Drive through Twin Palms or Racquet Club Estates and you’ll see what makes Palm Springs different from the rest of Riverside County: low, flat-roofed mid-century houses with clerestory windows, breeze block walls and big sliding glass doors facing the pool. Those homes were designed for desert living, and any addition behind them needs to respect both the architecture and the heat. Summer afternoons here regularly climb above 110 degrees, and the sun is intense for most of the year. Sunroom California designs sunrooms, insulated patio rooms, aluminum wood patio covers and enclosures for Palm Springs homes that are built for the Coachella Valley, not borrowed from a coastal catalog.
Respecting Mid-Century Lines
A lot of Palm Springs homeowners are protective of their home’s look, and for good reason. The city’s mid-century modern neighborhoods, including Twin Palms, Racquet Club Estates, Vista Las Palmas and Deepwell Estates, are known for clean horizontal lines, flat or low-slope roofs and walls of glass. An addition with a steep peaked roof and ornate trim would look wrong on those houses.
Because every room is custom made to order, the design can follow the house:
- Straight patio rooms use a flat or mildly sloped roof that continues the horizontal line of a mid-century home. See the straight patio room style.
- Straight eave sunrooms keep a crisp, squared-off profile with lots of glass, a natural match for homes already built around window walls.
- Solid aluminum wood covers with a thin, flat profile extend the roofline outward over the patio or pool deck.
- Colors can be matched to the existing fascia and trim.
Not every home in town is mid-century, of course. The Movie Colony and Old Las Palmas have Spanish Colonial and other period homes on larger lots, south Palm Springs has plenty of ranch houses, and condo and townhome communities are found all over the city. Those homes may suit gabled garden rooms, conservatory designs or other styles. The design starts with what’s already there.
What Desert Heat Means for Your Room
Palm Springs is a different climate from the inland valleys to the west. It’s hotter, drier, and sunnier, with extreme summer temperatures and very little rain. A handful of priorities follow from that:
- Insulate the roof as much as possible. Insulated cover roof panels are offered at 3, 4 and 6 inches thick. In Palm Springs, the 6-inch panel is often worth it, especially over a pool deck or a west-facing patio.
- Choose insulated walls for a room you’ll use in summer. Patio rooms with fully insulated walls and roofs, plus A/C that ties into your home or runs standalone, stay usable when the thermometer reads 115.
- Use dual pane glass. For sunrooms and enclosures, dual pane glass holds temperature better, and the glass blocks harmful UV that would otherwise fade furniture and floors quickly in desert sun.
- Add shade inside. Retractable curtains and shades let you cut glare in the late afternoon and open back up once the sun drops behind the mountains.
- Pick materials that won’t break down. Aluminum wood covers won’t crack, peel, warp or rot, never need painting and give termites nothing to eat. Wood covers struggle in the desert’s constant sun and dry air.
Wind matters too, particularly on the north end of town closer to the San Gorgonio Pass, where strong gusts and blowing sand are common. An enclosed room keeps the sand out, and anchored aluminum covers hold up far better than fabric shades. Read more on the roof systems page.
Designing for the Season You Actually Live Here
Palm Springs has a rhythm most cities don’t. From roughly fall through spring, the weather is warm and dry and the patio is the center of the house. Some owners live here full time, others come for the winter, and some rent their homes to visitors. Each group tends to want something a little different:
- Full-time residents usually want a room that works through the summer, which points to an insulated patio room with climate control.
- Seasonal residents often care most about winter comfort and low maintenance. A glass enclosure or sunroom captures sun on cool January mornings, and aluminum wood needs no painting while you’re away.
- Homes used as vacation rentals often benefit from a large solid cover over the pool deck and outdoor seating, where guests spend most of their time.
West-side neighborhoods near the base of Mount San Jacinto, such as Old Las Palmas and the Movie Colony, lose direct sun earlier in the afternoon as the mountain’s shadow moves across them, especially in winter. Neighborhoods farther east and south keep the sun later. That’s worth considering when deciding how much glass and how much insulation to use.
The Full Lineup for Palm Springs Homes
Sunrooms
Cthru and Four Seasons sunrooms in curved eave, straight eave, cathedral or studio, conservatory (Victorian, Georgian) and gabled garden room styles. They’re most comfortable here with dual pane glass, shades and climate control, and they shine from October through May.
Patio rooms
Straight and gabled patio rooms with fully insulated walls and roofs. These are the year-round workhorses, suitable for offices, guest rooms and entertainment spaces.
Patio covers
Duralum and Cthru aluminum wood covers in lattice, solid and glass roof designs. Solid insulated covers are the most popular in the desert because they deliver full shade and a cooler space underneath. Lattice can work over a garden area or a courtyard where you want filtered light. Covers install in 1 to 2 days. Details on the patio covers page.
Enclosures
Existing covers can be enclosed later with glass or insulated wall systems, turning a shaded patio into a room that keeps out heat, sand and insects.
How Your Project Comes Together
It starts with a free, no-obligation in-home estimate, and we’re open 7 days a week, which helps if you’re only in town for part of the year. A designer measures the space, looks at your slab or deck (decks are inspected first), notes sun direction and roof lines, and talks through options such as lighting, ceiling fans, outlets with hidden wiring and skylights.
A permit from the city’s building department may be required. Many Palm Springs condo and single-family communities have an HOA, and it may need to approve the design as well. Your estimate covers both. Your room or cover is then built to order in California. Once materials arrive, a room addition installs in about 3 to 5 days and a patio cover in about 1 to 2 days, compared with the 6 to 9 months a conventional addition often requires.
Every product carries a lifetime transferable manufacturer warranty, and financing is available.
