How to Make a Patio Cover Out of a Sail

You can easily convert an old sail into a patio cover

Sailcloth makes an excellent patio cover or sun shade. If you have an old sail that is no longer seaworthy, convert it to a useful shade for your patio saves the cost of spending money on shade fabric. Building a patio cover out of an old sail can be an enjoyable weekend project that does not require highly specialized tools or materials. With preparation, you could make your own sailcloth patio cover in an afternoon.

Things You'll Need

• Sail or sail fabric
• Measuring tape
• Scissors
• 2 four-inch-diameter round poles (approximately seven feet tall)
• Post-hole digger or spade
• 10-foot wooden crosspiece (1 inch by 2 inches by 10 feet)
• Chop saw
• Staple gun
• Staples
• Stepladder
• Drill
• Steel screws
• Three-foot wooden crosspiece (1 inch by 2 inches by 3 feet)
• Wall plugs
• Steel wire
• Wire cutters
• Four 16-inch steel pegs
• Hammer

Instructions

1. Lay the sail on the ground over the patio area you intend to cover. Fold the head of the sail over so that the sail is three feet wide at the top. Cut the sail on this fold. Place the trimmed head of the sail against the side of the house and mark the ground one foot from the tack and clew corners of the sail, on the side of the corners nearest the house.

2. Dig a 12-inch-deep hole at each of the marked points. Insert a four-inch-diameter pole into each hole and tamp the soil firmly around the base of each pole.

3. Trim the 10-foot wooden crosspiece with a chop saw to fit the foot of the sail. Staple the foot of the sail to the crosspiece every four inches, wrapping it several times around the crosspiece.

4. Screw each end of the crosspiece (with sail attached) to the top of a wooden pole. Use a stepladder to reach the top of each pole.

5. Position the three-foot crosspiece on the wall, about eight feet above the ground. Mark three evenly spaced drill points on the wall and drill three holes at the drill points. Insert wall plugs in the holes.

6. Staple the loose head of the sail to the three-foot crosspiece. Wrap the sail around the crosspiece until it is tight when the crosspiece is placed against the wall. Screw the crosspiece, with sail attached, to the wall plugs.

7. Cut two long lengths of steel wire with wire cutters. Staple the midpoint of one wire to the top of a wooden pole. Attach the free ends of the wire to two steel pegs and drive each peg into the ground about four feet from the base of the pole. The wire should be taut, pulling the pole outward and away from the house. Repeat this procedure with the other wooden pole.

References

• Shade Cloth DIY Awning Designs: Low Cost Shade Structure

Resources

• Gardening Life: Create Your Own Shade Sail