Covered Patio
The Covered Patio Wizard creates a roofed patio that can attach to an existing wall or stand free. Configure attachment, roof, posts, railing, and wood finish in the sidebar.
Start the Covered Patio Wizard from the Add Object panel. Set dimensions in the sidebar and click the canvas to place. The sidebar shows six steps: Attach/Place, Roof, Posts, Railing, Wood Style, and Apply.
Step 2 — Roof
Choose the roof style: shed (single pitch), gable, or hip. Set the pitch angle and overhang dimensions on each side.
Step 3 — Posts
Configure post cross-section size and placement. For wall-attached structures, posts appear only on the open edge. For freestanding, posts appear at the corners and optionally intermediate positions.
If you do not yet have a wall in the drawing, place the patio as freestanding first, complete the wizard, then reopen it to switch the attachment mode after drawing a wall. The wizard re-enters with all your settings preserved.
Step 5 — Wood Style
Choose a wood finish from 8 preset cards: Fresh Pine, Pressure Treated, Oiled, Aged Grey, Aged Mossy, Painted White, Painted Dark, Charred. Weathering and Moss Coverage sliders fine-tune the finish.
Set up posts
On the Posts step, set the post Width and Depth to define the cross-section of each support column. For a wall-attached covered patio, posts are placed only along the open (non-wall) edge. For a freestanding patio, posts appear at all four corners. Increase the Intermediate Posts count to add evenly spaced posts between the corners for wider structures.
Add a railing
On the Railing step, toggle Enable Railing on to add a balustrade. Click each edge in the canvas preview to toggle which sides carry the railing — open edges are toggled on by default, the wall-attached edge is excluded. Set the Railing Height to match local building code or design intent. Disable the railing entirely if the covered patio opens onto a level deck or lawn.
Choose a wood style
On the Wood Style step, click one of the eight finish cards: Fresh Pine, Pressure Treated, Oiled, Aged / Greyed, Aged with Moss, Painted White, Painted Dark, or Charred. Use the Weathering slider to shift the timber from new to heavily aged, and the Moss Coverage slider to add organic growth to the aged looks. The chosen finish applies to all structural timber — posts, beams, and rafter tails — in both 2D and 3D views.
For a contemporary design, combine Charred or Painted Dark wood with a flat-roof lean-to and minimal railing. For a traditional look, Pressure Treated or Oiled paired with a gable roof and turned-post railing reads as a classic veranda.
Review and apply
On the Apply step, review the structure summary — footprint dimensions, roof type, post count, and material roles for Structure Wood, Roof Surface, and Railing. Click Apply to commit the covered patio to the drawing as a parametric object. The entity remains fully editable: select it and click Parameters in the inspector to re-open the wizard at any step.
Switching from wall-attached to freestanding (or vice versa) after applying will reposition the structure. If you have already placed planting or paving around the patio, check alignment carefully after changing the attachment mode.
Key Parameters
| Name | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Attachment Mode | Freestanding | Determines whether the patio's back edge locks to a wall or is placed freely. Wall-attached mode snaps the high side of a lean-to roof to the selected wall edge. |
| Roof Type | Lean-to | Lean-to slopes away from the wall. Gable peaks in the center — best for freestanding patios. |
| Pitch | 15° | Steepness of the roof slope. Higher values shed water more effectively. |
| Overhang | 0.3 m | How far the roof projects beyond the outermost beam on each side. |
| Post Size | 0.1 × 0.1 m | Cross-section dimensions of each structural post. |
| Railing Height | 0.9 m | Height of the railing above the finished floor level. |
| Wood Style | Pressure Treated | One of eight timber-finish presets. Fine-tuned by Weathering and Moss Coverage sliders. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which roof shapes does the Covered Patio Wizard support?
Two shapes: Lean-to (Single Slope) and Gable. A lean-to is the standard choice for a wall-attached veranda because the high side meets the wall and rain drains outward. A gable works well for freestanding covered patios where you want symmetry.
I want to attach the patio to a wall but there is no wall in my drawing. What should I do?
Draw the wall first using the Wall Wizard or the Line tool with a wall surface class applied, then return to the Covered Patio Wizard and choose Attach to Wall. Alternatively, place the patio freestanding now, then reopen the wizard and switch modes once the wall exists.
How do I change the footprint size after applying?
Select the covered patio on the canvas and click Parameters in the inspector. The wizard re-opens; use the canvas handles or the Width/Depth fields to resize the footprint, then click Apply again to update the object.
Can I use a custom polygon shape instead of a rectangle?
Yes. Draw a closed polyline or polygon on the canvas before launching the wizard, select it, then open the Covered Patio Wizard. The wizard adopts the shape as the footprint. Note that the gable roof ridge will be computed along the longest axis of the polygon.
How is the Covered Patio different from the Pergola or Pavilion?
The Covered Patio has a solid roof (lean-to or gable) and can attach to a house wall, making it the right choice for a sheltered veranda. A Pergola has an open lattice roof — it provides shade but not rain cover. A Pavilion is always freestanding and offers hip, gable, or flat solid roofs for standalone garden rooms.