Shade & Cooling for Hot Patios

Shade is the one outdoor upgrade that changes how many hours a space is usable rather than how it looks. This collection covers the whole range: umbrellas, sails and their hardware, canopy and pergola structures, knitted shade cloth, and misting fans for dry heat.

Shade cloth is specified by the percentage of light it blocks — roughly 30 to 40 per cent for hardening off seedlings, 50 to 60 per cent for most vegetable beds, and 70 per cent or more over seating and in hot southern climates.

Sail hardware is sized to the span, not to the sail: a 12-foot sail typically wants 14 to 16 feet between anchor points once D-rings and turnbuckles are in line. Take any fabric shade down in high wind — nothing here is built to be left up in a storm.