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The addition of an elegant gazebo design can be the perfect addition to your landscape. Whether you choose to have professional gazebo builders construct your gazebo or built it yourself from scratch or from one of the great gazebo kits, you can add a feature that is almost like having an extra room outdoors to enjoy.

A gazebo can be added in nearly any landscape. Gazebo designs can be created for construction in a shallow pond at the end of a short dock, atop a rise in the landscape, or simply in a nice spot of open grassy lawn. The benefits of a well designed gazebo include a shady area in which to sit and enjoy your garden, shelter to enjoy watching gentle showers, and a great place to use as the center of a lawn and garden party.

Gazebo design can be created for you by an architect or structural engineer but that can be costly. Designs for gazebos can be found online at little or no cost, and your local home improvement or lawn and garden center may well have gazebo designs which are complimentary. Magazines are another resource for locating gazebo design ideas

Planning Your Gazebo Project.

Even if you employ professional gazebo builders to construct your project, you'll want to have a general idea of what you desire. The size, shape, materials, and other design feature should be considered as well as how you wish to use the finished gazebo. Will you want electric power outlets provided in the design? How many steps would you desire for a raised gazebo? Will the gazebo be placed near or in water? All these questions must be thought out and the gazebo builder can then help you determine the best gazebo design for your unique wants and needs. Unless you are an experienced, professional builder, you would certainly want to employ gazebo builders to construct an in-water gazebo project because of the special skills and equipment required.

The easiest way to get a backyard gazebo design that is reasonably easy for any handy person to construct is to purchase one of the many gazebo kits. You'll find kits for gazebos in a variety of sizes and with various features such as built-in seating. The gazebo kits contain all the materials needed and very clear instructions to help you successfully build a backyard gazebo.

Gazebo kits are designed to be put together by people with little or no construction experience. These kits provide the most affordable option for acquiring a structurally sound gazebo design which will become a functional enhancement to your property. It is a good idea to have a friend or two available to help so you can complete your gazebo in one day or over the weekend.

Kits gazebos are frequently made of vinyl and metal and may or may not include pre-treated lumber as part of the structure. Some very long-lasting, super-durable vinyl products which look exactly like wood but are made from recycled plastics have become popular for gazebo designs. These vinyl products are manufactured in several colors with white being the most common and popular so there is no need to ever paint the gazebo to maintain its attractiveness.

Gazebo kits contain pre-cut materials so there is no measuring and cutting needed, making it difficult to make an error in building your gazebo design. With the large variety of kits available, you may wish to visit a large home improvement center which has a variety of the gazebo kits constructed and on display in order to really see what the finished product will look like in the size and shape you feel you desire.

What Size Gazebo Fits Your Needs

Take some time to look at the various sizes, shapes, materials, and options as well as comparing prices so you can get exactly what you desire at the best possible price. Once you've seen some of the gazebo kits on display, you may find the best prices on the design you desire from online vendors but be sure to compare the prices with shipping included since a large gazebo design can require costly shipping. Once all factors are taken into account, however, you may find the best deal online or at your local home center. You may also find that you local home center offers online specials not advertised in-store, so take time to look at their website before making a final purchase.

An attractive [gazebo] design can be just what you need to really enjoy your garden and landscape. Creating your own garden structure from a kit design can be a satisfying experience and you may even decide the project is fun and help your friends add gazebo designs constructed from gazebo kits in their own landscapes.

You may think that creating simple stone patios is far beyond your abilities. This is not true if you have some basic experience working with concrete and have the strength or assistance available to move the stones you wish to use to create your patio. It is necessary to do some careful planning and follow instructions carefully in order to obtain good results when creating your simple stone patio. The whole process is much easier if you have some help from friends or family or hire someone to help you with the more difficult tasks.

Choose Stones:

First, you must choose the type and size of stone you wish to use for your patio. If you are going to be working primarily alone, select stones or pavers which are small enough and light enough in weight for you to move them by yourself. If you wish to use larger stones or pavers, you'll need to enlist reliable help since some of the steps must be completed without stopping for long periods of time.

Planning:

You'll need to know if there are any lines for gas, electric, or telephone under the soil where you plan to lay your patio. You can learn this information by calling your local utility companies. Determine the exact dimensions for the patio, keeping in mind that you do not want to bite off more than you can chew. In the case of do-it-yourself stone patios, it is better to tackle a reasonably sized project so you can be happy with the result rather than trying for a massive project that will be difficult to successfully complete.

The thickness of the stone or pavers you will be using when creating your stone patio will be important to your construction. Be sure to measure the stone thickness so that your bed will allow room for the stone without raising the stone higher than the doorway opening onto the patio.

Prepare the Site:

You'll need to excavate the site to a depth of 6 to 12 inches below the height of the finished patio. This means removing grass or other plants and leveling the soil using a builder's level. If necessary, ask someone to teach you how to use the builder's level to level the soil. Mark stakes at each corner and in several locations along each side so that you know exactly where the finished patio top will be located. The site will need to be compressed with a plate compactor which can be rented at a hardware rental center or a home improvement center.

