Patio Covers Designs and Inspiration

How would you know if you had taken all of the factors into account?  This is where a professional designer could help.  Your patio cover designs will take on several different characteristics of both your home and your personal style and preferences.  We’ll get to a few of the options below, rest assured, there are many more than you will see here.  These just reflect a representative sampling of basic designs.  The way that you can improve or enhance these is almost infinite (and budgetless it seems at times).  In other words, imagining what you would like your patio cover to look like and be is up to your imagination and budget, because literally almost anything is possible with the type of building materials and equipment available to today’s builder.

General Covered Patio Plans

Before we go any further, let’s briefly describe the covered patio types you might encounter or want to have designed, they fall into some broad general categories.  First of all, there is the category of open or closed patio roof styles.  This is simply a reference to the fact that some allow you to see the sky and allow rain to get through, others allow partial light and/or rain and others would block all light and water or other elements from Mother Nature.  Then, you need to consider the type of building material:  wood, metal, vinyl, fabric or some combination of all of these.   Another choice concerns free standing versus attached structures.  Finally, you would need to decide if you wanted to have shades or awnings as part of your cover as well.

This is a lot to consider.  So, in order to make the process simpler, you can simply view the pictures below and read the captions.  In most cases, the picture represented is a good reflection of the type of patio cover you can expect to see or have built within that style.  Patio covers are like any type of home remodeling project in this way; what you see for your use and taste can be reflected in your home.

Following Are Some Patio Cover Ideas

Here is an example of an attached – with posts – pergola type patio cover.  That is a mouth-full.  See how the beam on one end is mounted to the house?  This adds strength as well as making it look tied into the home.  This type of cover is also open as you can see.  Wood patio covers like this would also include styles that would have more slats across the top and then even plants and vines growing atop it.  This provides more shade and a softer appearance, all while adding a splash of color or aroma from any flowering plants.  Photo credit

Then, there is the image of this much larger pergola or trellis used in a park.   You could achieve a similar look, using a

This is an example of an open patio cover - pergola, with vines.

metal material and having a variety of vines or climbing plants growing.  This has been discussed, but it is a nice way of softening the appearance of the harder lines of the pergola or other patio structure of your choice.

Photo credit

Finally, there is this example using a patio cover kit.  There are both vinyl (vinyl coated aluminum) that use embossed patterns to give them that wood grain appearance.

Photo courtesy of http://austinpatio.com

This downside to building new is more about cost and convenience.  It will take longer and will cost you much more, generally speaking, to build from the ground up or with no existing structure from which to build off from.  But, as mentioned, there are also limitations that come into play from a construction stand point if you have to modify an existing structure to create the new patio design.

photo credit

There are many covered patio plans available online as well.  You can do a simple search to find pictures and descriptions of some of the more popular options.  You will also quickly find that there are many ways to describe a patio cover, so this may require a bit more homework on your part.

If what you are looking for is truly a covered patio, then you will need to further clarify what type of cover or roof you are looking for.  An open patio roof style can still be considered a “covered patio”, even though the cover will allow you to see the stars through it or have vines growing all over it like is the case with the classic pergola.  A semi-closed or closed patio roof style would be something more along the lines of a gazebo or even an extended patio common with a ranch-style home.  Since you found our site here, let’s discuss what we feel a covered patio to be.

Covered patios, in our mind, conjure up the image of that old Ranch-style home.  Here, you typically have a single-story layout, with the patio being created by extending the roof line out and often having posts as support.  The floor of the patio area can consist of a variety of materials from concrete to tile to outdoor carpeting.  Many times, these types of patios are finished into additional rooms for the home.  Depending upon how they are positioned, they may be ideally suited as a sunroom or even a modified greenhouse type room for the avid gardener.

Making sure to get the right covered patio plans in place prior to construction makes a big difference.

photo credit

Other Covered Patio Designs

Having said this about these types of covered patio plans, it is also quite feasible to be talking about something else when referring to a covered patio.  We would be remiss if we didn’t include the more traditional types of patio covers and patio cover descriptions.  Brief mention was made to them above, but they are the pergola and gazebo.  Variations of these themes could also be included under this larger umbrella category – no pun intended.

Pergolas, because of their flexibility can provide much needed shade and added ambiance and character to your outdoor space.  In fact, more and more outdoor living rooms and spaces take advantage of the pergola’s unique features.  Some of these features include handsome and simple design, lending themselves to a variety of installations and home styles.  Additionally, they can be built to accommodate larger more grand structures or be more simple with craftsmanship details.

Pergolas, more than gazebos, can be finished in a variety of ways.  Finished, in this case, is referring to the type of patio roof that you may choose to have.  Classic pergolas have a post and beam design.  More contemporary styles have a roof more typical of a Mediterranean cabana or villa.  In these cases, they could be tiled.  In other instances, a metal patio cover is called for in the design phase.  These can be made of metals such as steel and copper.  Metal roof materials come in a variety of applications including sheeting, “standing seam” and even tiles or shingles.

Some other possible places to check for ideas other than where you are right now in front of your keyboard would include fine home magazines and trade journals.  Occasionally, taking one of those home tours in your areas where designer homes are showcased can give you some ideas regarding your patio.  You can also see samples or portfolios from contractors that you may contact to see what type of experience and ideas they may have.  What ever your covered patio plans call for, there is a design style that can suit your needs.