Backyard Living: Creating the Perfect Outside Living Area

Backyard living is a fabulous opportunity, but can take much sweat equity to realize. Is your backyard a welcoming oasis or a less-than-promising place? This year, take on cooling, heating, pest-control, and seating projects to make your backyard shine.

Backyard living is a fabulous opportunity, but can take a bunch of sweat equity to realize. Is your backyard a welcoming oasis or a less-than-promising place where tall weeds swallow children, toys, and anything else that ventures by? Rather than thinking of your backyard as a separate place or just one more piece of property you need to maintain, shift your perspective. When you view your backyard as an extension of your home, a terrific place to hang out and welcome friends, you’ll see the space with new eyes. To get ready for your backyard transformation, check out some of these tips.

A Four-Season Refuge

You don’t need to put off enjoying your backyard space until the temperature is just right during a tiny sliver of the year. Instead, take backyard living to the next level — a complete four-season refuge. Get started by ensuring your covered patio includes a quality ceiling fan to keep breezes moving during sweltering summer heat. Another great way to cool down in the hot summer is to invest in a misting system, or build your own, that sprays gentle waves of water, enough to make summer enjoyment possible. To prep for cooler nights or months, set up a fire pit or add on outdoor heaters that will keep you warm and increase your year-round backyard enjoyment.

By Invitation Only

You may be driven indoors by pests who arrive just so they can enjoy your backyard space. Regain your backyard space by taking care of these pests before they take over. Purchase your own pesticides or schedule regular visits from your preferred pest control company. If you’re worried about dangerous chemicals spraying your favorite flowers or being ingested by family and friends, checkout natural pesticide options that keep unwelcome visitors to a minimum. Many pesticide companies also offer family-, pet-, and plant-safe natural pesticides.

Seating for Many

Patio sets can easily climb past the thousand dollar mark, especially for furniture guaranteed to last for many years or packages that include many different seating options. If splurging on patio seating isn’t in your budget, you have another opportunity to invest some sweat equity. Reclaimed pallet furniture is all the rage right now and can supply seating for many for just a few pennies. From daybeds to table sets to decks built entirely from pallets, your options are as vast as your imagination. You can often find pallets advertised for sale through online sites, or obtain them for free (with permission!) from big box stores after they are no longer needed.

This year, it’s time to reclaim your outdoor space and make the most of backyard living. From ensuring pleasant temperatures to tamping down pests to creating seating for a crowd, you’re well on your way to the best season of fun ever.

Image Source: Flickr/Chun Kit To

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Tiffany Aller

Tiffany wasn't born in Texas, but she got here as fast as she could. She and her husband have gained extensive experience buying, selling, renovating and flipping homes in the DFW area. A professional freelance writer, Tiffany enjoys contributing real estate and home improvement articles to the Coldwell Banker site and working with other clients to craft content that's specially designed to generate interest while sharing valuable ideas.