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We're building our Project House deep in the heart of Texas, where the summer sun can be punishing — driving even the most outdoors-loving homeowners inside to the cooling comfort of central air conditioning.

We wanted to "reclaim" the outdoors - at least a good part of it - so we turned to a shade solution that's been popular from the times of the Greeks and Romans... an arbor.

Traditionally, arbors have been made from various combinations of wood and stone, but with the advent of modern materials technology, it's possible to construct arbors from lightweight, low-maintenance materials that look good, but stand the test of time. That's certainly the case with the arbor we added to the outside of the Cabana Room of the Project House.

Structural Aluminum Ultra-Lattice® Arbor From Metals USA

The arbor we installed is made of structural aluminum, and the rafters, beams and lattice rails are deeply embossed with a faux wood texture. All the embossed rafters, lattice rails and side plates for the posts are constructed from .024 material, which allows for deeper embossing than any product of its kind.

One distinct advantage of constructing the arbor with aluminum, as opposed to wood, is aluminum's durability. Wood looks great, but over time, even treated wood will degrade due to constant exposure to the elements and insects. Wood requires regular maintenance. Aluminum, on the other hand, won't degrade or corrode and requires virtually no maintenance.

The header beams are made of .040 gauge aluminum and can span long distances without the need of extra support posts. That's a quality we took full advantage of in designing our arbor. This arbor will shade almost 600 square feet of ground area.

Of course, the key component in any arbor is the lattice. Because structural aluminum is such an easy material to work with, our installers were able to complete the lattice installation in about three hours. We designed our arbor with a close-spaced lattice, to give maximum protection from the sun, but by varying the spacing of the latticework, it is possible to design arbors casting varying degrees of shade.

Our arbor has a distinctive Mediterranean flair, incorporating 10'x10' Tuscan style columns and stylish scalloped end caps on the rafters and beams. Beveled, mitered and corbel end cap profiles are also available.

Kynar 500® Fluoropolymer Coating

The Ultra-Lattice® material is coated with a commercial-grade fluoropolymer coating called Kynar. Fluoropolymers are added to the paint to extend the life of the finish. The lattice, beams and rafters have a transferable limited lifetime warranty against manufacturer defects, including chalking, flaking, cracking, blistering, fading, chipping, rusting or peeling for the lifetime of the original purchaser.

Contact Information:
Metals USA
1-866-320-7059
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