The trend in remodeling homes is to expand the outdoor backyard or patio into a lovely room where you can entertain. It just makes sense to extend your surroundings to be more useful. Some are going all out and installing outdoor kitchens while others are just getting new patio furniture. If you are like me; you love being outdoors but can't take the heat. When the air is stifling and still, you just want to retreat into the air conditioning so you feel like you can breathe again. If you want to create a cooler more comfortable atmosphere on your porch or patio; consider installing a ceiling fan. Ceiling fans are fabulous for circulating the air and making you feel cooler even when the temperature of the air is getting hotter. Don't limit yourself to having a fan indoors. If you are redecorating your patio or just want to entertain more outdoors, you may want to add a stylish outdoor ceiling fan to the decorating and comfort mix. These fans make great focal points for any backyard. There are numerous styles and models on the market that will fit any patio decor. Ceiling fan styles can be broadly grouped into Retro, Traditional, Contemporary, Futuristic and Special. I happen to love warm copper and have decorated my patio with copper lighting and accents such as a copper fire pit and many sizes of copper pots. There are fans that resemble the era of the twenties with a look straight out of the movie Casablanca. Others are very contemporary in a trendy nickel or other new hot metal finish. Some choose to stay more understated with a simple white fan that just blends in. You can also easily find a traditional wood grain look which would be great on the porch of a log home.

There are different styles of fans available according to your needs. There are distinct features for outdoor ceiling fans that will help you decide what you need for your backyard to keep cool. Don't happen to have a ceiling on the patio? Don't worry; you can still have a stylish ceiling fan. Free standing fans don't need a ceiling. You can place this overhead model anywhere on the patio. It has galvanized steel construction and a weather shield hood. The tubing is powder coated for weather resistance. This needs to be permanently installed. You cannot move it around yourself. It is usually found in white and is great for any occasion, by the pool, or wherever you need it. Hunter has a style of fan that has plastic all weather fan blades and the motor is raw copper that is very shiny. Other styles are brushed or the copper may appear antiqued. Since the fan is rated for the outdoors, you might want to let the copper reach a rich patina on its own.

An outdoor ceiling fan is specially designed, engineered and manufactured to withstand the heat, cold, dust, dryness and humidity that it will have to work in. Manufacturers will rate outdoor ceiling fans differently than other ceiling fans. Some are for wet conditions and these are the fans that you can actually use outside in the elements. Damp rated fans can only be used on porches or places where they are covered. Housing and motors will be completely enclosed on an outdoor fan and they are a little more expensive than a conventional indoor model. If your fan is not rated correctly for the outdoors it could become quite dangerous, or it will rust and the motor won't work. Don't let anyone tell you that your ceiling fan must have a ceiling. Now you can purchase ceiling fans that will work just as well outdoors to circulate the air as they do indoors.

Author: Beverly Marshall