to shade outdoor areas or sailors in encampments, today's shade sails are a contemporary red-hot way of providing sun protection. "Canopies can also be installed to retract or have a Roman shade design that mounts under a structure."Ĭanopies can be fitted with built-in side curtains, which can add an element of privacy, as well as protection from the sun. "A canopy mounted under a pergola saves people from looking like a checkerboard, should they fall asleep with the sun shining through the upper latticework," Lederer said. Pergolas are popular outdoor structures with columns that support an often open-roof grid of beams and are an ideal canopy companion. When you're ready to go inside, the awning easily rolls back up into its housing, which is mounted on the house."įor stand-alone structures that seek shade, fabric canopies are a sunny selection. "The shade is set on a roller tube, which unrolls at the touch of a button. "The top of the awning can be retractable, which will preserve the life of the fabric," Lederer said. While older, wall-mounted-only awnings can have a limited shading scope, manufacturers such as Craft-Bilt have devised hybrid awnings that have a room-sized framework, which includes front legs to stabilize the structure over a patio or deck.
These shade structures have a framework - covered with a specially designed outdoor fabric - that attaches to the home and extends over a doorway, deck or patio. Custom-built patios have evolved from mere concrete slabs into sophisticated outdoor rooms with retractable overhead options that allow a homeowner to choose when outdoor areas should have a shady or sunny disposition. While wooden decks tend to feel more like an extension of a house, a patio integrates more with the landscape, because it is built directly on the ground. The patio is a concrete or paved area that is usually located in a home's backyard. Entertaining on the patio and into the backyard became part of a lifestyle that is still popular today.
"Many times, patio coverings have retractable options with motorized screens that use fade-resistant fabrics."ĭuring the mid-20th-century suburban boom, people began retreating from the front porch to the backyard. "Today's patio cover options aren't your grandparents' canvas coverings," Lederer said. But for those who don't take a shine to extra building expenses, semi-permanent awnings, shade sails and canopies can be a way to throw some shade on construction costs.Ī desire for shaded living areas outside a residence may have been around since there have been rock outcroppings over cave dwellings, but today's patio and pool coverings are both sleek and smart. Some may choose to cover an existing patio by building a permanent sunroom, which is a free-standing structure that often has glass walls and is attached to a home with a separate roofline. "Even though a patio or deck may not, technically, be a room outside your home, it can feel like one when it's covered." "Covering a patio or deck with an awning or canopy can have a cocooning feel," he said. Outdoor areas can be up to 15 degrees cooler when protected from the direct rays of the sun, according to Ross Lederer, spokesman for Craft-Bilt Manufacturing Company, a Pennsylvania-based maker of patio covers and enclosures.
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