Orange County Alumawood Patio Covers; Many Advantages Over Wood Patio Covers 1
I have talked about the advantages and disadvantages of wood and Alumawood patio covers in the past but today I finally have some time to touch on some of the benefits of Alumawood. For starters, Alumawood patio covers are lightweight and since they seldom meet the 750 pound per post weight limit we usually can attach the post directly to an existing concrete slab instead of concrete footings. While using a concrete footing with a steel post embedded into the concrete is structurally better it is difficult to hide the cuts into the slab and there is always a different color shade where the old meets the new. An Alumawood patio cover, whether it is open lattice or the 3” insulated variety often offers a lower price provided the slab attachment meets the engineering requirements.
Alumawood Patio Covers offer Greater Space
One of the more useful options available with Alumawood patio covers that is not an easy option for wood patio covers is the post span or the distance between to vertical supporting post. While the limit without commercial size laminated beams in wood is twenty feet I have seen some open Alumawood patio covers span almost thirty feet between posts with structural steel inside the Alumawood beams straight off the standard engineering chart. Eliminating posts is a great way to give your patio area an open feel and offers a greater variety of options for patio sets and/or outdoor kitchens and barbacues.
Alumawood Patio Covers are Maintenance Free
The biggest advantage Alumawood has over wood though has to be the maintenance, or to be more specific, the lack of maintenance. Most materials offer a lifetime warranty. Since they know Aluminum takes decades to corrode this applies to the paint which has become incredibly resilient to the elements. Some manufacturers boast of porcelain infused paint while others rely on Teflon to offer a long lasting paint. While every contractor will claim the particular manufacturer they used is the greatest the world has ever known it is my opinion that they are all very good and in the fifteen years I have been in the patio business I have never heard of a warranty claim.
Installation Done Right
There is however a tremendous difference in the quality of installation and this boils down to the guy doing the installation. In my opinion the quality of the installation is 90% of a quality job and good installers are not cheap but I have found over the years it is better to make a little less than my competitors than havee put up with primidona installers who worry about phone calls when it rains. Our installers are simply the best, they take pride in their work and do the job right to ensure the patio will not leak come the rainy season. Its one of many reasons why the Patio Man has been Orange County’s most dependable Patio Cover contractors for over 25 years. You can read some of our Patio Cover Testimonials here and as always, feel free to call for a free quote or if you have any questions.
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Mission Viejo Aluminum Patio Cover Project by the Patio Man
Aug 26, 2016 @ 13:51:09
[…] about the downside of wood patio covers in a previous blog that goes into some of the details about the pros and cons of wood versus aluminum and the three items mentioned above all stand as exhibit A as to the downside of a wooden patio […]