Patio Enclosures Add Extra Room To The House
Most people love their outdoor patios and would never trade them away for anything else. Others however may decide they want to use their patio in inclement weather to have more floor space to their existing home. By installing patio enclosures, the area can be used virtually all year long, regardless of the weather and outdoor temperature. Heating ducts can be added to the existing furnace or gas or electric space heaters can be used in the winter. Portable air conditioners make them usable even in the heat of the summer.
For many homeowners, patio enclosures are simply a means of adding an extra room their home and with the extra walls and ceiling have not really created an outdoor living space, but merely converted a an open area into another room. However, there are patio enclosures that can function as both without a lot of headache. With large, opening windows that can be closed in bad weather and opened during the summer, they can have the best of both worlds.
Homeowners who want the look and feel of an outdoor patio may choose open wall patio enclosures design that provides overhead protection only, leaving three sides of the patio open to the elements, having no plans, or desire to use it during the dead of winter.
Growing Families May Need More Space
If a family already has a patio, they may decide to convert it into a play room, or a changing room for their swimming pool and use patio enclosures to seal the deal. A word of caution with patio enclosures however, is to make sure there is enough of a foundation and support for walls and a roof before starting the job.
Most patios are designed with bricks or pavers resting on a bed of sand. This is hardly the support needed when adding walls and a roof, regardless of the size and weight of the materials being used. When adding patio enclosures, the framing must be resting on solid footers installed below the frost line of the given location.
One of the usual steps when installing patio enclosures is the inclusion of electricity or plumbing, since it does not make sense to have an added room in the ho use and use it like an old log cabin. When performing these upgrades most states require the services of a licensed electrician, which is a good idea to prevent possible fires to the new patio enclosures.
