How to Build a Door Canopy

A door canopy is a type of cover that is used to protect an exterior door. More often than not, you will see them above the entrances to businesses. Not only do they protect customers from inclement weather, but they are also great as a decoration. They can be purchased pre-fabricated, but making your own will add a personal and unique touch to it.

Step 1 – Prepare

The first thing that you will need to do is to prepare the area. Start off by drawing up designs on what you want your canopy to look like. Decide how much work you are willing to put into it and what type of design you want it to have. Remember that the design will need to complement the décor of the building, both inside and out.

From there, you will need to measure the doorway width and decide how far out you want the canopy to go. Remember that the canopy will need to go about six inches on either side of the door.

Step 2 – Canvas

Once you have a design and measurements, you will need to cut out the canvas pieces. There will be two that you will need to cut. The first piece of the canvas will be for the main panel, cut this the width of the doorway plus one foot by the actual length you want the canopy to be plus an additional two inches.

The next piece will be the flap that will go on the front part of the door canopy. Cut this the width of the main panel subtracted by four inches.

Step 3 – Pockets

Pockets will need to be made for the aluminum frame to fit properly. In order to do this, you will need to fold under an inch of the canvas and sew all the way down the inside of the edge. This will create a pocket that is open that will run along the length of the main rectangular panel. You will need to do this for both sides.

Step 4 – Sew

The binding around the two shorter ends, as well as the long front end of the front flap panel, will need to be sewed. After you have done this, you will need to also sew the rest of the edge that is unfinished from the front flap panel. Attach the main and front panel with a sewing machine by placing the front on top of the main where both right sides are facing. From there flip them and iron them.

Step 5 – Aluminum Frame

Cut two aluminum poles the full length of the main panel, after that, you will need to cut one that is the width of that panel. Weld them into a U shape and then, at a ninety-degree angle, weld a twelve-inch aluminum pole to each end of the long legs. After it has cooled off, insert the frame into the pockets.