Browse Forums Outdoor Living 1 May 16, 2007 9:42 am Hi everyone, though I'd share this one with the forum on the off chance it gives someone some ideas, etc.
Two and a half years ago: Moved into new home and within 1 week had the paving laid, including the outdoor area pictured below: Two years ago: With no trees or any other shade to think of the sun beats down hard on this area (and therefore also cooks this corner of the house in the afternoon), and we decided to get a pergola built over this area to protect it and this corner of the house. Below is picture of the 3D CG model I made when discussing the concept with my wife, then (the only shot I could find) a shot from the front of the finished pergola: One year ago: After getting buffeted with wind out there any time there is so much as a breeze and having had enough, we decided to enclose the area with a combination of solid walls and clear PVC patio blinds (to also keep out the rain etc.), as well as do some fancy brickwork that included the BBQ (get it off it's ricketty trolley), a bench to the left of the BBQ to free up the sides of the BBQ itself from clutter (plates, etc., anything that didn't actually need to be next to the BBQ purely for BBQ purposes), and some planter bozes to finish it off. Here is the 3D concept I made: I constructed the outer side wall, complete with cemented-in posts, angled laser-lite roof with matching guttering (tapped into original pergola downpipe) and flashing/capping. I (with help) did all of the wiring of the lights, powerpoints, and the 2 electric rediating warehouse heaters. I also contructed the framework that the clear PVC blinds would be mounted to. Got a bricky in to do the obvious - using all but about 30 of the 700 odd bricks I saved after the house was finished. Got in some sandy-toned river stones to fill the garden bed left at the front end and to fill the planter boxes (maintenance free ) and under the bench. Installed a pair of wall-mounted water features (keeps the WAF up), and the 2 all-weather outdoor speakers (connected with wire I ran while the house was being built). Then the PVC blind blokes came and did their thing, and after a pressure clean the place was finished: We like it, and it has got some good comments.[/img] Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 2May 16, 2007 10:49 am Wow - that is a fantastic outdoor entertaining area! Congrats on doing a lot of the work yourself too (I am terribly un-handy!) Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 3May 16, 2007 12:10 pm Hey, thanks. It was rewarding, especially when it came together much like I had planned and I was able to do quite a lot myself.
You'd be suprised how much is not that complicated, and having the right tools really makes a huge difference. Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 4May 17, 2007 7:48 am I said in another post that I could never remember the name of the company that supplied my clear patio blinds....
Well, here they are: http://www.patioblinds.com.au Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 8Oct 24, 2007 9:53 pm Its got a bar……look for his other post with the bar in it! Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 9Oct 24, 2007 9:54 pm Rodda……I’m getting the Café blinds also down the track for my awning.
How do they secure to the ground when they are down? I don’t want them flapping around. Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 10Oct 24, 2007 9:59 pm Michelle Its got a bar……look for his other post with the bar in it! I think he was joking Michelle.... Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 11Oct 24, 2007 10:01 pm I knew that!!!! Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 12Oct 25, 2007 7:23 am Hi Michelle.
The blinds have zips running down the entire length of both sides (heavy, heavy duty), they have a heavy metal 'log' (it's more than a rod as it's about 60mm in diametre) along the bottom and have a little tie on each end of that bottom 'log' that you tie to little hooks they installed at the bottom of the posts the zips are secured to: Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ When getting the quote from these guys I said pretty much in these words "these things need to be able to stand up to gale-force winds". They said that wouldn't be a problem. Their recommendation was to leave them down most of the time, especially when it was windy. So far they have stood up to a lot of very serious wind (occasionally). Easily. Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 13Oct 25, 2007 9:05 am Wow that looks fabulous - our design has a 9x4.6m outdoor area under the roofline of the house so I'm looking for ways to keep the wind out when we are using the area and I was wondering about those cafe blinds...
About the BBQ - so you just literally unscrewed the BBQ section from the legs and popped it on the bench there? Fiona Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 14Oct 25, 2007 9:59 am Rodda Hi Michelle. The blinds have zips running down the entire length of both sides (heavy, heavy duty), they have a heavy metal 'log' (it's more than a rod as it's about 60mm in diametre) along the bottom and have a little tie on each end of that bottom 'log' that you tie to little hooks they installed at the bottom of the posts the zips are secured to: Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ When getting the quote from these guys I said pretty much in these words "these things need to be able to stand up to gale-force winds". They said that wouldn't be a problem. Their recommendation was to leave them down most of the time, especially when it was windy. So far they have stood up to a lot of very serious wind (occasionally). Easily. Rodda……I’m sure on accessions there is a HUGE amount of wind coming from your bar area!!! Thanks for that…..looks like you have got the better out of a few that are on the market, can I ask where you got them from? Thanks….. Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 15Oct 25, 2007 10:13 am Hi Fiona. Thanks.
Re the BBQ, sort of... The BBQ was on a jarrah trolley. The BBQ itself has a lip on each side, just under an inch wide. It was literally resting on the trolley just with these edges. The brickie measured the width he would need and made the brickwork such that the gap between the 2 brick sides of the BBQ was just enough to fit the bottom section of the actual BBQ between, so there was/is plenty of lip on each side resting on the bricks (geez I hope that made some sense). See this quick diagram I've done representing the current BBQ resting on the bricks (the bricks are the orange sections): Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ P.S. Yes, a hole did have to be made/left on the left side for the gas hose to pass through from the gas bottle and be attached to the bottom left front corner of the BBQ itself. Attaching that when putting the BBQ into the brickwork was a bit of fun... Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 16Oct 25, 2007 10:24 am Michelle, only when Matt is over!!!!
The blinds were supplied by a guy/business local to me (I think he's based in Berwick), and I believe the only good way to contact them is via phone. Anyone wanting their phone number please just PM me. I know Matt's dad has just gotten a quote from him and it was half of what another company quoted... Did I mention they installed them for me on Christmas Eve! - which was a Sunday to boot! (they knew I had a Christmas lunch for 22 people out there the next day, and the blinds were the last thing to finish the area off). Re: Turned my Pergola into a fully enclosed outdoor area 17Oct 25, 2007 10:45 am Instillation Christmas Eave…….Sunday???
What’s going on over your way? That’s great!!!! Must be your smooth persona….. Guess I’ll have to source someone closer to home, for the installation side of things. Thanks Rodda! Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com I need to replace some lengths of aluminum shower frame but I can't seem to find any suppliers of this stuff. Neither the blue or orange home centers carry these things.… 0 5705 About a year ago, I embarked on a DIY project to construct an outdoor Pergola, which measures approximately 5.2 meters by 4.0… 0 30013 CDC Housing Code 3 When to apply Floor Area external face of wall vs Gross Floor Area internal face of wall. Reading thru CDC Housing Code 3, lets take a lot 915sqm.… 0 17575 |