Cantilever shade umbrellas

[MBAustin]

We have a nice back patio that is unusable much of the time due to the intense central TX sun. I was considering talking to a contractor about putting a roof (and fan) over the patio, but DD and DS reminded me how nice the sunny afternoons are in the winter and DS suggested a cantilever shade umbrella. I had no idea they were so common, and so varied in cost - from under $100 to over $2000. Anyone here with any experience and/or recommendations?

 

[MichaelB]

This umbrella: Treasure Garden Aluminum 9’ https://www.patioliving.com/treasure-garden-9-foot-patio-umbrellas-shade-exum920quickship

The base: Parma https://www.article.com/product/12572/paima-black-umbrella-base

Both recommended by Wirecutter. For both beach and patio umbrellas, more money does not equate to better quality.

 

[Jerry1]

We bought a nice one from Costco. They are very nice, but they are not a good answer to your problem when you have windy days. Even if they can handle a bit of wind, they are a bit disconcerting to sit under while it’s windy out. I’m thinking about fastening mine directly to my concrete patio but even with that, there are days when the wind would be too much for the structure.

I’m thinking of a simple pergola with a retractable shade. Something like this:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Paragon...Wood-and-Sand-Color-Canopy-PR16WD2S/304741725


ETA:

We have this one:

https://www.costco.com/sunvilla-10'-cantilever-umbrella.product.100536193.html

 

[euro]

Retractable awning:

https://www.homedepot.com/b/Doors-Windows-Awnings-Retractable-Awnings/N-5yc1vZbbuk

 

[Jerry1]

Retractable awning:

https://www.homedepot.com/b/Doors-Windows-Awnings-Retractable-Awnings/N-5yc1vZbbuk

We have one of those too and they’re only marginally better in the wind. And, they’re attached to your house so if you have an issue, there will be damage to your house.

Don’t get me wrong, we have and enjoy both the cantilever umbrella and the retractable shade, but wind does cause some issues and there are many days when the sun is beating down and it’s windy enough that they are uncomfortable to use. Both are essentially kites waiting to take off.

 

[REWahoo]

I would love to have one of those umbrellas for our deck but the winds are far too strong, especially since we live near the top of a hill. After seeing these used to shade an outdoor dining area at a local restaurant, I ordered two "shade sails" from Amazon and installed them over our deck. They work great and have held up very well over the past year, including lots of very strong wind gusts. They come in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes and aren't difficult to install if you have good mounting points. I think I spent less than $200 on both sails and all mounting hardware.

This is a photo of the first one I installed (yes, I definitely need to re-stain the deck!):

 

[Jerry1]

Yeah, I would love a sail. Unfortunately, I think I’d need some pretty substantial anchor points to make it work over the patio I use. Still, that’s one of the options on the table. Plus, given the cost of wood (for a pergola), the cost of anchor points may be less than the cost to build a pergola.

 

[REWahoo]

You can see in the photo that I mounted two corners directly to the house, just below the gutter. For the other corners I bolted two 8 ft long galvanized posts (corner posts for a chain link fence) to the outside of my deck railing. Turned out to be a very sturdy mounting system.

 

[Jerry1]

You can see in the photo that I mounted two corners directly to the house, just below the gutter. For the other corners I bolted two 8 ft long galvanized posts (corner posts for a chain link fence) to the outside of my deck railing. Turned out to be a very sturdy mounting system.

Yeah, mine would have to be freestanding. Too far from the house and no other structure to attach to. Still, I’m thinking a triangle sail which would require three posts might still be cost effective. But, the posts would have to be substantial. I’m thinking I’d need some engineering help to make sure it would hold up.

 

[intent]

Are the sails better able to withstand wind than the awnings? If they're attached to the house, as the awnings are, I would be concerned about damage to the house.

 

[braumeister]

Yeah, mine would have to be freestanding. Too far from the house and no other structure to attach to. Still, I’m thinking a triangle sail which would require three posts might still be cost effective. But, the posts would have to be substantial. I’m thinking I’d need some engineering help to make sure it would hold up.

Nah, just attach each corner to a quadcopter drone with station-keeping software and a Bluetooth connection to your phone so you can tell it how to move as the sun changes position in the sky. Simple!

 

[Jerry1]

I’m thinking something like this:

My concern would be making sure the poles are suitable for the space I want to span and the tension they’d need to handle.

 

[REWahoo]

Are the sails better able to withstand wind than the awnings?

No experience with awnings, but I suspect the fact the sails are mounted to the house only on the corners rather than entirely along one side like an awning makes a substantial difference in how it handles wind. We've had many days with strong winds (40+ mph wind gusts) over the past year without a problem.

