Vinyl

Vinyl’s initial low cost for a pergola can be attractive to some.  For others, vinyl has a cheap aesthetic look spoiling the appearance of the home and procures a cost beyond its value.

Vinyl is often advertised as “maintenance free”. Vinyl is a plastic product, polyvinyl chloride and commonly abbreviated as PVC. All plastics degrade and depreciate in all environmental settings. The U.S. Department of Energy affirms that vinyl can crack at very low temperatures and can warp at high temperatures and over time vinyl can turn yellowish, losing its color and degrade. When the temperature reaches 140° C it starts to decompose, at 160° C it will melt.  UV light stabilizers are added to reduce inevitable weakening and degradation caused from heat and to increase the longevity of vinyl. Vinyl manufacturers use larger components such as metal stiffeners and wood additives in order to offset the problems vinyl has needing further reinforcements to help it to be a viable product.

Manufacturers of vinyl products do not warranty providing protection against failure or defects of distortion or melting due to various heat sources which most include simple everyday probable heat sources such as barbeque grills, fire pits, excessive sky, door or window reflections. Some even recommend landscaping to alleviate reflections. This is due to the instability of vinyl, which will eventually break down in the direct sunlight.

The greatest downfall of vinyl is its long term expense being environmentally costly and so difficult to responsibly dispose of it. It cannot be burned because of its extremely toxic dioxin gases. As for a pergola, vinyl does not carry the strength or thermal properties required to withstand strong winds or shield from the harsh elements for a sound, comfortable pergola. Vinyl does however, have better insulating and thermal qualities over aluminum.

Aluminum

On the plus side, aluminum does not decompose like vinyl and is much easier to recycle than vinyl but for shade and cooling off under a pergola, aluminum is the poorest of all choices. Metal cooking pots are often made from aluminum. This is because aluminum is an excellent conductor of heat and transfers the heat energy from the stove to the food so rapidly, whereas the handles of cooking pots are made from wood or plastic. This works well for cooking but not as well for pergolas where a comfortable shade is needed.

Aluminum is a lightweight, relatively soft and malleable metal, cold to touch. Any aluminum product can scratch, dent or chip with use and aluminum tends to trap dirt, which requires more cleaning and maintenance. Aluminum is sometimes painted to imitate a more natural look of wood but nothing compares to the look or feel of real wood over wood itself. Like vinyl, aluminum does not carry the same security and strength of timber for a pergola. Most importantly when choosing a pergola for quality outdoor living, timber’s has a natural ability to regulate more comfortable temperatures.

Timber Wood

On this wonderful earth, genuine wood products are still of the finest, most dependable materials known to man with its long lasting benefits and positive influences upon our environment over man made synthetic alternatives. Wood rejuvenates and stimulates our senses with its warmth, smell, texture and variations of colors. Wood has some remarkable characteristics; bacteria will not reproduce itself on wood; it is earth friendly and given the right conditions it contains immortal-like properties that can last indefinitely. Just as amazing wood has the natural ability to regulate itself against the heat or cold. Wood is a poor conductor of heat and yet it is never cold to the touch, constantly keeping a natural balance of temperature. Wood is also less prone to condensation than aluminum or vinyl and is less affected by temperature extremes.

Wood creates a condition for comfort. Wood by nature is the world’s best insulator and is a poor conductor of heat. In the hot daytime wood will absorb heat in the air and at night when the temperatures lower wood lets out heat to keep a natural balance of temperature. Wood can carry two temperatures at the same time on either side. A timber frame pergola is unrivaled in strength, comfort and quality. Best of all, a timber frame pergola is earth friendly as well as being human friendly.

A Quick Note:

Fearful misconceptions circulate at times from lack of access or integral research concerning rot and wood boring insects within timber. Click here if you would like to view a few fascinating facts about Rot or Wood Destroying Organisms and the amazing properties of timber.

 

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

The fact that wood has the ability to expand, contract and move a little is more conducive to responsible  architectural designs than other inelastic building materials.

