A patio cover in Las Vegas has a hard job. It sits in full sun through the summer, takes the wind, and has to handle the monsoon storms that roll through. A cover that looks great the day it goes up isn't worth much if it fades, warps or rusts a few years later.

Here's what we look for, and why we build the way we do.

Why we build with aluminum

Our patio covers are made from aluminum, chosen to stand up to the harsh conditions here. The best sign of how well a cover is made is how long the maker stands behind it. The 4K Aluminum covers we use carry a 15-year paint warranty. Duralum covers carry a lifetime manufacturer warranty. A maker doesn't put that kind of warranty on a product unless it expects it to last.

On top of the manufacturer's warranty, we give a one-year workmanship warranty on our installation.

Size it for how you'll live under it

If a cover only shades a table, you'll end up eating inside in July anyway. In the full outdoor rooms we build, the cover is sized for the whole space beneath it: the seating, the kitchen, the media wall, sometimes the fire pit.

One of our favorite builds was a rustic modern A-frame, around 25 feet by 25 feet, with stone and steel mixed in with wood. A structure that size needs heavy beams, and the hardest part of that job was hoisting them up and getting them installed on schedule and on budget. It turned a blank spot in the backyard into a place the family actually goes.

Engineering and permits aren't optional

A patio cover is a structure. It needs engineering, and it needs a permit. We handle both, and they're built into our timeline. For a project in the $40,000 to $50,000 range, we plan on about two months from the first consultation to completion, and that includes permitting and engineering.

If your community has an HOA, we help with that approval too. It's better to plan for it from the start than to find out halfway through.

Think about everything that hangs from it

Lights, fans, heaters and TVs all end up attached to or under the cover, and they all need power. That's why we plan the electrical with the cover, not after it. Our electrical subcontractor runs that work, and almost everything else on the job is done by our own crews.

Heaters are worth a special mention. Las Vegas evenings get cool for a good part of the year, and a covered space with heat gets used far more months than one without.

The cover options we install

Every yard is different, so we work with more than one system:

4K Aluminum patio covers and pergolas, with a 15-year paint warranty
Duralum patio covers, with a lifetime manufacturer warranty
Azenco louvered, motorized and retractable pergola systems

We'll help you choose between a solid cover, a lattice cover and a louvered roof based on how you use the space and how much shade you want.

Design it with the rest of the yard

A patio cover usually isn't the whole project. It's the roof over an outdoor room. When we design the cover together with the kitchen, the media wall and the fire features, the posts land in the right places, the beams line up with the layout, and nothing has to be moved later.

There's no design fee. You'll see a concept plan and 3D renderings before anything is built, so you know exactly how the cover will look and where the shade will fall.

Ready to get out of the sun?

Call us at (702) 614-7650 to set up a design consultation. Most of our projects are in Summerlin, Henderson and the MacDonald Ranch area, and we build throughout the Las Vegas Valley. You can find more answers about warranties and timing on our FAQ page.

What a Patio Cover Needs to Survive Las Vegas