Hybrid Patio Cover Designs You Should Know About

All Calgary homeowners know the importance of maximising your outside time. The window to enjoy your garden in the city is limited by the longer winter months, but it can also be hampered by the strong sun and winds that come with the warmer weather. With this in mind, investing in some sort of cover for your patio is an essential home improvement project, as you not only get shade all summer long, but it also helps you to create defined spaces outdoors. This is great if you have a large patio area, but also you can benefit from a patio cover design with a smaller patio to help make a transitional space from your home to your garden.

What Is A Hybrid Patio Cover?

When it comes to patio cover, it can feel like you have two main options. The first is the more traditional solid patio cover, made from either aluminium or acrylic. This gives you full protection from the sun, wind and occasional rainstorm, but can be heavy and not particularly beautiful. The other is a pergola design where you get the beauty of a lattice above your head and a strong post and beam structure to support it, but you’ll still have gaps for the sun to break through. A better option all round is to talk with Desert Sun Patios about our hybrid patio covers. These are custom made designs that provide sections of latticed cover and solid cover to create unique spaces on your patio.

Hybrid Patio Cover Designs

Given the custom nature of hybrid patio covers, you can create just about any sort of design you like. However, some popular hybrid patio cover designs you should know about include:

• Central lattice – to give your outdoor space the feel of a European courtyard, consider a patio cover design where you have sections of solid cover on the outside of your patio with a lattice section directly over the middle. This works perfectly for a seating arrangement with a central feature like a fountain or a fire pit, as the sunlight will put a spotlight on it throughout the day. 
• Central cover – the inverse of the central lattice design, you can create a unique dining area by putting a solid patio cover over the centre of your outdoor space. This will provide shade and protection for your food, and the latticed edges of your patio will create beautiful shadows and breezes to keep you and your guests cool all summer long. 
• Divided spaces – a final popular hybrid patio cover design is to split your patio into two distinct areas, and mark these by having different patio coverings over each one. A common way to divide your outdoor space is to have a solid cover attached to the house to provide a sense of transition and protection to the doors and windows, and have a latticed portion further away to encourage people to sit further out towards the garden.

Decorating With A Hybrid Patio Cover

When you’re choosing your customised design for your hybrid patio cover, you need to think about how you will decorate and furnish your new space to make it feel like an extension of your home. Some of these ideas require wiring and additional construction, so it’s important to plan ahead. Here are some decorating ideas for each of the hybrid cover designs:

• Central lattice – with a lattice over the middle part of your deck, you’re using the dappled shadows to draw everyone’s eyes to the middle of your space. A fire pit goes well here, which can be freestanding, but you can also add a layer of luxury by cutting out the central section and installing an “in ground” hot tub. The beauty of this design (apart from the ability to come home and soak away the day’s troubles!) is that the majority of the hot tub will be below the deck so it won’t spoil any view out into the garden. You should also think about wall lighting under the covered sections near the walls of your home to create a romantic vibe in the summer evenings.
• Central cover – when you cover the central part of your patio, you’re inviting people to gather underneath it during the hottest parts of the day. To help cool people down, you should use the covered patio cover to hold a ceiling fan to help move the air around on your deck. The feeling of a cool breeze during the middle of the Calgary summer is one that your guests will come back to time and time again. You can also use this central cover as a way of holding an ornate light fixture which will make the centre of your deck the focus of everyone’s attention. Consider a hanging chandelier or a candle holder to create a luxury vibe on your patio. 
• Divided spaces – when you choose a customised hybrid patio cover design where part of your space is covered and the other part is latticed, you’re automatically creating two different spaces outside. Consider adding wall outlets under the covered part so that you can add end tables with lamps (and even an outdoor fridge!) for those who want to sit in shade and watch the fun in the garden. Out under the lattice, consider lining the edge of your deck or patio with potted plants, and choosing climbing flowers if your patio cover has supporting beams. 

In any hybrid patio cover design, you’ll want to think carefully about your seating options. A patio cover will often have a more modern look due to the construction, so the traditional wicker or wooden finish might be out of place. Instead, consider a two or three seater sofa and armchair combination that will combine your inside and outdoor lifestyles. Your guests will appreciate the comfort no matter what kind of hybrid patio cover design they have over their heads.