The earth invariably has seismic vibrations or ground movement due to natural and sometimes artificial causes. An earthquake is the seismic of the earth moving on a more colossal, mammoth scale. The earth most often moves in shock waves moving up and down as well as side to side. A building or architectural structure will carry its own weight vertically (or it would fall down) by resisting the up and down loads. The greatest weakness in a building is in the lateral movement from side to side.

Earthquake Damage

It is extremely important to access the structural elements of steel, reinforced concrete or aluminum beams in its ability to maintain bearing resistance for its inelastic range. If the beams yield a little at their highest stress points without losing its resistance and the joints and weight of the columns hold full strength then the resonant frequency dampens out. Load bearing inelastic materials like reinforced concrete, steel, or aluminum beams are required by architectural engineers to install kinematic mechanisms to compensate for rigidness against the structural movement that will occur from the earth’s movement.

There are several various load bearing dampers or bearings, each having their unique specific characteristics with advantages and disadvantages to structural applications. Some are also designed to help in compensating for the spalling (the breaking of materials from off of a solid body) that happens in regions of stress contact points from fluids, vapor bubbles and plate impacts subjected to localized low pressure.

Wood is not affected by temperature changes like other inelastic building materials and is less prone to condensation. Best of all, when properly engineered, the characteristics of wood give timber framing better seismic survivability than any other building material on earth. Wood and timber framing structures that date back thousands of years and are still standing strong. The properties of wood naturally dampens out the resonate frequency and does not require artificial mechanisms.

Additional Benefits Using The Dovetail System

Dovetail Joints in Wood

The dovetail has been discovered in the tombs of China’s emperors and the entombed mummies from Egypt and throughout history. The dovetail joint does not require a mechanical fastener with its trapezoidal angled shape that interlocks with another angled board but it does take skill and accuracy to create a snug fit as it interlocks. The dovetail design works together with wood like a perfect fitting glove giving the timbers an even greater power to perform woods inherent ability to dampen resonate frequencies while maintaining the aesthetic appearance.

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

Wood is aesthetically pleasing and structurally strong and has benefited mankind through the ages.  There are historical artifacts and antiquated structures that testify to the value of strength of timber displayed in ancient Medieval Timber Castles and timber buildings throughout the world in places like Japan, Lithuania, Scandinavia, Siberia, Sweden and more. Pictured above is a historical wine press in Alsace, France; another example of timber and its versatile use in structures such as roads, machinery, fishing wharves, waterworks, and travel. Wood was more than just practical in times past; it has also been used ornamentally. The featured image is of an ancient Chinese relief carving of a flower.

In the center of London is a beautifully preserved Roman habitation from 40 A.D. to the 15th century. A lost river disappeared under the city by being diverted into culverts for constructing new places. There are wooden walls, wooden foundations and complex waste drainage systems, wooden doors, deep wooden wells, wooden good luck charms and many more amazing artifacts and treasures. Some archaeologists are calling it another Pompeii from the North. The oldest wooden structural earthly remains are said to be in this same area. Oak timber structures dated between 6,500 to 7,000 years old were discovered in 2010 beneath the Thames River at Vauxhall in London England, only visible at the very lowest tide. To put a little perspective on this: That is older than the pyramids of Egypt!

William Shakespear’s Birthplace,
Stratford upon Avon
Half Timber Frame Home

There are a number of these historical timber frame buildings that are built from timbers that are older than the building itself. Centuries ago, it was common practice, rather than hewn down or form new materials, an existing building would be dismantled, transported and reconstructed in a new location. One example is in London where sheep knuckle flooring was unearthed along with other theater remnants.  This was the wooden O stage where Henry the Fifth and Romeo and Juliet was first performed along with other Shakespearean plays. It is reputed that James Burbage an actor-manager had a falling out with the landlord so  overnight he dismantled the timbers of the theater and shipped them to Bankside, the other side of the river, and built his own theater he called “The Globe”.

