It’s definitely a case of “if you know, you know” when it comes to having a patio in Calgary. Those homeowners with a patio out back know the focus that it brings to their garden, as well as providing an outdoor seating area to enjoy the all too short summer months. A patio provides a connection, both physically and visually, between your house and your garden.
However, patio owners also know that there are several elements of the Calgary summer that can make it almost impossible to spend time outside. The high winds that the city is famous for brings dust and debris on top of having enough force to blow plates and cups over. Summer is also the high season for mosquitos and other insects, and no amount of citronella or bug spray can give you respite. Finally, on the hottest days, the sun’s heat gets soaked up by the stones, and your patio becomes too warm to enjoy.
Patio Covers – A Summer Game Changer
With all these struggles, Calgary patio owners know that there is a simple solution: patio covers. Patio covers are the ultimate compromise between suffering through the worst of summer on your patio with no protection and installing a full screen room or sunroom. They are permanent structures that attach to your home, and follow a similar post and beam format that you’ll find in a pergola. They provide excellent shade from the summer sun, and the cover will change the way that air flows around your home, meaning that you’ll get better protection from the wind and the bugs and debris that come with it.
Patio Cover Options
Patio covers can come in all shapes and sizes, and there will be a combination of options that will suite your aesthetic design as well as the budget you have for the project. Some of the choices you’ll need to make while you’re talking with your patio cover contractor include:
- Roof type – the most important decision to make is the kind of roof you want. A W-pan roof is the most common look, but a V-pan style is our strongest non-insulated cover which can cover a space of up to 18 feet long! To get a bit more light in, you can choose our lexan roof panels.
- Skylights – if you want more of a mix between light and shade, then you’ll want to think about adding skylights into your patio cover design. Skylights work best in larger patio cover designs as they need a certain roof strength to support.
- Trim – finally, you’ll need to talk with our patio cover contractors about the trim on the end of your patio cover. A mitered end gives a more abrupt finish but can give a modern look, while a scalloped end makes your patio cover feel more wavy and fits with a more curved design.
