Shade solutions for your backyard: pergolas, sun sails and sun shades
A pergola example
If you can’t stand the sun, get in the shade
Colorado boasts over 300 days of sun, and while it’s great to soak up some rays once in awhile, many people prefer the option of some shade. Most of us don’t enjoy sitting in the mid-afternoon sun, specially when hanging on the back deck and letting your kids play.
For this reason, we at Constructive Builders have identified a couple of easy, and nice-looking, solutions to add shade to your backyard.
The first are sun sails. They have these for sale at McGuckins here in
Sun Sail Example
Boulder (and a lot of other places I’m sure), and they’re basically big sheets of sail cloth that you can hang up to cover portions of side or overhead sun. We can construct simple poles or loop fasteners to keep the sun sail in place, and if you want to take it down for a party or during the winter, it’s easy to remove. They can look pretty cool, especially if you like a more colorful back yard. However, one thing to watch out for is wind gusts, which might cause some problems for these sails and can be rather prevalent in Boulder, Louisville, etc.
The second is a wooden sun shade. Built to divert the sun based on your latitude, these shades add an architectural element and can also add privacy. Check out this great article from Fine Homebuilding “Drawing Board: Designing Sunscreens”.
You can also build a pergola type structure, which can look really nice and provide some intermittent sun protection.
If you’re looking for a reliable, local contractor, to help with these projects, feel free to contact us!