Timber, like steel can carry a great amount of concentrated weight load. The Radiata pine native to California is one extreme example of the strength of wood. Its ratio weight strength is 20% higher than steel and 5 times stronger than non reinforced concrete under compression. Wood is anisotropic, i.e. possessing different strengths in different directions. There are many types of woods that possesses immense load strengths but one of the very best is the Douglass Fir. The Douglass Fir has an even higher strength ratio than the Radiata pine and is considered to be the most perduring for timber support beams.

Architecturally Stable

Moisture Test

Wood is stable and it sometimes misunderstood because of its varying grain patterns and its ability to expand and contract. It is the natural air pockets within wood that make it such a perfect building material. It is less prone to condensation than aluminum, metal or vinyl and is less affected by temperature extremes. When the air grows warmer wood will hold more moisture and yet it will not invariably or readily move with changes in humidity. If the temperature of the air and the moisture in the air increase at the same time the humidity will remain consistent wood will not move.

In larger structures the magnificent wonder of wood is in the fact that it does have some give and take. With other inelastic architectural materials kinematic mechanisms have to be installed on beams to compensate for the structural movement that occurs from the seismic ground movement. The dovetail notch system works well with the stature and design of wood to naturally compensate for our seismic earth.

Using modern technologies, building timber frame structures are eco-friendly, cost efficient and can be preserved for centuries to come.

Wood Used To Strengthen Steel

Interestingly, there are current techniques to strengthen steel structures using the components of wood such as high modulus carbon fiber, adhesion, resin with carbon fiber sheets and bonded pre-cured laminate plates. This has proven to be a cost effective solution to the drawbacks of fatigue performance in steel. The tests results showed there was a 25% increase in elastic range and stiffness to rehabilitate and reinforce steel structures, bridges and monopole towers because of cross-section losses and fatigue performance that occur due to continued corrosion attack. Fiber reinforced polymers from the components of wood are being used to repair masonry and concrete structures.

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

How much load bearing capacity a concrete block can hold is determined by a number of factors such as how compact the soil is, the concrete mix, the age, (the hydration and hardening process of concrete causes it to become stronger over time), the size, shape and structural content all have to be taken into consideration. For example, the weight that is brought to bear upon a concentrated point or when it is distributed over a wider area. A block that is used to support an individual column will bear less weight than a load distributed across a network of support from other load bearing units or columns. When weight is uniformly distributed it requires twice as much weight to break it as it would were the weight concentrated at the centre.

Gray Car on Concrete

Concrete is measured for strength in PSI meaning pounds per square inch of pressure that it can bear. A typical residential patio is 4″ thick with an average of 3000 pounds per square inch ratio. It is designed to carry more than the weight of two automobiles. The average compact car is about 3,000 to 3,500 lbs. A mid size car, van or light truck is about 5,000 to 7,000 lbs. A full size truck is 7,000 to 12,000 lbs.

Four Men

Two automobiles covering the same amount of space far outweigh an oversized heavy duty timber frame pergola. The overall total weight of an oversized pergola is nearly 4,000 lbs. which would compute to be around 1,000 lbs. of undistributed weight for each beam. Simulating this would be like placing 4 extra large sized men standing on one corner. After the weight is uniformly distributed between three other beams the PSI is considerably less.

Previous Posts:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

There is more to timber than its majestic beauty and harmonious warmth that smiles upon us when observing this natural product with our eyes. We breathe in oxygen and when we exhale we release carbon dioxide (CO2). Trees are experts at creating balance thriving diligently on carbon dioxides from the atmosphere through the process of photosynthesis and releasing it out again as pure, fresh oxygen. Without this balance a tree would eventually suffocate and die and so would we. Over 50% of their dry weight of wood is carbon. Seasoned wood actively continues to store carbon dioxides even hundred of years after it has been felled. Trees can clean up sewage and animal waste, water runoff and roadside spills. Amazingly besides turning CO2 into oxygen again they also filter harmful substances and dangerous chemicals that have entered and been absorbed into the soil. Trees store the pollutants, changing the harmful pollutants and reduce them into a less harmful form. Trees also help in the process of creating rain as they expel moisture into the air. We can thank trees for giving us cleaner soil, cleaner water and cleaner air.

