What Is The Best Material For Outdoor Awnings?

Outdoor awnings can be constructed from several different types of materials. Material selection is often based upon both aesthetics and practicality. For example, some awning materials may not be suitable for locations that regularly deal with forest fires or intense weather.

Here, the various materials that outdoor awnings are commonly constructed from will be discussed. This includes the pros and cons of these options.

Wood Awnings

Wood awnings are completely natural. They can look good in areas that are surrounded by plants and trees. They are fairly low maintenance too.

Wood awnings, however, do not tend to do well in areas that suffer from regular forests or high heat. In fact, in some areas, wood awnings may be completely banned unless they have been treated to be fireproof.

Canvas Awnings

Canvas awnings are another natural option. Canvas will often need to be treated before it is used as an awning material, particularly in areas with a risk of a forest fire.

The main issue with canvas is that the material often doesn’t last long. It can wear down after a few years, and most people will find that the canvas awning will have to be replaced within 5-years or so.

Canvas awnings do have the benefit of being cheap, however.

Metal Awnings

Metal awnings can be quite bulky and tough to store. However, metal awnings are exceedingly tough. They are difficult to damage. While they will need to be treated for rust every so often, metal awnings can often last many years.

Metal awnings constructed from aluminum may not be as rigid as steel metal awnings. They can be easy to damage. However, aluminum metal awnings tend to be a bit lighter and often easier to store.

Fiberglass Awnings

Fiberglass awnings are an option for those people that want their awnings to be available in different colors. These fiberglass options will never need to be repainted. They can be obtained in a whole host of different colors too.

The problem is that fiberglass awnings tend not to do too well on the lifespan front. Fiberglass awnings tend to break down when exposed to UV rays. This means that after a few years, the owner may start to notice cracks developing in their fiberglass awning.

Fiberglass awnings do have the added benefit of being lightweight, though. This can make them easy to move around a garden.

Acrylic Awnings

Acrylic awnings will often be constructed from a combination of natural canvas and acrylic. However, there are 100% acrylic awning options available too.

Acrylic awnings are often the most long-lived of awning options (excluding metal options). They are able to stand up to water well, and they will resist UV rays. However, they can often be among the more expensive of options.

Vinyl Awnings

In recent years, vinyl awning options have started to become more popular.

Most vinyl awnings will be a natural material covered with vinyl. Vinyl awnings work especially well when paired with polyester.

Vinyl awnings are long-lived, although they are not a great choice if the owner lives in an area with high humidity.

As vinyl options are not as popular as some of the other awning options, it can be a bit tougher to find an option that will suit the building. This means a limited number of colors and styles.

Conclusion

Choosing an awning is not just about choosing the most stylish option, it is about selecting an option that is built for the area the awning will be used in. For example, vinyl awnings will often be avoided in high humidity locations. Wood awnings will be avoided in locations prone to forest fires. If a person makes the right choice when it comes to their awning, they will end up with something that will provide them with happiness for many, many years.