Sunday, April 26, 2015

Patio Shade Solution

We've lived in our home for almost 20 years.  Every summer I try to come up with something to provide shade for the patio in the late afternoon and early evening.  Over the years we've tried bamboo roller shades, shade cloth on a frame and vines.  Because we have such a problem here with winds, the shades and shade cloth didn't work well.

Every spring I plant Moonflowers in the long bed that sits on the west side of the patio.  DH runs lightweight rope from hooks on the edge of the bed to a rod suspended just under the edge of the patio cover.  This has been the best solution for shading the patio.

Putting up the ropes and removing them once the vines die off in the fall is a hassle.  I went online looking for a permanent solution and spent quite a bit of time researching different types of trellises before finding one that I liked.

I wanted one that would fit the size of the bed and each one I found online that could be customized was way out of my price range!

The plans for this trellis were found on an online home improvement site.  I emailed the photo of the finished trellis to DH and he drew up the plans and materials list to build it.

If you include his labor in the cost of the finished trellis, the ones online were priced just about right.  DH is a stickler for getting everything just so and he's spent about 3 full days to complete the project.

I planted my Moonflower seeds a few days ago and they're starting to come up.  I'm anxious for them to spread onto the trellis and see if it looks as I imagined.




 

2 comments:

Vickie said...

I like the looks of the trellis. after the moonflowers bloom I would like to see the results of this project.

Wendy said...

You're so lucky to have such a handy husband! And one who is willing to build you things. I'd like to see another picture after the flowers have grown, please, to see how effective they are screening out the sun.