Need More Shade? Add a Pergola or Pavilion to Your Outdoor Living Space in the Mechanicsburg and Hershey, PA, Areas

Spending all summer outside in your outdoor living space means contending with the wild swings in weather. A pergola or pavilion added to your backyard will allow for maximum enjoyment of your outdoor living features whether the sun is bearing down or a sudden rainstorm shows up. As you embark on this year’s landscape renovation, be sure to consider the question: Do I need more shade? Add a pergola or pavilion to your outdoor living space in the Mechanicsburg and Hershey, PA, areas and extend your enjoyment of the great outdoors. Here’s how.

What Is a Pergola?

A pergola is a timeless outdoor shelter designed to beat the heat. It consists of a set of four or more wooden posts that hold up an open roof with horizontal beams that cross the semi-open “ceiling” of the pergola, allowing some sunlight to get through. However, the beams block direct sunlight as the sun moves across the sky, decreasing heat and allowing hot air to escape. Meanwhile, the open walls of the pergola allow for a steady breeze.

What Is a Pavilion?

The pavilion is a structure that’s more weatherproof than a pergola. Pavilions retain the open wall design of pergolas, yet they have a closed roof to provide shelter from the elements. A pavilion offers the opportunity for a much more involved outdoor living space. Pavilions can be decked out with entertainment systems, heaters and air conditioning, as well as the best advancements in outdoor living technology. If pergolas let you customize your outdoor living, then pavilions can take outdoor luxury to a whole new level. Adding an outdoor fireplace to the pavilion effectively transforms it into a four-season outdoor structure - making it one of the best investments in outdoor living that you can make.

Where Should My Shelter Go?

A pergola or a pavilion offer some of the comforts of the home while allowing you to fully experience the joys of outdoor living. A shelter structure should be placed near some of your favorite outdoor living features such as a pool over an outdoor kitchen. If there’s a great view, take advantage of it by placing your shelter so key activities can be enjoyed “with a view.” A pergola or pavilion should be in a spot that receives some good breezes, but avoids the strongest winds. It should be a space in your landscape that feels serene and welcoming.

How Can My Shelter Complement the Landscape?

Integrating your pavilion or pergola into your outdoor living space can often mean some intentional connections to nature. This can come in the form of increased plant life in and around the shelter structure such as climbing vines which will increase the amount of shade while providing fruit and attracting pollinating wildlife. A pavilion can house masonry planters that contain shade-loving plants that would otherwise have a hard time thriving in direct sunlight in the garden. Choosing the right wood tone will also help the structure blend in beautifully.

What Are Some Design Options?

Continue the themes and aesthetics of your home such as wood and masonry cues into your perfect outdoor shelter. Both structures can be very simple or ornate; modern, traditional, or rustic; and they can be any size, from a tiny shelter for a bench overlooking a pond to a grand structure that shelters an outdoor kitchen, dining area, and lounge area with a full outdoor fireplace.