A New Casa - Casa PŌNO Sayulita - Early Summer Update 2020

The orders to stay at home have not been lifted and it feels like we have been looking at the same walls for far too long.  Unless we want to hang out in the bedrooms we really do not have more than the living room to chill out in or find a quiet place to read, work or have a drink. The rooftop was a place to go to hang out back in March but now when the morning shade is gone the sun and post sunset heat radiating off the roof's concrete slab make the space one to avoid most of the time.  The roof cooking all day long makes the interior spaces warmer and in turn chases us from the effected areas of the house or causes us to crank up the AC which is an expensive solution to the amount of heat dispersing into the house.

So, we decided to do something about it now that it appears being home is most certainly going to be the recommended routine for the months to come.  We would delay any other plans for finishing other punch list items for the time being and we have always wanted to finish the rooftop.  The view is hard to beat and a big reason we bought the lot back in 2007.  We considered buying a bunch of plants but the transporting that amount of soil, mature plants and large pots just sounded like a lot of work.  We considered rigging up some shade sails but we really didn't have good anchoring potential to keep the sails in place during the summer storms and high enough to be able to walk under them.  We even threw an old area rug down to keep the heat off the roof above the master bedroom.  None of the solutions really worked very well so we decided to get a proposal from our metal contractor who previously installed the metal/polycarbonate roof.

The goal was to provide shade for a seating area similar to our living room, a dining table area with chairs and the wet bar area which was already covered but was unfinished.  About 30-40% of the rooftop would be left uncovered so anyone looking to sit in the sun someday could do that.  We would also choose a polycarbonate that has a tint to it to help with the shade effort where we had chosen clear for areas allowing light into the house.  We would also be able to use the area during the summer rains and stay mostly dry.

Some before and after photos.

The improved space has already been given a "thumbs up" by everyone including the crew who assembled it.  The wide open space now has proportions that didn't exist before and feels much more comfortable to be in.  We will see what happens when we get more direct sun and how the tinted polycarbonate works and we know we may need some additional work to keep the radiating heat away from the new space.  Over time we will create a living area and build a bar/kitchenette area but that will be down the road.  Our collection of old beach chairs will be the furnishing for a while.  For now we are pretty excited to have a new place to be able to sit and enjoy and find a quiet spot if needed.