When I first saw a picture of the view from this outdoor room in Gibsonia PA (near Pittsburgh PA), I was amazed at how beautiful the patio cover was and could imagine myself sitting on that bright red couch reading a book and sipping an ice-cold lemonade while listening to the trickling of the water in the outdoor garden and pond.

Dry Snap underdecking for patio cover

Then I realized that this patio cover was made to build out the space under the deck and to make the lower level rear home entry/exit into an oasis.

The customer wanted the area below their deck for an outdoor living room.  They wanted it to be dry.  Aesthetically they did not want it to look like an underside of a deck. I think of what’s under my deck and so many others I’ve seen – unfinished lattice boards, lawnmowers, wheelbarrows, rakes, bikes, old tarps, a grill pushed under the deck and so much more. This being said, most of us don’t have a deck high enough from the ground to accommodate a room under it.

Deck patio cover ceiling fan

One of the features that I love under this deck is the ceiling tongue and groove look complete with ceiling fan.

The next feature I love is the Doric style columns. As you’ll note from the before picture below, the previous deck columns were simply wood beams. The homeowners wanted columns to hide the posts, but did not want flimsy vinyl.  So Archadeck of North Pittsburgh found fiber cement columns with a very solid feel that enclosed the existing support posts.

Here is a before picture that shows the old posts.

Old wood deck posts before they were covered and beautified

The next thing these homeowners wanted was some water protection. This would be the outdoor area they would enjoy even when it was raining. So they used DrySnap under decking.

DrySnap is made of vinyl ceiling panels. The panels collect and drain water away from your new dry space. The panels are maintenance free. Best of all, they cover the unsightly underside of your deck. As a national deck builder, Archadeck has access to and is constantly being presented with the newest materials and technologies. We love to use branded materials from trusted vendors that we approve when they are up to our quality standards.

Normally the under deck system slopes towards the outer edge of the deck.  The home owners had a large goldfish pond and did not want excess water from a rain going into the pond.  So Archadeck sloped the patio ceiling panels towards the house and routed the rain water into their existing down spout system which discharged the rain water at the street.

Kevin Hilliard Custom Decks North Pittsburgh PA

For more information or questions, feel free to Contact Kevin Hilliard of Archadeck of North Pittsburgh.

Visit the Archadeck of North Pittsburgh web site

Call (724) 482 – 9090
or email: northpittsburgh@archadeck.net