For this project at a private residence in South Yarra, to meet our clients’ brief of an exposed timber structure for their retractable roof system, Melbourne Awning Centre had to source timber that would span 8.5m across the pool and deck area from the house, that was also strong enough to fix the tracks of the 12.9m roof system on to.

The selection came to be rough-sawn wet Grey Ironbark, originating from the forests in northern New South Wales, of which we used 101 lineal metres (beams sized 300 x 75mm). There were 8 beams used in total, with each weighing up to 200kg, which made the movement and installation of the structure itself the largest difficulty of the project. To get all the timber on to site, the fence at the far end of the deck area had to be removed and the neighbour’s backyard was our entry point! We also had to be mindful of the pool during installation, as the pavers had already been laid and care had to be taken to not damage them.

Once installation was complete however, our clients were left with an outdoor space that can be used all-year-round without worry about the weather, highlighting how retractable roof systems are a perfect choice for the temperamental Melbourne weather.