# [HELP] Bachelor Patio Ideas



## SlimCookie (Aug 14, 2019)

I NEED YOUR HELP!!

I would like some design ideas for my patio...

First..please don't bash the weeds and horrible landscape!  I was going through a divorce and landscape was last on the priority list. Now I'm 33yo single homeowner and would like to have a nice, low maintenance back patio area to enjoy company, fires, drinking, grilling and relaxing 

The grill and wooden ice chest is no longer present (upgraded grill to a REC TEC Smoker  )

Size: Approx: 25' Wide and 10' Deep

*Structure Additions:*
- I would really like a pergola. I was originally thinking about doing a 10'x10' pergola on the left side of the patio. The section with the two windows is roughly 10' wide and from the house to the mulch bed it's 10' (10'x10' pergola). Now I'm tossing around the idea of a pergola the entire length and width of the patio. I would plan to use Cedar wood and possibly put in a square stone base to enclose (a few feet up from the ground) the posts of the pergola. I do have a fire-pit that sits on the patio (portable).
- I do a lot of grilling so I've thought about adding a small corner kitchen area for my smoker and prep work. Not sure how that would look given the size of my patio and the size of my grill/smoker (RecTec Bull).

*Landscape: *
- The mulch beds are getting completely renovated this fall. New edging and I'm thinking about putting in an edge of some sort to keep the maintenance low when mowing and trimming.
- New mulch bed weed barrier cloth or a heavy dose of pre-emergent this year and next and new mulch will be put down in the spring of next year.
- I plan to keep the existing bushes (definitely the tall ones as they provide privacy from neighbors).
- What type of flowers do you recommend that are easy to maintain and will brighten the area up?
- I'm horrible about watering so I would install a drip irrigation line to water the flowers and keep them alive 
- The second and third photo is missing a fence I had installed recently to separate my yard from the neighbors.
- The third photo shows a spruce tree located at the rear left of the property. I'm ready to rip that thing out and plant a new tree....any ideas?


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## RozWeston (May 20, 2018)

You have a fantastic starting point. That's the good news. I just did a FULL reno in my cooking and lounging area (mine was on a deck, not ground level). A pergola was a must for me too.

After tons of research I decided on one that opens and closes. The one I got was motorized, that was the expensive option, but you can get ones that look the exact same but crank open. Basically the slats up-top open and close - sitting and cooking out in the rain is a game changer when you have people over. The hand crank models can be had for the same price as a full timber custom build.

Here's the one I installed by a company called Arcadia...



Here's one (of many companies) that do a hand crank version (much cheaper)



If you're looking for any sort of built in kitchen - don't let anyone try talk you into a full custom. I was quoted $23,000 by one company. Modular kitchen cabinets are fully available and fully customizable - at a FRACTION of the cost of custom. A friend of mine actually had a wood privacy screen installed on one end of his pergola and mounted a TV on it to watch NFL on weekends.

Here's the wood screen I had them install between my aluminium posts...



All of these can fully be installed with you and a few friends.

Good luck. Outdoor life is the good life.


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