A Backyard Guide To Beautiful Patio UmbrellasWhether you live in the south or the north a beautiful patio umbrella is an attractive element in the design of your patio backyard getaway. Dinner and dining under the protection of the umbrella adds another dimension to your outdoor living. Before you purchase anything for your backyard it is wise to consider all the alternatives that could provide shade and protection from the weather. What comes to mind is the gazebo, canopy awning, porch addition or umbrella. Your budget and space will determine if you want to look into an addition and if that isn’t an option then consider the rest. Think about the area you want to cover and the flexibility needed to match your life style. Once you have evaluated all options your choice will be obvious. Most times do to budget and flexibility the choice is a beautiful patio umbrella. 1. Think about the area and items you want to cover, a table, a table and chairs, a chaise lounge and side table, etc. This will determine the size and basic type. If you are putting the umbrella in the center hole of a patio table, make sure the height of the umbrella; both open and closed works with the table dimensions. 2. Center post beautiful patio umbrellas come in standard shapes; round, square, rectangular, hexagon & octagon, standard sizes; 6’–8+’ determined by the widest dimension of the open canopy. A skyline umbrella is a square or rectangular gable type canopy that offers more shade through out the day. A square canopy has more coverage than the same size octagon so choose wisely. 3. Cantilever umbrellas are supported by an offset post so the shaded area is not centered under the umbrella. It is much bigger, heavier and is more difficult to control in the wind. The advantage is that it can follow the sun for maximum shading and offer another option without the table mount. They are much taller and their canopy is 10 ft and bigger. 4. What time of day are you going to be using it, early morning, afternoon or evening? Morning and late afternoon sun is hard to shade unless the umbrella has a tilt and swivel feature or a hanging valence. This will determine a market or a patio umbrella that has a valence. 5. Securely anchor the beautiful patio umbrella with a heavy base that has a set screw into the post to lock the umbrellas from turning and also resisting the winds lifting force. The placement of the umbrella should be protected from the prevailing winds. Wide open areas and high locations are more vulnerable to the winds and should be avoided if possible or additional anchors needed. 6. Do you want the umbrella to be easily moved or primarily fixed in one spot? If mobility is a concern, think of the weight, size, ease of taking apart and the clearance required to move and effort to relocate. 7. Opening the umbrella can be accomplished by several means; manually pushing, a crank handle winch with a rope and pulley system. The larger umbrellas canopies are heavier and very hard to open by the conventional manner, therefore an electronic opening and closing device with a remote control is an option. 8. The beautiful patio umbrella comes in numerous colors and patterns depending on whether you want a shade or weather protection or both. The shade umbrella canopy is very different from the weather umbrella canopy and makes a great difference in the appearance, colors and material selections. The following is a list of popular canopy materials in order of waterproofing:
9. Proper care and maintenance of the beautiful patio umbrella will give you years of enjoyment.A |