Our Company Blog
How to Warm Up Your Outdoor Space This Winter
With Halloween past and Thanksgiving coming quick, it is the season for entertaining. More people travel for Thanksgiving than almost any other time of the year and a fair majority of these people are gathering together with family for holiday festivities. A few fortunate homeowners have enough space for their visitors. A few can head outside to patios when space gets crowded. What do you do when your house is getting cramped, but temperatures are frigid outside? Don’t worry! There are ways to warm up your outdoor space this winter.
Fire Features
The most popular options for outdoor patios, pool-sides, and gardens are fire. Homeowners love fireplaces, and they don’t have to be inside. A fireplace can complement the aesthetic of your home on the inside, an outside fire feature can complement much more. You can choose a fire pit with a stone finish that matches the tones of your house, choose a chimenea that accentuates the shrubbery in your landscape or the curling vines in your garden, or pick a custom fire table that doubles as a table at dinnertime. When you’re looking to add a fire feature to your outdoor space, make sure you work within your city’s laws and codes. You should also choose the best fuel type for your needs. If you have a source for firewood, you may choose a wood fire. If it’s quick and convenient you want, gas is the better option. Whatever you choose, make sure you contact a certified dealer for your appliance and hire a licensed contractor to install it.
Patio Heaters and Lamps
Even if you have a fire feature such as a fireplace, fire pit, or chimenea, you may still need extra heat for your outdoor space. Depending on your budget, there are many possibilities. Portable patio heaters usually burn propane and can be moved as needed, but many homeowners dislike them because they can be unattractive and impossible to hide. There are electric tower heaters that are less ostentatious but have to stay plugged into an outlet. For short periods these may be the best option. However, a more permanent heat source that can remain hidden year-round is a heater that is mounted onto walls or beneath patio roofing. Because of the incredible amount of heat they generate, an outside wall-mount or built-in should only be installed by a certified professional. Infratech is a brand of outdoor heaters that uses infrared energy to create a direct wavelength of light that carries heat with it. The heat from an Infratech patio heater will reach your guests and will not blow away in windy or drafty conditions. You can choose between a heater that emits light or one that emits none at all while still producing the heat your outdoor gathering needs.
Heated Floors and Rugs
Most of the heat that leaves your body goes through the head and the feet. In the same way, your guests will feel warmer when their feet are warmer. You can add warmth to your outdoor space with rugs on stone and concrete patios and even add radiant heating to deck floors. Radiant heat is growing in popularity not just for keeping guests comfortable, but also for melting snow throughout winter months. If you’re interested in heated flooring for your outdoor space, it’s important to do your research and talk with a professional as you plan.
Heated Pools and Spas
Most homeowners opt to clean and give their poolside a rest for the winter months. If you can turn your summer pool into a heated pool for the winter your guests will enjoy it! This may be the most expensive way to add heat to your outside space because there is a lot of water to heat! One way to cut costs is to use solar power to heat your pool by day and still enjoy it by night. On a smaller scale, you can invest in a hot tub for the same effect. They require less maintenance, less water, and less heating costs. Make sure you utilize patio heaters so no one gets too cold on the way back into the house!
Warm Atmosphere
Like putting down a rug or throwing on a light blanket, sometimes it’s the illusion of warmth that can warm your guests. When all else fails, add some light. Warm, yellow lights bathing over your outdoor space will add a warmth that has nothing to do with temperature. It is the type of warmth that is a product of comfort. The same can be accomplished by bringing out blankets, fur throws, cushions, and pillows. Make your guests comfortable and it’ll warm them from the inside out.
You don’t have to freeze out your guests this winter, and you don’t have to cram them all into your house either. Warm-up your outdoor space with fire features, outdoor heaters, heated floors, pools, and spas, and more.
You can also help to create a less windy, drafty space by creating a space with walls and curtains to hold in all the heat. IBD Outdoor Rooms sells high-quality pergolas and pavilions that will bring any outdoor space together with quality and style.
Find out more about turning your outdoor fantasy into reality this season by calling IBD Outdoor Rooms at 704-960-4530.
