Wooden structures for canopies and roofs of public and commercial facilities.
This article is about inexpensive but comfortable and beautiful roofs or canopies for restaurant terraces, sports or shopping areas, and for any other indoor public space.
In the warm season, during the rest and holidays, few people want to stay indoors. Fortunately, we have plenty of outdoor entertainment: exhibitions, fairs, cafeterias, sports games or swimming in the pool, which you want to plunge into in the midst of the heat. That’s just the scorching sun and rain can scare away visitors, forcing them to stay indoors in bad weather.
However, during these unprofitable hours you have to pay rent for retail space and salaries to the staff. In order not to lose income during the season, you need to ensure maximum comfort of visitors by installing comfortable, reliable and aesthetically pleasing shelters. Of course, within the limits of profitability.
Application of canopies made of wood.
Canopy structures can be used in a variety of cases, in particular, they are relevant for the arrangement of
- summer cafeterias, restaurants, food courts, pubs;
- for swimming pools, sports grounds;
- canopies for shops arranged in the open air;
- canopy for the warehouse of finished products;
- stands, stages and dance floors;
- canopy for trade, for example, to cover a trading row for the sale of souvenirs;
- canopies for the demonstration of museum exhibits or archaeological excavations.
What canopies can provide maximum comfort
There are many options for choosing materials to arrange canopies for restaurants, cafes, swimming pools, sports grounds:
- for the frame – iron and wooden beams or trusses;
- for the roof – polycarbonate, metal tiles, bitumen, natural, composite tiles or even tempered glass.
The combination of materials can be any, as the loads on the structure are calculated in advance. Experts recommend paying attention to the following criteria: comfort, aesthetics, durability, cost.
How to choose a frame for canopies
Features of the iron frame – high strength and the ability to create a canopy of any desired shape: with slopes, arched or domed. However, the wood definitely wins in terms of comfort: it is cozy, not hot, pleasant to be under it. Iron corrodes intensively from heat, so it is better to sheathe structures that can be touched by visitors (for example, supports) with wood or other material with low thermal conductivity.
Wooden beams used as floors have a limited area: they can be used to make only small canopies up to 6 m long with a single-pitched or gable roof.
For large spans, either glued beams or wooden floor trusses can be used. The first option is distinguished by aesthetics, good strength characteristics, but has a high cost.
The option with wooden trusses attracts with its affordable price and high reliability. With the help of wooden trusses it is possible to create canopies for swimming pools, sports grounds, small street theaters, cafeterias, moreover, to give them the most unusual shapes in accordance with the style of the institution. Floor trusses look good without cladding, especially if they are varnished or painted. Thus, you can additionally save on facing materials. Reliability of Mitek wooden trusses is one of the advantages of the technology. You can read more about Mitek technology here.
How to choose the material for covering canopies
Glass and polycarbonate are materials that look modern and stylish, hide from precipitation, but poorly protect from the scorching sun. They also need frequent cleaning to maintain an aesthetic appearance from the inside.
Corrugated board and metal tiles are an inexpensive, common and beautiful coating, as the modern construction industry offers various forms of “waves” and a wide range of colors. But for a comfortable stay under the canopy of corrugated board, it is necessary to arrange a soundproofing layer, because during the rain, instead of the romantic sounds of falling drops, there will be the effect of an “empty iron bucket”. The soundproofing layer will also be heat-insulating, it increases the cost of construction, but also adds calm and coolness. As for the form, sheds made of corrugated board or metal tiles are made with a gable roof because of the large size of the sheet material and because of the inconvenient installation of profiled elements. Of course, such a typical architectural element will not distinguish the institution from competitors.
Bituminous tile is a modern roofing material made on the basis of fiberglass and bitumen. It heats up much less than metal elements, absorbs noise, and due to its flexibility is perfect for roofs with curved surfaces.
Cement-sand, ceramic and composite tiles (except polymer-sand) have the following advantages
- high aesthetics;
- environmental friendliness;
- variety of textures and shapes;
- huge selection of color palette;
- excellent protection from the sun and precipitation;
- possibility of use for any architectural projects.
Another interesting and inexpensive roofing option is awning, acrylic and other waterproof fabrics. They are perfect for the warm period, because unlike PVC coatings, which were used earlier, they pass air well and do not create a “greenhouse effect”. But still they have a disadvantage – a large “windage”, instability to strong gusts of wind, so it is advisable to remove them during a storm warning. In order not to remove the fabric covering in snowy winter, you can use an arched frame – this shape will prevent the accumulation of precipitation.
The choice of roofing material greatly depends on the design of the frame, which must withstand the load. Conversely, the range of roofing materials available for use depends on the desired shape of the canopies.
To choose the optimal ratio of aesthetics, comfort, efficiency and cost of wooden sheds, consult our specialists.
