One of my favorite things to do after a long day of work is to go out onto my back patio in the yard and enjoy a nice, cold drink. Living in Arizona, to say that it gets hot outside is kind of an understatement. Some days it feels absolutely blistering, even when it is supposed to be winter!
Now, I did not always have a patio in my backyard, I must admit. For many years, we just sort of plopped our lawn chairs in the grass or the dirt and called it a day. Unfortunately, we had to be very careful with our fire pit because of this – especially in the drier parts of the year.
Think about it – there are pages like this one, https://dffm.az.gov/fire-restrictions, that detail some of the things that we need to be careful about during those months. For some of us, that might mean needing some restrictions on our outdoor activities. However, there are ways to circumvent this, of course.
Obviously, there are other reasons to get one as well, so I will be getting into all of them. I just wanted to highlight that one briefly since it can make a big difference in helping to prevent fires. For more details on the fun things that can come with a patio, be sure to read further!
Why Get a Patio, anyway?
As I alluded to in the introduction, there are several motivations a person might have for wanting to have one installed. Let me tackle the first one, though: to some extent, getting one is an investment for the future. What do I mean by this?
Well, curb appeal is an undeniably large part of trying to sell a property. Even if you have no plans currently of selling your home or putting it on the market, it is still not a bad idea to make changes that could boost the appeal of it later down the line. Having one of these installed can certainly play a role in this. If you do not believe me, though, allow me to explain further.
Consider how your home is built. Whether you are in a suburban neighborhood with fenced-in yards or have a duplex or condo complex where everyone is much more crammed together, it is likely that you want to have some privacy. It is hard to imagine someone who would not want that, at least to some extent, right? That is part of why some folks opt to have a pavers company come in and install one professionally.
Due to the versatility of something like concrete or stone pavement, we are able to decorate and design a space like this to our heart’s content. You can see an example in the photograph above, of course. Mine is done fairly similar to that, although we have a fire pit instead of a fireplace.
As you can see, though, you can have walls installed or even just put up some sheets or a tent to keep yourself sectioned off from your neighbors when you want to. Sometimes, we just want to spend a night alone with our family or friends without the prying eyes of our nosy neighborhood watch, right?
Of course, having a patio can also be quite nice when we want to entertain guests. Not many people enjoy being cooped up or cramped inside on a nice day, right? This does include when we want to host a party or other sort of get-together. Think about some of the important events that we like to celebrate.
The next time that you need to plan out a graduation party or a family reunion, you will already have the perfect venue right there for you! In terms of inspiration, you could check out a listicle like this one. The biggest thing to remember here is that you can save a lot of time (and money) by not having to look externally for a park or other space to rent out.
Are They Worth it, though?
So – obviously, from the tone of this article, you can probably guess that my answer to this question will be a resounding “yes.” You are not entirely wrong here, for sure. I think that for many people in Arizona especially, we can get a lot of usage out of a patio. However, there are some caveats to keep in mind.
Before you can determine if it will be worth it for you, you may want to get some quotes in regard to price. Depending on what size of a space you are looking for and what materials you want used, this can vary. Once you sort that out, you can run some mini analysis for yourself.
Essentially, you will want to examine the cost-benefit ratio. Can you afford it, first and foremost? After that, think about how often that you and your family will end up using it. If you think it could become a new sort of hub or hangout space, then that is honestly rather invaluable.
However, if that is not the case, it may not be the right move for you. As long as you think about it for a while and consult your partner on the matter as well, though, you should be able to reach a conclusion. Best of luck if you decide to have one installed, and I hope you enjoy it!
