Outdoor Visiting in Winter – The Physical Distancing Porch Set Up We Never Knew We’d Need
by Robin
We never knew we needed a space for outdoor visiting in winter. And then 2020 came and forced us to do all kinds of weird things to keep us all safe and healthy.
Social contact is vital to all of our mental health, especially now during these strange and uncertain times. We need to spend time with our friends and family! But we need to do it in the safest way possible.
Visiting with friends and family and keeping physically distant wasn’t too tough in the summer, but winter, in Canada is another story altogether.
I do most of my visiting with friends virtually or my favourite long, chatty walks on trails in the woods. I can do this pretty easily, even in winter.
But just hanging out with family or another couple is not easy. In our part of the world we’ve got snow and miserable cold from November to April. Never ever would we normally entertain entertaining outdoors in this.
Until now. Oh 2020, you’re fun.
So Ed and I decided to create a comfortable outdoor winter visiting spot. It’s physically distanced and as warm as we can make it without making it into an indoor space. And of course, it’s on a budget.
That’s what we’re sharing today!
Elements of our Space for Outdoor Visiting in Winter
In Canada we get winters with snow and ice and wind. Not the sort of weather that draws you to sit outside and visit. We needed to figure out how to block some of those miserable elements from our guests.
Choose the Most Sheltered Spot Possible
Our first decision was to make this outdoor visiting space on our front porch.
It’s deep enough for seating and has a roof over it to keep the weather off.
The wide open sides would need some attention.
For Heat and Ambiance: An Outdoor Propane Fire Table
It was a great purchase that we will use year-round.
These highly rated and affordable propane fire table options are also great to consider.
We may also pick up one of these hanging outdoor electric heaters just for a bit more comfort. If you go this route – be sure to avoid the oscillating ones – that’s not going to be as safe virus-wise.
Simple Curtain “Walls”
In one corner of our porch, we installed “walls” of curtains to block the wind and trap in a bit of heat.
We installed these on only two sides – there is still an open area for plenty of ventilation. The space can’t be TOO enclosed. This is very important for lessening the risk of virus movement between people.
We needed six so this price point was perfect.
(You can also find similar blackout, curtain panels with grommets here.)
Then our good old sailing knowlege kicked in and we decided rope would be infinitely simpler and cost next to nothing!
(Did you know Ed and I met as sailing instructors at summer camp? We”ve got mad knot tying skillz.)
Here’s the materials needed for each section: rope and 3 eye bolts.
It may seem like two eye bolts should be enough – but the third one is essential to get the rope really tight – more below…
Then we drew a dot at the top of the grommet. This is where the eyebolt will go.
After the hole was drilled we hand screwed in the eye bolts.
Ed screwed these blocks into the brick and then we added the eyebolt to this wood. This avoided making a giant hole in our brick.
On the corner pillar we added two eyebolts down low.
1) First we tied a knot at the far high eyebolt.
2)Then we pulled the rope through the grommets of the curtains.
3) Next we threaded the rope through the corner post’s eye bolt.
4) Then we pulled that rope down and fed it through the low eyebolt.
5) About halfway up the post we made a knot with a loop in it.
6) We threaded the rope through this knot loop and pulled it all tight. This loop makes all the difference!
7) Then we tied a knot at the loop to secure it.
Before hanging the curtains the final time I sewed all 6 panels together. This helped a ton to keep the wind out and trap some heat in.
We had originally hung them seperately and clipped them shut with clothespegs. Not nearly as effective!
We hung them so that they could all bunch together in one corner and hide most of the knots.
Winter Outdoor Seating
We moved our back deck patio furniture to the front porch. It’s made of more durable material than our usual porch furniture.
He wrapped the inner cushion in the mylar and put the cushion covers on over top.
It also makes a handy spot to put food and drinks out.
We’ve already enjoyed a meal out here – this spot held the takeout pizza boxes nicely!
A Rug to Keep the Feet Warmer
Ideally, we’d have chosen something synthetic and intended for outdoors, but we needed it in a few hours and were too impatient.
If we didn’t need it quickly I would have loved to order this one.
We placed another of these mylar thermal blankets under the rug to reflect even more heat up.
And, of course, String Lights!
We added a dimmer switch because I’m more that a little picky about the perfect light levels
Cozy Blankets for Warmth and Cuddling
Another great idea would be to have a couple of electric throw blankets like these.
Before 2020 we never expected to need a space for outdoor visiting in winter! You likely didn’t either. But now we have a temporary spot to ride this crazy season out – and we did it on a budget!
Robin and Ed are a DIY-loving couple with over 25 years of design and build experience. Also, Robin is a Nutritionist and former Registered Dietitian and Ed is an award-winning Business Educator. We share strategies for living a rich life on a DIY budget: creative money-savvy ideas for a stylish home, healthy meals and family fun. Our work has been published in the pages of Do It Yourself, Farmhouse Style and Better Homes & Gardens magazines.
Curious about the propane fire pit and the deck/porch ceiling. Is there enough space to keep any heat damage from affecting the ceiling? We are looking at a remodel and would love to keep the openness, but add a roof over our deck to allow for a little more protection from the elements and still be able to use the fire pit.
Hi Jamie! One of us (Ed) was concerned about this too. But the heat from the propane fire table barely reaches the ceiling. The first few times we ran it (on high) Ed would reach up and feel the ceiling and the heat was barely perceptible! We have an aluminum ceiling on our front porch – I might have been concerned if it was wood or vinyl – but we have no trouble at all. 🙂 Robin
Do you have it so all three sides are enclosed? I’d be concerned if they are that there isn’t enough ventilation for the virus if someone was carrying it. I do think this is a fantastic idea and fun even if there wasn’t a pandemic going on! As a fellow Canadian I can relate to the snow and cold. Stay safe and Happy Holidays!
Yes, Giselle. The space is wide open on one side so there is plenty of ventilation. Thanks for letting me know that the post wasn’t clear – I’ve edited it to make sure readers can understand this better. 🙂