Incredulously, trees do not stop giving us life after they have been harvested into timber. Unlike concrete or steel; which only emits the carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, mass timber continues to absorb and store carbon dioxide. A ten story wood building at 2590 square feet per story stores 1570 tons of carbon dioxide whereas a comparable concrete building will emit 2175 tons of carbons.

Old Timber Frame Home

 It is well known that timber regulates itself for more even temperatures but it also has another remarkable characteristic, bacteria will not reproduce itself on wood.  Timber is amazing when you consider buildings that are centuries old are still strengthening us, giving us a healthier, safer, cleaner and more comfortable surroundings. An enclosed room made from timber not only makes us a healthier but regenerates us by stimulating our senses with is warmth, smell, texture and variations of colors. On this wonderful earth, genuine wood products are still of the finest, most dependable materials known to man with its long lasting benefits and positive influences upon our environment over man made synthetic alternatives.

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

Timber is enduring and long lasting and so friendly to the earth. Nature shows us the wisdom in the use of real wood as one of her most steadfast, reliable materials when we observe the marvelous wonder of why trees live as long as they do.

In the Sequoia National Park in Sierra Nevada there is an ancient tree, so large that as you look up at this towering monarch of majesty of more than fifty four thousand cubic feet of awe inspiring wood. The total sum of this king of trees can not be seen in its entirety without lifting the eyes up, up, up in a sweeping panoramic view.  The tree is fondly called The President. The Society Grant concluded that there is no tree that has more wood in volume than The President. It’s wood and trunk is increasing with age, growing wider as it thickens producing more wood in a year than a healthy, strong young tree. The President is said to be over 3200 years old with almost two billion leaves and still growing larger and increasing in wood and still breathing in carbon dioxide and releasing its life giving properties of pure oxygen back into our atmosphere.

Centuries Old Chinese Chariot

Once a tree has grown, outlasting anything that could have taken it when it was young it becomes so strong it can not be knocked over by fierce winds and it appears to be indestructible. It’s bark is so thick it is resistant to fire and the giant sequoia is protected from fires caused from lightning. The lightning can harm the adult tree but it seldom kills them. Ground fires enhances and helps the sequoias by opening up the sequoia cones for the seeds to sprout in the nourishing ashes and sunshine. It opens up cones and lets saplings have light and flourish. The bark and center wood are impregnated and ingrained with natural chemical fungicides that preserve it against fungal canker and decay. Termites, wood ants and wood-boring beetles do not faze or effect them.

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

Taking a Look at the Forest

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

Trees are universal and one of our most important resources. With more than eight billion acres of forestry over one forth of the earth is clothed with an abundance of wood.  Wood is more resilient and has a greater margin of safety being physically able to absorb the shock of impact from heavier loads than alternative materials. Just recently scientists have created a synthetic bone from heated rattan wood that the body will accept and is load bearing and so similar to real bone that tissue cells and blood treat it as if were actually bone eliminating the need for bone replacements and is far surpassed in excellent than any metal or ceramic material.

Wood also costs less and expends less energy to manufacture from raw material. Unlike mining for ore, trees are harvested crops and are not depleted. Only a small fraction of the forests are utilized and when managed properly they are an inexhaustible and abundant resource. Wood is also durable and ecologically sound being 100% biodegradable with renewable energy and is reusable as well. Trees provide us with oxygen, food shelter, clothing, warmth, energy and tens of thousands of other important products.