Create the Bed:

Use a blend of crushed stone and stone dust, called pack, to build a bed on which your patio will rest. This is completed by laying 3-inch thick layers of pack, wetting the pack with water to reduce dust, then compact that layer with a plate compactor. Repeat this process until the top of the bed reaches a point below the finished grade mark which is the thickness of your stone plus one inch (for example, for 2-inch thick stone, the bed should remain 3 inches below the level of the finished patio top.

Spread Setting Bed:

Mix one part dry cement mix with 12 parts stone dust, adding water to create a stiff mix. Start in one corner of the bed and place concrete mix into bed over an area large enough to lay one stone. Level that portion of the bed with a hand trowel. Spread the concrete thicker than the space allowed for the dry bed because stones will settle into the wet concrete when laid. Depending on the size and weight of stones or pavers used, the settling may cause the stones to sink one-half to one inch or even more into the wet concrete. Move on to setting the stone in this concrete before spreading and leveling the concrete for the next stone.

Lay the Stone:

Place your first stone onto the wet concrete, jiggling it into the exact location desired. Place a bubble level on top of the stone. Use a rubber hammer to tap the stone securely into place, checking that it is level. Add or remove concrete as needed to get the stone perfectly level.

Once you have leveled the first stone, spread the setting bed for the next stone and lay that stone. Be sure to leave space between stones to allow for swelling and shrinking due to heat, cold, and moisture. Repeat until you have laid all the stones. Cut stones or pavers to fit those areas which are not large enough for a whole stone.

Fill Joints:

After the concrete has set, spread stone dust over the stones and sweep it into the spaces between stones to fill the joints. Spray the [patio] with water to cause the stone dust to settle and compact in the joints between stones. Spread more stone dust and again sweep it into the joints. This time, use a trowel to tamp the dust into the joints after wetting the dust. This creates a stable fill for the joints.

Finishing Touches:

If desired, you may wish to lay an edge around the stones using bricks, cobblestone, smaller stones, or other material. This is not required but can give a completed look. If using edging material, spread stone dust between the edge of the patio stones and the edge material. Wet the stone dust to settle and compact it.

Sweep off the finished patio or hose away any debris. Bring out the patio furniture, relax and enjoy the fruits of your labors. Now it's time to start planning some fun and easy patio parties for friends and family. You'll love telling them about creating your fun simple stone patio.

Are you planning to build a backyard deck this year? Maybe you already have a deck and simply want to update it to make it more a part of your lifestyle. Whatever your specific situation, you’ll want to incorporate some backyard deck ideas that will allow you to have the best possible deck for the least possible investment. You’ll also want a deck that will last for years and years with little or no maintenance. Here are some ideas for backyard decks that may help you design the deck that is perfect for your home and your family.

Consider a spa deck. It can be so relaxing to come in from a hard day of work to sit in a hot tub of Jacuzzi on your backyard deck . If you are planning a spa deck, incorporate some privacy in your plans. You can do this by placing structural timbers on the side of the deck which are visible to neighbors and planting climbing vines so that they will climb these timbers. You can create the same effect by stringing lightweight rope from nails placed at the top and bottom of the deck supports and allowing the vines to grow to cover these ropes. At the end of the growing season, you can remove the ropes and re-do the vines next spring.

Built in plants are great. If you love plants, why not build planters into your deck design? You can easily create flower boxes, or containers in which you can plant large specimen plants or small trees right on the deck. Use the same materials that are used for building the deck to provide a sense of continuity and wholeness to the overall design. You can create planters that have interesting geometric designs using the materials, or simply build boxes. Either way, you’ll want to include a means for the planters to drain easily and make sure the planters are positioned so that the drainage will flow off the edges of the deck.

Use low maintenance materials. You can create an all-wood deck and keep it low maintenance by treating the wood with an all-weather finish product specifically made for use on decks. Be sure that any finish you apply to the wood deck is not going to become slippery when wet to prevent possible accidents. Today, with composite materials, you can build a deck that looks and feels like wood but actually contains no wood at all. These composite materials will last for decades without any refinishing whatsoever. While the expense may be slightly higher when you initially build the deck, it will become less expensive as the years go by because you will not have to invest in refinishing and retreating any wooden deck materials.

Create areas for sun and shade. When designing your perfect backyard deck, incorporate areas which are exposed to full sun for lounging on sunny days. But too much sun is not a good thing, so you’ll want to include areas that are shaded. This can be accomplished by building a roof over a portion of the backyard deck to shade one area and leaving another area without any covering.

Modular seating or not? You may want to have built-in benches along the sides of your deck, or you may want to use moveable seating in the form of outdoor furniture. That choice is entirely up to your personal preferences. However, you might consider including both! Create a built-in bench around a corner planter. Then place an umbrella table and comfortable chairs in the center of the deck or on the sunny side of a deck that contains both sunny and shady areas.

There are infinite ideas for backyard decks but it all comes down to building a deck that you and your family will love and use regularly. Make your [deck design] welcoming and homey and you’ll find that during pleasant weather you actually have another ‘room’ added to your home!