4 Questions You Need to Ask Before Closing Down Your Patio for the Season

Early fall is a great time to reevaluate and revamp your outdoor living space.

With summer winding down and school getting back in session, it's time to start thinking about what you are going to do with your patio. Unless you live somewhere with year-round warmness, before you know it the cold weather will be wreaking havoc on your outdoor furniture. And since you clearly don't want that, you need to evaluate your inventory, figure out what you want to change, and store it properly so it stays looking new. To get started, you need to ask yourself these four questions: 



Which outdoor furniture did I use the most? 
Think back to your backyard barbecues and pool parties and recreate the scene. What furniture were you and your guests actually using? Did you gather around the bar or lounge in your chaises? Or did most people stay around the dining set? Whatever pieces received the most attention, those are the ones you need to keep. For the others, you might want to consider replacing them with extras of the popular items. 

Check out the outdoor living deals at local retail stores.

What did I wish I had? 
Were there any moments during the season that you really wish you had a new addition on your patio? Maybe you only have two chaise lounges, but there are three people in your family. Perhaps the nights were a little chilly and it would have been wonderful to have a fire pit or heat lamp. Whatever you wished for now is the time to go out and get it. From home improvement stores to high-end outdoor living showrooms, everyone is looking to clear out their inventory to make room for the holiday gear that they need to start selling. 

Can I make my patio look better? 
You know what else is marked down massively right now? Outdoor accessories. This includes everything from area rugs to artwork to dishes, all made with surviving the elements in mind. And the great thing about these accessories is that you can even put them to use inside your home while you await next spring. 

Add a fire pit or heat lamp to extend patio use.

How will I store my items? 
Now that you have evaluated your needs and revamped your outdoor furniture collection, it's time to make sure it is still in tip-top shape come next year. Do you have extra space in a garage or in an off-site storage unit? At the very least, you will want to pull everything as close to your house as possible and cover it with patio furniture covers. While covers made specifically for your pieces will provide the best coverage, tarp can work in a pinch (albeit, it's not near as pretty to look at). 

That's it. Now, you just need to patiently wait for the next seven months (give or take) so you can put your new vision into place. 

For more home tips please visit homechanneltv.com.