The most amazing thing about trees is that nearly every product on this world is made or produced through the resources of wood and wood-based material. It would take forever and a day to name all of nature’s wonderful gifts we receive through trees. The list goes on and on. . .

oxygen
surgical supplies
tires * rubber belts
asphalt *synthetic bones * ink
melamine *toilet paper * stain removers
calcium carbonate * wheelchairs * ceiling tiles
toilet seats * veneer * books * adhesives * mace
myrrh * cell phones * blocks * maple syrup * shade * dye
apples * almonds * bowling pins * cider * musical instruments
varnish * cabinets * protective helmets * paper * cloves * latex gloves
car keys * fabrics* protective shields * ice cream * furniture
footballs * rayon * insulation * waterproof compounds * cinnamon * lubricants
road materials * turpentine * shampoo * cardboard * food containers
art paper * shatterproof glass * rubber gloves * zippers * computer casings
shoes * cosmetics * salicylic acid * Compound W * diapers * antacids
nitrocellulose* electrical energy * olives * camphor * artificial flavorings
marine plywood * ball point pen * electrical outlets * baseballs * bath tubs * fuel
footballs * basketballs * fishing buoys * airplanes * scientific instruments
cellophane * vacuum cleaner bags * movies * medicines  * foam rubbers
molasses * syrup* carob * rosin * waxes * pitch * photographs & film * dry wall
fireworks * crayons * tannin * coffee * primers * life preservers * linoleum
anti-fungal oil * rocket propellant * particle board * pet litter * thermoplastic
plastic * furniture * combs * baby food * equine products * gum
recyclable solar cells * industrial fibers * rust remover * diamonds
candy bars * bandages * shampoo * nutmeg * ammonia
pallets * vitamins * houses * carpets * menthol
tin cans* guitar pics * paper * corks * signs
smokeless gunpowder *glucose * beds
aluminum foil
baking yeast
frankincense
disinfectants
cellulose acetate

Nothing is wasted in the industry of timber products even the residue of sawdust and bark are made into mulch to replenish and given back to the earth. Trees are a wonderful part of our civilization.

More related Posts from Timber Wise:
Wood Rot – Questions & Answers

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

Timber Can Last Indefinitely

Submerged or dry, timber can last indefinitely. Pure wood itself is not easy to destroy by the ordinary or typical operations of nature. It takes several atmospheric conditions working with each other to bring about decay. The greatest possibility of harm to trees is not moisture in and of itself. Trees flooded and submerged underwater for well over one hundred years ago have been raised from underwater as good as new. The water in lakes and rivers are in most cases too cold with insufficient oxygen to cause it to degrade. The logs retrieved from lakes are processed through conventional mills and are air or kiln dried. Although the drowned logs have faded in some cases testing shows they contain the virtual properties and quality of the best certified modern timber.

Debunking Misconceptions

Holding a Baby Bird

Timber has centuries old misconceptions long ago debunked that are still being presented as “facts”. They seem to continue on like apologues such as birds will abandon their babies if you touch them leaving your scent; even though it has been proven that birds do not smell and will not abandon a baby bird so readily; or old wavy windows are wavy because the glass is liquid and flows down over the course of time when in fact glass is a solid amorphous; old glass didn’t become wavy over time, it was like that when it was new. With timber, it takes exacting and extreme long-term atmospheric conditions to bring about decay or invite wood destroying organisms.

One of the apologues concerning timber began in 1815 with Ralph Dodd when he published a book he titled Practical Observations on Dry Rot in Timber to advertise and peddle a product he concocted called Dry Rot Preventative. Dodd took great pains emphasizing how extremely difficult it was to get rid of dry rot and made exaggerated statements to the effect that dry rot was almost impossible to stop and that you might as well “spread flames on a wall of pitch than to stop it once this destructive Dry Rot takes place”. In conditions where Dodd discovered dry rot such as on dark, dank ships his conclusions did have partial merit as it was the common practice in that day to cover floor timbers with oiled floor cloth creating an atmosphere more conducive to dry rot spores. Unfortunately this kind of misinformation has continued to stay with us. In practical building conditions Dodd’s supposition about dry rot are not relevant.