 

[Jerry1]

Are the sails better able to withstand wind than the awnings? If they're attached to the house, as the awnings are, I would be concerned about damage to the house.

I think they would be better because they are tied down at each end. The retractable awning is only attached to the house on the long end. This creates a situation that is very susceptible to wind. The sail, being attached at all corners is going to move less and generate less force from wind. However, the attach point on the house would still need to be quite substantial. Not like you can just put an eyebolt into the facia and call it good.

 

[REWahoo]

However, the attach point on the house would still need to be quite substantial. Not like you can just put an eyebolt into the facia and call it good.

Although I didn't use an eyebolt, I did attach the two house corners directly to the fascia board below my gutter. My fascia is actually a 2x8 and each bracket uses four stainless steel screws, resulting in a very sturdy mounting point.

 

[Jerry1]

Although I didn't use an eyebolt, I did attach the two house corners directly to the fascia board below my gutter. My fascia is actually a 2x8 and each bracket uses four stainless steel screws, resulting in a very sturdy mounting point.

It’s all very site specific. I’m no expert, but I’d be very concerned about how it gets attached to the house. On the one hand, if you stick an eyebolt in the fascia, the most likely fail is a stripped out hole in your fascia. Probably not a big deal. However if you attach it securely enough to your fascia, the force might rip your fascia off. It’s all about the weak spot in the system. Then there’s many other things to consider, again, I’m no expert, but a smaller sail is going to exert less force in a wind gust. The tighter you can get it the less force there will be when the wind kicks up. The whipping action of a loose sail probably has a lot of force. Again, I’m no expert and like many things in life, people get by and are very happy with how things turn out.

Personally, if I was going to attach it to my house, I’d want to tie into a rafter or ceiling joist. My retractable awning has U bolts clamping around my rafters through the roofing into the structure of the awning. I wouldn’t have done it that way because I don’t like a holes though my roof but it was there when I bought the house. For the sail, it won’t matter because I won’t be attaching it to the house. I need the sail to be higher than my house (single story ranch) and the patio is a good 10 feet away from the house.

 

[MBAustin]

Thanks for all of the ideas, more welcome.

I have ruled out an awning as the only place to mount one is on a double-wide masonry chimney which takes up nearly all of the rear wall. I think that also rules out the sail idea, plus I want something I can easily "open" or "close" for when we want the sun.

The patio itself is relatively well sheltered - fully on two sides and partially on the left side by the garage (not in picture).



So I'm not terribly worried about wind (as long as I remember to close the umbrella when storms are in the forecast).

The retractable pergola is an option I had not considered, I may look into that as well. Thanks!

 

[Sunset]

Yeah, mine would have to be freestanding. Too far from the house and no other structure to attach to. Still, I’m thinking a triangle sail which would require three posts might still be cost effective. But, the posts would have to be substantial. I’m thinking I’d need some engineering help to make sure it would hold up.

Just embed the posts in the ground in concrete like you would for a fence, seems like it would pretty solid.

I'm struggling to pull out a galvanized post the previous owner put in the backyard.

 

[Jerry1]

Just embed the posts in the ground in concrete like you would for a fence, seems like it would pretty solid.

I'm struggling to pull out a galvanized post the previous owner put in the backyard.

The pressure is lateral. When you tighten the sail, you have to put a lot of tension on it. The poles need to be able to withstand that pressure without bending inward. You can run a guide wire like they do for telephone poles, but I don’t have the room for that - they would be a trip hazard.

The most likely scenario is the pergola with a retractable shade. I can set that right on my patio without any footings, just mounted into the concrete at each post. Without a roof, there’s not a lot of pressure from the wind to deal with in that setup.

 

[RockyMtn]

We have four patio umbrellas out by our pool. The biggest is a 13 foot cantilever. It also rotates 360° to give you a variety of shading options.

 

[rk911]

we have a cantilever umbrella bolted down on our deck. it also rotates to cover either the eating or sitting area. we bought it at American Sales 3-yrs ago. we keep it retracted when we're not using the deck.

 

[pacergal]

We have tried a sunshade for several years.
Last year I bought a large cantilever Sunbrella fabric one with solar lights from Home Depot. We love it! It provides nice shade, can tilt to help with sunset changes, and the lights are nice in the evening. It cost about $600, plus the sand for the base.
You do need to be careful of wind gusts though. We had a sudden unexpected gust (30-40 mph) that flipped the umbrella inside out within the first few weeks.DH had been stepping outside the door to close it when the wind started!
Luckily, the customer service rep at HD was very helpful and sent a replacement after looking at our pictures.