Awnings and canopies share a lot in common. They both protect entrances from the weather. In addition to their protective function, these two overhangs personalize and give character to the exterior of the house.
Awnings and Canopies: What are They?
An awning and a canopy are two very similar products. Fixed above the entrance door, these two overhangs act as protection against the weather. The main difference lies in the materials used, size, storage and durability, and we’ll go each of these aspects in this article, and you’ll be able to tell the difference between an awning and a canopy quite accurately after finishing this article.
Size & Durability
Awnings are usually limited in size and are installed on top of our storefronts and balconies. They are thin, light, and have low durability to weather conditions. This is why the most common awning types are retractable and you can simply retract them during bad weather conditions to ensure their safety and longevity.
Canopies, on the other hand, are usually much larger in size. You regularly find them in house gardens and patios overhanging over a large area. Canopies are thick, robust, and can’t be retracted. They provide better weather protection and aren’t easily damaged by rough weather. This is why it is one of the key ways you can ensure you protect yourself and your family from the rain and direct sunlight in the garden.
Storage
How you store awnings can be quite different from canopies depending on the type.
Awnings, almost universally, are fixed. Some of them are retractable and some aren’t, but both need considerable expertise and time if you want to completely remove it from your home/store/etc. This is why awnings are called fixed.
Canopies can sometimes have independent stands and won’t be needed to be fixed on anything. This means that you can carry them around, adjust their placements, or remove them quite easily. This also means that you don’t need to alter your house’s or store’s structure to fix the canopy in place, which is a big deal for some people.
The Design
As you might’ve guessed from the previous section, the fact that their storage is different is rooted in the awnings’ and canopies’ different designs.
Awnings are fixed, as we said. And this means it is a piece of fabric attached to a base that is fixed to a certain location on the exterior of a building. The fabric can be extendable or retractable, the base can be made out of aluminium, wood, or more durable material, and it can be a full cassette awning or a half cassette one, but, usually, the basics about the awnings themselves don’t change.
While canopies are a piece of fabric attached to a base that is situated on top of a free-standing pole. This means that it doesn’t have the same limitations as awnings, and it can be easily created in larger sizes, taken outdoors for picnics, and much more. This gives canopies flexibility and popularity.