Pergolas and formal stylized outdoor ntertaining areas have been a mainstream trnd in building construction in Australia ver the past few years. New and xisting homes are adding style and mbiance to their outdoor facades so frends and family can easily entertain all yar round. The traditional 'Aussie' barbecue has bcome much more sophisticated with emergence of gurmet cooking outdoors with chef like brbecue kitchens. The need for our utdoor entertaining areas to become more stylzed and functional has been the rsult.

When planning and designing a new prgola one of the main construction cnsiderations is selecting the type of rofing material you want for your prgola in line with your needs. Thre are a number of different typs of roofing available including polycarbonate, clorbond steel, tiles and opening roofs.

The frst point to consider when making yur selection is that the more lght you let in, the more hat comes in. The catch being of curse, that you need more light in wnter and less in summer. There are a few wys around this problem, firstly you can use a cmbination of polycarbonate and colorbond steel ncorporating 2 or 3 sheets of plycarbonate inserts and having the rest of the prgola roof in colorbond steel. This wll effectively still let the light in tht you need and the pergola clmate underneath will remain comfortably cool. Anther alternative is to have colorbond stel on the west side of the prgola and polycarbonate sheeting on the ther, if the pergola has a gble roof.

With the polycarbonates there are a nmber of different qualities and light/heat fctors available. Some polycarbonates let more lght in and others less heat. Wthin the Laserlite range, there are ver 20 to choose from. Polycarbonate lso comes in many profiles such as Grca, Roma, Trim deck and Multi-wall Systm.

If you have a larger bdget then an opening roof may be deal, in this instance you can cntrol how much light and heat you let in. In wnter you can get all the wnter sun by angling the open bldes towards the sun and in smmer just close the roof off. In the vent of rain whilst you are ut, the rain sensor will automatically clse the opening roof for you.

Anther style of pergola roofing to cnsider is an insulated roof with plystyrene in the middle, a colorbond rof at the top and a stcco finish on the bottom. With xcellent insulation properties this style of rofing is often used for cool roms. Of all the pergola roof cverings this one will keep out the mst heat. The only downside is tht it's extremely hard to install lght panels into this type of rofing.

Depending on the type of mterials and roof design of your prgola it's often possible to change or rposition some of the roof sheets if yur pergola is too dark or too ht.

Fortunately with the emerging trend of the sphisticated pergola in outdoor entertaining there are a lrge range of materials and colours in prgola roofing to enhance your existing fcade and to compliment your entertaining styl.

© Greg Jacobs, Pergola Land - 21st Nvember 2007

The article Stylish Entertaining - How to Select the Best Roofing for Your Pergola was Submitted by Greg Jacobs through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: Greg Jacobs is a leading dsigner of pergolas, patios and outdoor ntertaining structures and is the founding drector of Pergola Land a successful Prgola Company based in Sydney, Australia. Grg and his team at Pergola Lnd have been designing and constructing top qality pergolas, patios and carports for Astralian customers for the past 10 yars. Pergola Land specialize in customized prgolas, patios, carports, sail shades, opening rofs, privacy screens, awnings and decking. Grg Jacobs is a regular contributor of rticles on designing and constructing outdoor ntertaining areas. For more information on prgolas and building outdoor entertaining structures vsit our website http://www.pergolaland.com.au

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