Lanai or Pergola?
Many homeowners like their outdoor space to retain an open air quality, so they refrain from building walled structures, such as screen rooms and sunrooms. The problem with not having some type of structure in an outdoor space is the lack of any protection from the sun, rain, and snow. If you want to be protected from the elements and still feel like you’re outside, a lanai or pergola may be right for you. But which one is the perfect fit for your lifestyle and needs? A lanai or pergola?
What Do They Do?
A lanai is a roofed, open-sided, fully furnished veranda that is frequently observed in tropical climates, but they can be installed practically anywhere. On the other hand, pergolas are made up of posts and beams and have neither walls nor a solid roof. Instead of a roof, beams are held up by the posts of the pergola, and the beams can then be draped in fabric or ordained with climbing plants, such as wisteria. Both lanais and pergolas can be outstanding architectural additions to any home, and either can be built by American Deck & Sunroom.
Once you have decided you want American Deck & Sunroom to help bring your dream outdoor space to life, you must decide whether a lanai or pergola is a better fit for you. To help you decide, we have outlined the differences between the two, so you can fully understand what distinguishes each open air, outdoor fixture from the other.
Lanais
The roofed, yet open nature of a custom lanai is a great way to experience the outdoors without any of the inconveniences that come with an uncovered deck. A lanai allows you to watch the rain or snow fall without getting your clothes drenched or wearing down your outdoor furniture. With a lanai, backyard parties will no longer have to be cancelled due to rain, nor will you have to lather on sunscreen just to grill out.
If you are looking for a complete outdoor room, lanais may be the way to go as you can add on full outdoor kitchens, fire pits, snack bars, hot tubs, televisions, hammocks, swings, or practically anything else you can imagine without the fear of them being damaged or your use of them being interrupted by the weather. Beside small additions like a fire pit or hot tub, a lanai is a great stepping stone toward a screened room or sunroom. If you eventually change your mind about what you want out of your outdoor space, a lanai can easily be converted to a screened room or sunroom.
Pergolas
While cheaper than a lanai, pergolas offer great customization and design opportunities. Each customized pergola can be designed to match your home or accent it. The shade offered by pergolas can come from the beams themselves, draped fabric, or by flowers, climbing plants, or vines laid atop the beams. Unlike a lanai, pergolas can be built not only affixed to your deck or attached to your home, but separately in the yard, as well. Like a lanai, a pergola is very versatile and can incorporate a garden or water garden and act as a cover for a seating area, fire pit, outdoor kitchen, pool, or hot tub, while not providing quite as much of a weather shield as a lanai. In fact, the biggest difference between lanais and pergolas is the capability of lanais to protect from rain, snow, and sun, whereas pergolas only provide shade from the sun.
Our experienced builders can help you by designing the perfect, fully customized pergola for you. When it comes to pergolas, there are a variety of material options to fit anyone’s design sensibilities, including: oak, driftwood, metal, wrought iron, fiber glass, rounded wooden poles, stone pillars and beams, brick pillars, and custom-shaped wooden beams. No matter your preference of materials or style, American Deck & Sunroom can build a pergola that is a perfect fit for both you and your home.
Remember…
No matter your architectural needs or whether you choose a lanai or pergola, American Deck & Sunroom can provide you with a custom design that will increase the worth of your home, will blend seamlessly with your existing architecture, and will last a lifetime. And if you choose a lanai and later want to convert it into a screened room or sunroom, American Deck & Sunroom can make the transition from one structure to the other go smoothly and quickly. Can’t decide between a lanai or pergola? We can do both! Many homes benefit from the beauty of both of these custom architectural additions.
At American Deck & Sunroom, we don’t build houses. We don’t just build a lanai or pergola. What we do is design and build beautiful outdoor spaces…extensions of your home that flow with your existing property and architecture. And because we specialize, we go beyond the, “If you can dream it, we can build it,” catchphrase often quoted. After nearly 20 years in business and nearly 13,000 designs and counting, we have the experience to design outdoor spaces you’ve never even dreamed possible.
