The patio is a critical very vital part of just about any household. When you go out back you do not need to have to set up yard chairs in the…lawn, you want to be in a position to set them on a nice solid surface so that you won’t have to fret about them tipping. This is precisely what the home patio is for and you must absolutely build one if you spend a lot of time outside, then this is the route to take. Given that you know that you need a terrace, perhaps you should look into aluminum patio covers.


The foremost thing that you want to think about is how much wind you have in the area in which you are living. Since the patio cover is likely attached to your place, it will doubtless do some damage to your home when it flies off. This being so, that isn’t something that you want.


The next thing you want to look at is how much rain you get. Generally these are gutters that collect the water from the top, and then move the water to the bottom, spilling it on the ground. This is a good way to get rid of water and makes sure that your aluminum patio covers don’t collapse do to water building up on top of it.


Another concern is snow. Snow poses the same danger as excess water, but you can not precisely drain snow off your patio cover, so what you need to do is make sure that you get a shutter that is rated for snow fall. As an example in an area that has less snowfall you will need one that is rated for less, but in an area with a lot of snowfall you’ll need one that is rated for a lot, and this way your aluminum patio covers don’t spontaneously cave in on themselves.


For this reason the placement of the cover should be accurate because you won’t get a second chance.

Motorized Patio Awning


Aluminum patio covers are excellent for giving the yard both some elegance and a bit of shelter for those rainy days! You’ll be able to sit around and enjoy the views in your yard, whether it’s a flat plain of grass or an elaborate garden that you have wasted years planting. You could have a fish pool built in so you and your children can sit there and like it all day! So look into one and see what you can find, chances are there’s a model that may fit your place and patio very nicely.


Get more information: Retractable Patio Awning are great for those warm summer evenings

I previously shared another idea with everyone, or that is, folks who have ‘ugly metal fence posts’ holding up each section of their wood fence for support.  In our yard we used a combination of wood panels to cover some of the poles, and vines to cover the rest.  Following are the instructions for using vines.  Again, I’ve tried to keep it simple, because it was in fact very simple to do.  This is another great do-it-yourself landscape decorating project that can also hide what may be an unattractive fence or add color to a freshly painted or stained fence with your favorite vines.   

Cut plastic fencing in to 1-2 inch wide strips.  Begin by securing plastic fencing to fence with a staple gun.  Next, plant vines in the ground in front of the poles or just off to the side if the cement footings that the poles sit in stick to far out. For this project we used 3 Potato vines for the fact that they are evergreen (no losing all their leaves for this project) and will cover the poles year round.  No…you won’t find potatoes growing from them.  Just beautiful foliage, and amazing blossoms for most of the year.   Attach the vines loosely to the plastic fencing to allow for growth, and secure with gardeners plastic coated wire ties.  As your vines begin to branch out continue to guide them along your pre cut plastic fencing adding additional strips as needed for your vines to cling to.  Eventually you will be unable to see the plastic fencing.

Supplies:

• Plastic Fencing  – 3 x 50 ft.
• Scissors or wire cutters
• Staple gun
• staples
• Plastic coated wire ties made for out door plants
• 3 Potato Vines
• Planting soil & mulch

Now I know there are a lot of you out there who currently have metal fence posts holding up each section of your wood fence for support.  You may also think they are not so ugly.  So this is for those folks out there who are of the same mindset as me who would rather the metal be shielded from view in some way or another.  I have tried to keep it simple with my instructions, because it was in fact very simple to do.  What you end up with is a creative do-it-yourself landscape decorating project.

First, I’d like to point out that I happened to have extra fence panels that matched my current fence.  If you do not have extras, you should not have any problem finding panels to match the type of wood your fence is in.  However, if your fence is constructed of the narrow type panels, let us say 1” x 4”, you’ll want to buy wider 1” x 6” panels so as to be sure the ugly metal fence poles can be covered.  Narrower panels would most likely not be able to enclose the poles.

All you really need to do is take 3 of the panels and make a 3-sided open box to cover the ugly metal fence poles with.  Lay the 3 panels on a flat utility table or any flat surface.  Lay one of the panels flat (this will be the front side panel), and secure the other two to each side of it to form your open sided box.  Using a screw gun, or electric drill with a screw bit on lower speed, secure the 2 side panels using any wood screws long enough to secure the panels solidly. 

To secure your wooden 3-sided pole covers to the existing fence, you will want to use L-shaped metal brackets.  These come in various sizes and can be found at any home and garden store.  You can place the newly made pole covers over the ugly metal fence poles to fit, and secure your wood covers to the existing fence, therefore enclosing your ‘ugly metal fence poles’.  I then adorned a couple of my new wood covers with solar lights.  You can hang plants, or whatever else fits your fancy.

Some of the poles are covered by Potato Vines rather than the wood covers.  I thought it would break up the pattern a bit, add some variety to the fence, and bring a nice lush appeal to the backyard.  I’ve submitted another ‘how to’ article on that method.  I hope you check it out as well.