Thoughts on shade sails for home

JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 15:17
Last edited 20/04/2016 - 15:18

Looking at getting a couple of shade sails installed for my home, roughly two 4x5 rectangular sails. Only requires 3 poles to be concreted in, rest of the attachments are to the house and carport. Surprised by the costs quoted, worked out to be around $4k (cheapest) fully installed custom made (uncertified).

Could try to do it myself and get a few standard size sails online/ebay, but it's a bit of work in respect of digging the holes and there's a fair amount of concrete required for each hole (close to 15 20kg bags of pre mix). If I did it myself, probably end up being around $1,000 using ebay sails or around $1,600 through a handyman.

Trying to get thoughts about the value of shade sails long term? Are they just going to be an on-going burden financially due to deterioration in both the mesh and stitching.

Are the custom made shade sails worth the significant additional price over the ebay/online ones.

Appreciate any input.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • dylanando on 20/04/2016 - 16:55
    +1

    Just got a sail over our double car driveway, Three poles to. Costed around $4k aswell. Defiantly expensive for what you get. They dug the holes then dumped all the dirt on our lawn and then came and asked to pay them to remove it…

    If I was you i'd go get the custom made one not unless you're seriously wanting to do that much work (Im clearly lazy). Finished product will look a ton nicer and hold up better in the weather. Just my two cents however.

  • JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 17:20

    Yep, I generally don't mind getting my hands dirty, but this really looks like hard yakka if you don't have the right equipment/tools.

    Thanks for the point about the dirt issue, need to make sure whoever I get will include disposing of the dirt.

    So you're happy with the end result? Does it make a big difference in terms of shade/heat with it up?

    • dylanando on 20/04/2016 - 18:15

      To be honest, Yes. Love it. Did it for our cars and certainly helped with the bat poop and hail and overall less heat which is a bonus when getting into your car during the day.

      But if you're up for a challenge and a weekend project, Why not give it a go? Hire some equipment, But certainly will be a big job.

      Another thing, Make sure you set some dates for them, Not sure if it's just the people I went through but they just dragged and dragged it out to the point where they said it was to hot to work, Was a normal 30 degree day. Good luck on what you end up doing!

      • JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 18:36

        Did they end up charging you to get rid of the dirt?

        • dylanando on 20/04/2016 - 19:37

          Yes, Cant quite remember the price but it was around $200. Im idiot for paying it!

        • JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 22:46

          Bastards!

          • foxmulder on 18/12/2024 - 07:37

            @JetLi: Hi I was looking for discussion about car shade in driveway and see this conversation.

            For the waste, you can use your red bin to throw things, not all at once, just enough for a week and do it again the week after.

  • [Deactivated] on 20/04/2016 - 17:52
    +3

    People I know with shade sails here in Brisbane seem to have all had issues with mould growth on sails after a few years. Aware that attempts to clean are both difficult to do properly and otherwise unpleasant.

    I don't know about the differences in materials currently on offer, but I'd really be doing my research if I lived in Darwin, where you are, given the humidity.

    • JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 18:39

      Thanks for the tip! Maybe during the wet season.

  • shaybisc on 20/04/2016 - 18:31
    +1

    Jeez I gotta go into shade sail installation. $400 materials: a days work: $4000: wham-bam, thank you ma'am.

    • JetLi on 20/04/2016 - 18:38

      Haha, yeah pretty much, I have heard a lot of it goes to the actual making of the sail when its custom made, the commercial grade is expensive.

  • altomic on 21/04/2016 - 00:41

    I did it at the front of my house (small front yard). when I needed a new front fence so we installed new front fence posts either side of the drive way (2 10cm10cm400cm posts. holes were dug down a meter. popped the post in and braced it temporarily upright. THen alternated bag of concrete with half bricks and a few piece of rebar and gave it a good mix in. plus I had already drilled some some holes through the posts and pushed rebar through. gave the posts a few extra heavy coats of stain/sealant before putting in the holes. those posts aren't going anywhere.

    other ends of the sails are attached to the house. it was a 4mX6m sail. The posts were under the house when we bought it. sail was $60 off ebay. went to bunnings to get hardware and concrete. had a pile of bricks in the back yard. got some rebar out of a skip. total cost came to about $350.

    • JetLi on 21/04/2016 - 09:25

      Yep, material wise, it's not an expensive project, but like most things, it cost an arm and a leg if you get someone to do it. I'm in no rush to get it up, might do it over several weekends as a DIY job.

      when filling the hole with concrete, you packed in some half bricks, thus reducing the amount of concrete needed?

      • altomic on 21/04/2016 - 10:24
        +1

        packed in some half bricks, thus reducing the amount of concrete needed

        yes. throw in some wire as well to give it added binding.

        • JetLi on 21/04/2016 - 10:46

          ok thanks for the tip mate! Was thinking of getting a concrete truck in given the amount of concrete needed for 3 holes.

    • JetLi on 21/04/2016 - 14:47

      Did you use any machinery for the hole digging or just a shovel, metal stake and hole shovel?

      • altomic on 21/04/2016 - 14:51

        Shovel and high pressure cleaner.

        My soil has pretty good drainage bit has rocks in it.

        So I'd dig then hit a rock. High pressure cleaner to wash soil away from around rock and soften soil under neath lift rock and continue. The high pressure cleaner was a lazy way of "digging" as the hole got deeper.

        • JetLi on 21/04/2016 - 14:57

          I've heard wetting the soil makes it easier. How did you get the soil out as you got deeper down?

        • altomic on 21/04/2016 - 17:00

          @JetLi: shovel mostly. Used large can to clean out extra stuff.

        • Euphemistic on 22/04/2016 - 09:34
          +1

          @altomic: Pincer style post hole diggers are great. Some of the money I saved in building a retaining wall myself went into one of those. It's been used quite a few times since then and has more than paid for itself.

          If you are saving a lot on doing the work yourself, buy or rent tools to make the project easier is my philosophy. But I have a big garage and do a lot of different stuff DIY. (currently rebuilding bedrooms to take better advantage of space)

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