Patio Cover Designs, Planning & Ideas, Wood, Vinyl & Alumawood

There are three choices of products to consider when designing a new patio cover or a shade structure for your backyard patio area.

The first option is the traditional all-wood materials.

Most wood that is available is fast-grown timber, usually from a twenty-year-old tree. Fast-grown lumber does not last the test of time; the density of the wood fibers is loose and not compact.  Wood tends to rot and decay, attract insects, and termites into your home’s substructure. Wood is also a fire and safety hazard.

Maintaining a wood patio cover requires constant care:

Wood products require a process of removing the moisture from the wood before the prime and paint is applied. If not, the life expectancy diminishes. Wood requires beam replacement and painting every three years. 

The second option is Vinyl.

Vinyl patio covers do not have a natural look; they appear like plastic patio furniture with a bright white gloss finish. They are a petroleum-based product. You can never paint them, and they do not have an embossed woodgrain effect on its surface. They tend to warp over time. Vinyl products do not offer a range of color options suitable for earth tone colors used in residential exterior home designs.

Usually, double the costs of the other two options and require additional steps for installation. However, great for fencing, Vinyl has a very synthetic appearance, and the beams are thin and small.

maintenance is low- usually, a pressure wash every couple of years

Your third option is the Alumawood patio cover aluminum products.

Alumawood is an aluminum product that will last the test of time, requiring little to no maintenance—finished with siliconized polyester paint used on sky-rise buildings, lasting up to sixty years.

Offering a detailed wood-grained embossed effect. It comes in several pre-painted colors to match your home’s exterior color scheme with a natural appearance.

Installation is easy, and in most cases, can be installed in one day. Cleaning is accessible by taking a pressure washer or garden hose yearly. Alumawood patio covers also have a Teflon coating by Dupont, making cleaning and maintenance very simple. Possibly the last patio cover you will own, practically lasting forever.

Costs are very reasonable, using all Alumawood patio cover products.