Roman Lembersky

Los Angeles offers an ideal area to have a Screened in Porch. What is a screened in porch? Essentially it is a normal porch or deck that has a screen of mesh, glass, or acrylic that allows a lot of the environmental elements, like rain, or high winds, to be blocked out, while at the same time, providing the natural benefits like sunshine, fresh air, and a natural area to relax in. 

In LA, however, we have a lot of days of perfectly warm weather, frequently with a nice breeze or actual wind. This is great weather for having an outdoor relaxation area. Most homes dedicate their deck area, or an outside patio to such activities, however, all too often, during the summer months we are always swarmed by bugs, insects, and beetles trying to escape the dry heat and find a cool area to chill out in.

This is where the screened really shines. Because of it’s screens such insects cannot find their way in, allowing you to enjoy an outdoor relaxing environment, with plenty of fresh air, natural light, and even a light breeze, without having to worry about various creepy crawlies coming to bother you.

Not only that, you can substitute a mesh screen with a glass or acrylic one for those months with high wind, or cold temperatures.

Some things to remember about installing a screened in porch:

Glass screen – glass screens are very durable, and provide the most protection from the sun’s uv rays, insects, wind and is very insulating, however they tend to be more expensive than other materials.

Acrylic Screen – acrylic  screens are far cheaper than the glass screens and they are easier to install, however, they don’t provide the same kind of level of insulation, and protection that glass screen do.

Mesh Screen – a basic mesh screen will allow you to enjoy the nice breeze and the natural environment around you, for a good cheap cost. However they aren’t at all insulating, and require maintenance.  

Sky Light – a skylight is a great idea for those people that enjoy a lot of natural light. It can provide a great for cloud-watching, and enjoying the bright sunny California weather!

Remember though, when you are building an screen in porch to hire a professional that knows what they are doing. Explore all the options and see what they can do for you. 

Color can affect your mood and  how you feel. One of the most challenging decisions to make while doing a home remodel is to select which color palates to go with. It all depends on the kind of mood you want to achieve. For example, for many people when they think of their bedrooms they want to find a tranquil spot to rest in. Because of this it is often a good idea to mix and match colors that are either very bold – such as red on maroon, or light gray and dark gray – or are a muted color palate such as light blues, cyans, peach colors. Bolder color palates which have a lot of hue tend to create a mood of enclosure – like a warm, comforting blanket, or a sense of great privacy. Brighter and muted colors tend be “open” and give the feeling the room is larger, wider, with more atmosphere. 

The blue with white trim, although a classic favorite for a lot of people, can often times come of as boring, and unoriginal. Try your hand at looking at color combinations that you haven’t thought of much before: such as a dark brown, with red, a light gray and a dark gray, or a bright orange with dark wood, and neutral hues of taupe. 

For a more brighter color palette, try bright cyan with sky blue, or for a bit more earth tones: a bright green with a bright brown. When going for brighter color palates, you’re not creating a strong contrast. The contrast should be subtle, so choose a main color and select a color in the same hue but slightly darker, and test out the combinations with your room.

Having the right mood is everything. As I mentioned before, dark, and bold colors tend to create a sensual feeling, invoking the feelings of privacy, intimacy, closeness, coziness, where brighter colors tend to do the near opposite: they invoke a feelings of freshness, open air, wide spaces. Selecting how you want to feel when you are in your bedroom can reflect what kind of colors you go for.

But that’s not all, consider also looking at the lighting of your room: if you have lights with a yellow hue to it, consider how it would look like on the color during the night when that light is turned on. We had a customer several years ago that had a previous contractor sell them on the idea of painting their bedrooms a solid forest green color. It was clear to us that the contractor was just happy to oblige the decisions of our customers without providing the necessary details and considerations. A forest green color is a wonderful color to have when you have a lot of natural light flowing into your room, it doesn’t work well when the room is darker, and when you are at night and using bedroom lights with a yellow hue. We stuck with the green hues and repainted in a much brighter, and much grayer tone, so that it would capture as much of the natural light as possible, and not be terribly affected by lights.

Consider also the kind of environment you are in. If you live in a cold cool climate, a warmer color pallete of reds, oranges, and yellows would be a great idea to give that sense of warmth and coziness. Where as if you live in climates that are predominately warmer, or even hot, try selecting cooler tones like blues, cyan and green. A lot of neutral colors tend to also look great in either case.

When hiring a contractor, make sure that they give you the miriad of options available to you. Ask them detailed questions, such as how it would look like during the day and night, does the color fit the kind of room it is. Many of these things a professional contractor would be able to answer for you in great detail.