A retractable roof system, also referred to as a retractable canopy, is able to fulfil many purposes around your property. You can install free-standing retractable canopy anywhere within your property, although mostly they are installed at the rear of the home in the garden. You can place one up above your patio in order to convert the space into a veranda as and when you want some more shade or protection from the rain. A free-standing retractable roof system can used instead of a gazebo to make a high quality outdoor seating area that can be placed anywhere within a garden, but you’ll get the added benefit of being able to convert the space into an open air area as and when you want, which you don’t get with a standard gazebo. In this article, we will explain what retractable roof systems are available on the market, how they work, and why you should install one.
The biggest advantage of a retractable canopy over alternative products is its flexibility. When you look at an alternative, such as a retractable garden awning, you get a similar flexibility, but you lose some of the protective benefit offered by a retractable roof system, where you can also install the system to provide protection from wind and rain coming in from the sides. Besides that product, you also have others such as a fixed canopy or a gazebo, both of which fail on the flexibility metric, as they don’t allow you to retract the awning when you want to be able to sit down in the space but enjoy the sun. A retractable canopy, thanks to its retractable mechanism, is able to offer strong protection, but thanks to the flexibility of the product you only have to use it when you want to use it.
The basic model of retractable canopy will come in a variety of shapes and sizes. The retractable component of the product is almost always an automatic process, with an electric motor that drives the process and a remote control or switch that you can use to operate it. Usually the products that you purchase will have a slight incline on one side that will direct the flow of rain water to the outside of the space. As an aside, the installation will typically incorporate some sort of splash protection so that water erosion is kept to a minimum. You can also get roof systems that use a corrugated surface rather like guttering in order to control the flow of rain water. You can also get retractable canopies that can include a subtle guttering system that will direct the water into the home’s drain or with a drain created during the roof system’s installation.
In more advanced models of retractable canopy, the products will also incorporate some protection that comes in from the side that will also be retractable – retractable walls, if you will. These can be used in order to bridge the gap between a veranda and a conservatory, by providing your outdoor space with additional protection. Again, this is also implemented with a retractable setting so that the flexibility of a retractable canopy is maintained and enhanced. Obviously, the downside of this addition is that you lose some of the charm of being outside and of having an uninterrupted view of the outside, but as a bonus you will be able to expand your use of the space to a wider range of weather conditions. While you can always retract the walls as well, you could always purchase ones that use materials that are translucent or transparent in order to maintain a view of the outside that you can enjoy. Lastly we need to discuss the materials that are used to install the retractable canopy. Usually the canopies that are on the market are made with fabric that are supported by aluminium beams at the corners of the installation. These beams both provide support for the canopy, as well as serve as an important component for maintaining the high tension of the fabric, which is done in order to preserve the high quality of the protection they provide. The fabric canopies are driven by electric motors due to the high tension making it a very difficult process to do manually. The canopies are usually retracted into a roller assembly, which rolls up the fabric for smaller storage. The are also metallic retractable roof systems that are able to be retracted thanks to segmentation of parts allowing for the roof to collapse into a smaller space. As an added benefit to these products you get added protection and durability, but as a downside you should expect to pay more money.