Waterproof shade sails · SydneyMade for Sydney weather: sun one day, rain the next.
The space underneath stays dry in a February storm and through a wet week in July. The roof is a solid PVC membrane, pitched so the water leaves at one corner.
Waterproof shade sails
Shade that keeps the rain out entirely.
The difference is the membrane. Knitted shade cloth is a fabric with holes in it, so it filters the sun and passes light rain straight through. A waterproof sail is a coated PVC membrane with no holes at all. Tensioned with fall from the high corner to the low one, it sheds water off the edge instead of holding it.
An alfresco table under shade cloth gets used in summer. Put a PVC roof over the same table and June works too. Over a carpark it keeps people and stock out of the rain between the door and the car.
Cloth breathes, runs cooler underneath, and for most backyards it is the right answer. PVC keeps the rain out, which is the only thing that matters if you want the space usable in every season. Our guide to shade cloth versus waterproof PVC goes through the trade-offs. Either way we measure your site and weld the membrane to that measurement at our Rydalmere factory.
- A welded PVC membrane with no needle holes.
- Built with fall, so the water has a low corner to run to.
- A solid sheet, so the sun does not get through it either.
- Posts and footings sized up for the load a solid roof carries.
- Australian made, and backed by a 10 to 15 year warranty.
Selected work
Dry underneath, all year.
Waterproof canopies and PVC covers we have made and installed, from outdoor kitchens to cafe frontages.
How it goes together
What we get right on a PVC job.
Building in the fall
We set the corners so there is a clear high side and a clear low side, then tension the membrane hard enough to hold that shape wet and loaded. Too flat and water gathers; too steep and you lose headroom. The geometry is drawn on your blueprint before anything is cut.
Where the water lands
Water leaves a waterproof structure somewhere, and it is worth deciding where. We aim the low corner away from the back door and the path, and send it into a gutter or down a pipe on a post.
Heat-welded seams
Every stitch through a membrane is a hole, so the seams on a PVC structure are heat-welded in our factory. Shade cloth gets sewn, because a cloth sail already lets water through the weave.
Heavier bones underneath
A PVC roof holds the wind a cloth sail would have let through, plus the weight of the water on top. The posts get bigger for it and the footings go deeper. Posts built for shade cloth won't always carry a PVC roof, so we check the existing posts first.
Colour and light
Because nothing comes through the sheet, the light underneath is whatever colour you pick. Pale sand and grey keep it bright. Deeper colours make it read more like a room. Rain rarely falls straight down either, so a cafe frontage can take clear blinds that drop when the weather comes in sideways.
Good to know
Waterproof sails, answered.
How do you clean a PVC roof?+
Hose it down, then go over it with a soft broom and warm soapy water. No solvents, no abrasive pads and no pressure washer held up close, because the top coat is what keeps the membrane from staining and it is thinner than it looks. Leaves and seed pods are worth sweeping off the low corner before they sit there through a wet week.
How does it handle a Sydney storm?+
No fabric structure is indestructible in a freak event. Ours is engineered to NSW wind codes, with certification available on request, and a damaged membrane can be repaired.
Does it get hot underneath?+
Warmer than shade cloth, yes. We design around it with extra height and open sides where the shape allows. If the space is boxed in on three sides and summer heat is your main problem, cloth is the better answer.
Is it worth it if we mostly use the yard in summer?+
Sydney rain comes in wet weeks at any time of year, and those are the weeks the outdoor table goes unused. A PVC roof keeps the table out through drizzle and leaf drop.
Do I need council approval for a waterproof roof over the patio?+
Almost never. Most home shade structures are exempt development in NSW, so there is no application to make. Bigger or unusual builds and most commercial and school sites are the exceptions, and on those we prepare the documentation. We tell you which one you are at the free measure.
NSW builder licence 294924C · ABN 54 631 910 168 · family-owned, 40+ years · our own factory at 40 Bridge Street, Rydalmere NSW 2116.
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Free measure, blueprint & quote. 7 days a week, across Sydney & all of NSW.