Patios are kind of a big deal in California. Most areas have weather that makes it easy to spend a lot of time outdoors and as such most homes have some sort of patio. It can be frustrating and a little daunting looking at all the choices you have when it comes to your patio. There’s flooring, covers, furniture, fire pits and tons of other little options and choices to make. Like most remodeling or construction projects good planning is crucial to making sure you get exactly what you’re looking for.

In my opinion the best place to start is by figuring out what you plan to use the area for. Will you be barbecuing, Hosting parties, or just using it as a place to relax? Once you know what you’ll be using the patio for you’ll have a good idea of how big it should be. If you can, mark off the area with safety tape and walk around to make sure it feels right. After you’ve got an idea of the size of the patio you’ll want to look at furniture. Choosing the furniture first makes it a lot easier to narrow your options when it comes to the flooring material. If you choose furniture that has narrow legs you’ll need to avoid flooring options that will allow those legs to get stuck and make it hard to slide them around.

After you’ve tackled those two points you’ll want to take a look at what sort of flooring options you have. There are quite a few available and it really depends on what styling you like and what type of furniture you’ve chosen.

Whatever you might choose a patio can make your outdoor space more enjoyable, add some value to your home (especially here in California) and save you some water by getting rid of more costly landscaping