Patio enclosures in Redlands CA - screened or glass walls on a patio that can carry them
Patio too hot, dusty or buggy to use most of the year? We enclose it with walls the slab and cover can actually carry.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What does it take to enclose a patio in Redlands?
A patio enclosure in Redlands puts screened or glass walls around the patio you already have, giving you a room for outdoor living that stays connected to the house, and most of what makes it last is checking that the slab and cover can carry it.
Most people who call us have a patio that gets too much sun, wind, dust or bugs to use the way they'd like, and they want it closed in without starting a whole addition. The price mostly follows the size of the opening, screen or glass, how many doors you want and whether the slab or cover needs work first, and the schedule turns on that same base work plus the building office paperwork and getting the panels made. If the cover itself is the weak part, patio cover installation may come first, and the written estimate after my visit lists what's in your job and what isn't.
How can you tell if your patio is ready to enclose?
Water pooling by the slab
If water sits against the edge of the patio after the sprinklers run or after a storm, the slab is probably sitting at or below the yard. New walls would sit right in that water, so the grade or the slab gets settled first, and waiting only lets the water keep working under the concrete.
Slab edge lifted or sunk
When one section of the patio sits higher than the next, or a crack has opened wide enough to catch a shoe, the slab has usually moved. That's a repair before any walls go on, and it tends to get worse the longer roots and water work at it.
Cover that sags or drips
A patio cover that dips in the middle, drips where it meets the house or has posts that rock is already working hard. Hanging walls from it adds weight, so it needs a closer look, and a drip at the house wall left alone can rot the wood behind it.
How we build a patio enclosure
Before we put walls on a patio, I check that the slab sits above the yard and isn't buckled, and that the cover or house wall can take the added weight, because a weak base is where leaks and sagging start. If something isn't ready, we tell you and fix that first. Then our crew sets and seals the base track, frames the walls up to the cover, ties them into the house, hangs the screen or glass panels and doors, and cleans up before we walk it with you.
Some patios aren't a good fit for walls added to what's already there. If you want a room shaped around your house and how you use it rather than around the old slab, custom sunrooms are the better route, and when the base or cover has to be replaced anyway, we often go to full sunroom construction with a new foundation and roof.
Screened walls
These suit owners who want the breeze without the bugs and leaves. Screen is also the lightest load on an existing cover, which helps when the cover is sound but not heavy.
Glass or clear panel walls
These suit owners who want to block wind and dust and use the room in cooler months. They're heavier, so the slab and cover check matters even more.
Mixed screen and glass
This suits a patio where one side takes the wind and another side gets the shade and the breeze. You get shelter where you need it and airflow where you want it.
Get your patio checked and priced, in writing
We get back to you within one business day. I come out to measure, look at the slab and the house, and ask how you plan to use the room. The estimate is free and there's no obligation.
(909) 488-7044Patio enclosures in Redlands and the rules that shape them
Redlands has its own changes to the state building rules on file, so building here isn't only a matter of the state's rules, and we take care of the permits the building office asks for on our jobs, with that written into the contract. If you plan to heat or cool the room, the state's energy rules come into it too, because they treat any change that adds heated or cooled floor area as an addition and list enclosing and conditioning an existing patio right next to adding a heated sunroom. That's why I ask early whether you'll heat or cool the room, since the answer shapes the whole plan.
We're based in Redlands and work in many of the cities around it in San Bernardino and Riverside counties. A lot of the patios we see were poured close to yard level with a cover added years later, and we run into the same low slabs and tired covers on jobs in Highland and Yucaipa.
What happens after you call about a patio enclosure?
Call or send the form
You call or send the form, and we get back to you to set a time for me to come out. I'm usually the one who answers the phone.
I measure and check the base
I measure, look at the slab, the cover and the house wall, and ask how you plan to use the room. You get a written estimate that lists what's in it and what isn't, so a repair to the base or cover shows up before you sign, not halfway through.
Our crew builds the room
We sort out the paperwork with the building office before the build begins. Our crew does the work, and I check in along the way.
Walk the finished room together
When it's done, we walk the room together and open every door and panel. I show you how everything works and how to look after the tracks.
Frequently asked questions
Can my existing patio slab hold an enclosure?
Usually, if it sits higher than the yard around it and isn't badly buckled. One enclosure maker's guide says the foundation has to sit above the surrounding ground because the tracks fastened to it have weep holes, small drain openings where standing water can get into the tracks and the room. The same guide says small hairline cracks are fine but large buckling has to be repaired before the enclosure goes in.
Can you enclose a patio under my existing patio cover in Redlands?
Often yes, as long as the cover and the house wall it hangs from are strong enough for the added weight. The approval for one enclosure system requires the structure it attaches to to have adequate strength for the added loads, and one maker's instructions have the front of an existing patio roof raised several inches above the new wall height and braced. That's why the cover gets looked at as closely as the slab.
How much can a contractor ask for up front on a patio enclosure in California?
The state contractor board says a contractor can't ask for or take a down payment of more than $1,000 or 10 percent of the total contract price, whichever is less. Any other payments have to be listed in the contract and match work completed or materials delivered, so you should see a written payment schedule before work starts.
How much does a patio enclosure cost in Redlands?
The price comes down mostly to the size of the opening, whether the walls are screen or glass, and how many doors you want. Repairs to a low or buckled slab or a weak cover add to it, and planning to heat or cool the room changes the job as well. I write it all up after measuring, so you see each part before you decide.
What causes fog on the inside of patio enclosure glass?
Fog on the inside pane comes from excess moisture in the room. One sunroom company's owner guide says it generally shows most during the change of seasons, so that's when you're most likely to notice it.
How do I care for my patio enclosure?
Keep the door and window tracks clean, inside and out, and keep the weep holes along the base clear so water can drain. One sunroom company's owner guide suggests a pure silicone spray on the tracks, since oil-based lubricants tend to attract dirt, and a check of the roof and gutters once a year to catch small problems early.
Redlands, CA
Send us photos of your patio
A few shots of the slab, the cover and where it meets the house, plus a note on whether you'll heat or cool the room, tell me what to look at first when I come out.