Dry Rot

Sowing Seeds

There has been much confusion as to this destructive fungus referred to as dry rot. Dry rot is Serpula lacrymans, a fungus that germinates from a spore just as fruit or vegetation grows from a seed. The spore has to be present and posit with a moisture content saturated to the point of about 28 to 30% and the humidity to be above 95 to 98% for dry rot to begin to germinate. Even in situations where walls have had high moisture content and humidity, if the wall starts to dry, dry rot cannot tolerate these dry conditions and will become dormant and eventually die. The conditions for dry rot is most likely in places where there is damp plaster, damp masonry, damp mortar and enclosed damp walls, cellars that are dark, stagnant and not ventilated. In some cases, masonry will never dry. Northern States seldom experience dry rot. Utilizing heating and air conditioning in modern buildings in the Southern States eliminating moisture problems has rendered it very difficult for dry rot to occur. Well-seasoned timber does best when it is able to breathe eliminating interstitial condensation through ventilation. Dry rot cannot exist in kiln dried lumber or thoroughly seasoned timber when the excess of moisture has been eliminated.

Wet Rot

Painted Wood

Wet rot refers to several different kinds of fungi spread by asexual spores but the treatment is the same in all cases. As with dry rot, the asexual spores must be present and wet rot cannot take place if the timber has been thoroughly seasoned and the excess of moisture eliminated. Kiln dried timber will not rot because there is not enough moisture. The moisture content has to be a minimum of at least 23 to 25% for most species to begin to germinate. Wet rot is more likely to occur in unseasoned wood or wood covered with paint or plaster not allowing the moisture to escape. Wet rot can only happen by actual contact and if it is cut out the timber kept dry will not be affected any further.

Wood Destroying Organisms

Collecting Maple into a Pitcher

The main component of wood is cellulose, the natural sugar in fresh wood. Its primary purpose is to energize and give nutrition to the growing tree. Decaying wood is a natural environment for wood destroying organisms that rely upon cellulose and long standing moisture content with oxygen to survive. Take away any of these organisms and they will not be able to survive. Most wood boring insects must lay their eggs in the summer. All wood destroying organisms have to have the right amount of high moisture content but not too much moisture as extreme moisture will also kill the fungi they need to survive on. Freezing temperatures kill most species of fungi and wood boring insects. If any of these organisms are in excess, too minimal or removed they cannot survive.

Nature, Phenomenally Marvelous!

For decomposition, fermentation or rot to occur timber has to have the right combinations of carbonic acid, hydrogen and moisture over a long period of time. Not that we would consider it marvelous from our perspective but considering all the necessary environmental conditions for wood destroying organisms to survive it is a phenomenal, amazing, wonder of nature that they are ever able to progenerate. On the other hand, nature astounds us that when timber is pressure treated or well seasoned rendering its sap inactive or removing it, it will not rot but contains the inherent properties to last indefinitely! Now, that is phenomenally marvelous!

Old Wooden Barrel in an Old Timber Building

More related Posts from Timber Wise:

Taking a Look at the Forest

In Awe of Mother Nature

Timber – Historically Strong & Architecturally Stable

No Damper Kinematic Mechanics in Timber Framing

Timber – Still Breathing Life

Best Choice for Comfort, Quality & Shade in an Outdoor Pergola

Can My Concrete Pad Hold This Pergola?

Don’t have any plans yet? That’s okay. There’s still plenty of time to decide what to do with your back yard space before spring comes in full bloom. For those who live in more balmy climates have the benefit of warm weather pretty much year-round. Pools are extremely popular in these areas, such as Florida and Louisiana. We have a gorgeous louvered roof pergola to share with you from Texas!

This pool is beautifully located at the end of the back yard, where one gets the most of the sunshine and the gorgeous view! With the  pergola placed perfectly at the end, shade is provided both on the patio and in the pool. Along the end of the pool is a pool bar, which allows for a place to sit and eat while watching those in the pool.

The spacious pergola has 6 posts so to allow for a walkway between the 4 posts on the back and the other 2 posts allow for extended shade over the pool. Curtains are attached on the south side to provide additional shade when desired. A ceiling fan is installed in the center directly above the pool bar so that the cool air will be circulated right in the hottest spot of the whole backyard. And most importantly of all, the louvered roof can open and shut at the click of a remote! Now this backyard can have the most of the sunshine, the most of the shade and everything in between!

Isn’t this a dream come true?

Check out our Louvered Roofs Gallery and share your comments below!