Do you have questions about how to make the most of your elegant Alumawood patios and outdoor spaces? Are you wondering where to find the best reasonably priced patio furniture for your area? Do you need some help making your patio space warm and welcoming for friends and family? If so, your local interior design experts or landscape professionals might be able to lend a helping hand.
Your local design and construction pros can help you with all your design and decor needs so you can find the look that is just right for your outdoor space. Finding the best-rated outdoor electric heaters, the best-selling patio furniture, and all the accessories needed to make the place comfortable is easier when you have the experts working alongside you.
Whether you just need a few pieces of big comfy outdoor furniture or you are looking for all the furniture and accents and accessories for your patio area, you need to start with the local pros. Ask them for ideas and suggestions and look at what they recommend. That way, you can be sure you are getting the look and feel that is just right for your outdoor living space!
Of all the single-family homes completed in 2015, and there were about 648,000 of them, 183,000 of them had a patio and a porch, and 14,000 had a patio and a deck. This kind of hardscaping is becoming increasingly popular, with the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction revealing that in 2014, 56% of new homes under construction had a patio. So, should you get some patio stones and put one in?
What Can I Use a Patio For?
If you’re hesitating because you’re not sure what the patio should be for, don’t let that hold you back. Half of all homeowners who spend some time upgrading their outdoor space end up spending six or more hours out there enjoying it every week. The top three things people spend time doing outside are relaxing, gardening, and entertaining. Even if you’ve got a tiny patio, there are things you can do with it. Put in a bench to make more room in the space and make it unnecessary to bring in so many chairs. It could even be a storage bench, so you can keep things in it rather than clutter the area. Invest in furniture that works both indoors and outdoors. Then you can take it out when you need it and bring it back in when the weather isn’t cooperating.
How Hard Is it To Build a Stone Patio?
Patio stones aren’t terribly expensive, and building one isn’t all that difficult. It can be time-consuming, so if you get a group of friends together to help you get it all done in two or three weekends. If you’re a loner, though, you can do it in a short summer if you work steadily. What you’ll need to start out are the patio stones, measurements for size (including depth), a good base for the patio stones (crushed gravel does wonders) and a way to excavate and tamp down dirt. This could be as simple as a shovel and a tamper, or you could rent a tractor of some kind.
What Do I Do First?
Essentially, you can divide the project into three big steps. First, you’ll dig a and prepare the hole. It should be about 10 inches deep, and you’ll prepare the hole by packing around six inches of gravel into it. You’ll do this at a slight angle to allow for drainage. You want the patio to be level in reference to the patio stones, but you want the whole thing to be sloped just a bit for drainage. Then, you’ll set the patio stones at the level you want them and put down a layer of sand and tamp them down till the surface is even. Finally, you’ll fill in all the cracks with sand, tamp them down again, and then put in whatever landscaping you want around the patio.
What Else Do I Need to Consider?
First, this is a fairly simple but also laborious project. It means hauling a lot of dirt, patio stones, gravel, and sand. It also can be as expensive or as inexpensive as you want depending on just what materials you plan to use and how big you want the place to be. Finally, you can get some great ideas from your source of patio stones and flooring solutions. Paving companies or stone flooring supplier might have good ideas, as well.
A patio can be an amazing addition to the value of your home. It’s a space you’ll all enjoy using and something that will make your home more valuable when you sell it: if it’s done correctly. There’s really no reason not to consider sourcing some patio stones, getting some friends in to help, and upgrading your outdoor living space today.
