Outdoor Living Spaces: What to Plan Before You Build

Outdoor living has become one of the most requested features in new custom home construction. A covered patio, an outdoor kitchen, a fire pit gathering area, or a fully equipped lounge can extend your usable square footage by hundreds of feet and become the most-used space in your home during Oklahoma’s long outdoor season. But getting it right requires planning that begins long before the first shovel of dirt is turned.

The decisions you make during the design phase determine whether your outdoor space functions the way you imagined or becomes a source of frustration after move-in. Drainage, electrical access, structural tie-ins, gas lines, ceiling fans, and HOA requirements all need to be resolved on paper before they can be built in the field. This guide walks through every category of planning you should address before breaking ground on your outdoor living space. If you want to understand how outdoor decisions connect to the broader architectural process, the Bill Roberts build process overview is a useful place to start.

Why Outdoor Living Planning Belongs in the Structural Phase

Most homebuyers think of outdoor living as a design decision: choose the furniture, pick a tile for the floor, add a grill. In reality, the most important outdoor living decisions are structural ones. They determine what the space can physically accommodate, how it connects to the interior, and what it will cost to build correctly.

Covered patios require a roofline attachment or an independent structural system. Outdoor kitchens need gas rough-in, electrical circuits, water supply, and drainage planned before the slab is poured. Fire features require gas lines or wood storage. A pergola attached to the home needs to be engineered to carry its own load without creating a water intrusion point at the connection.

These are not afterthoughts you can add at the end. They are part of the same architectural conversation as ceiling heights and window placement. In communities like Waterstone and Camden Park, outdoor living is designed as a natural extension of the interior from the very first floor plan sketch, not something bolted on at the end of the process.

Define How You Will Actually Use the Space

Before any design conversations happen, the most productive thing you can do is define your intended use cases in concrete terms. Vague goals produce vague designs. Specific goals produce outdoor spaces that work.

Ask yourself who uses this space and when. Is this primarily a space for evening entertaining with adults, or does it need to function as a safe play area for young children during the day? Is weekend grilling the primary activity, or do you envision full dinner parties with a catered setup? Is privacy from neighboring lots important, or is the space primarily oriented toward a view?

The answers to these questions determine size, layout, the degree of enclosure, what infrastructure to rough in, and where the access points from the house should be located. A space designed primarily for large-scale entertaining is fundamentally different in layout from one designed for daily family use, even if the square footage is identical.

Covered Patio: Size, Orientation, and Roofline Connection

The covered patio is the structural anchor of most outdoor living plans. Its footprint, depth, and roofline connection need to be on the architectural drawings from the start.

Depth and Usability

Patio depth is one of the most commonly underestimated dimensions in outdoor planning. A patio that looks generous on a floor plan often feels cramped once furniture is placed. For a covered patio intended to hold a dining table and a seating group, a minimum depth of 14 to 16 feet is typically required to allow both functional zones without feeling crowded. Deeper is almost always better, and the cost difference between a 12-foot and a 16-foot patio at construction time is far less than the cost of extending it after the fact.

Orientation and Sun Exposure

The orientation of your covered patio relative to the sun matters enormously for how usable it is during Oklahoma’s summer months. A south-facing patio will receive direct sun during the hottest part of the afternoon, making it nearly unusable without mechanical cooling. A north-facing patio will be shaded for most of the day. East- and west-facing patios each have predictable patterns worth understanding before the home is positioned on the lot. Your builder and lot orientation work together here, and it is worth raising the question early.

Roofline Integration

How the covered patio roof connects to the main roofline of the home has structural, aesthetic, and waterproofing implications. A full gable extension looks like a natural part of the home’s architecture and provides the most weather protection. A shed-style roof slopes away from the home and is simpler to frame but less visually integrated. A standalone structure with its own footing is the most flexible but requires the most independent engineering. The National Association of Home Builders notes that proper roofline integration at the connection point is one of the most critical factors in preventing long-term water intrusion issues in attached outdoor structures.

Outdoor Kitchen: What to Rough In Before the Slab Is Poured

An outdoor kitchen is the single most infrastructure-intensive element in outdoor living design. Every system it requires must be rough-in ready before the concrete goes down. Retrofitting any of these systems after the slab is poured is either extremely expensive or simply impossible without demolition.

Gas

A natural gas line to the outdoor kitchen is the most important rough-in to get right. The line needs to be sized correctly for the appliances it will serve. A 36-inch gas grill, a side burner, a pizza oven, and a fire feature all have different BTU requirements, and the line must be sized for the peak load of everything running simultaneously. Running an undersized line that cannot support all appliances at full output is one of the most common and frustrating outdoor kitchen mistakes.

Electrical

Plan for more electrical capacity than you think you need. Outdoor kitchens typically require circuits for the refrigerator, the lighting system, a blender or mixer outlet, USB charging stations, a television rough-in, and potentially a pellet smoker or electric appliance. All outlets must be GFCI-protected, and any outlets intended for permanent appliance connection should be on dedicated circuits. Ceiling fan rough-in in the covered area above the kitchen should also be planned at this stage.

Plumbing

A cold water line to the outdoor kitchen dramatically increases its utility, even if you do not plan to install a full sink setup immediately. Rough in for a sink, an ice maker, and a drain line while the slab work is underway. The National Kitchen and Bath Association recommends planning outdoor kitchen plumbing to the same standard as interior kitchen plumbing, with accessible shutoffs and proper drainage slope built into the slab design.

Counter and Appliance Layout

The layout of the outdoor kitchen determines the placement of every utility rough-in. Before any digging begins, you should have a finalized appliance list and a cabinet layout drawn to scale. Changes to appliance placement after the slab is poured require either demolition or expensive workarounds.

Fire Features: Planning for Safety and Function

A fire pit or outdoor fireplace is one of the most requested outdoor features in Edmond custom homes, and one of the most misunderstood from a planning standpoint.

The first decision is fuel type. A wood-burning fire pit is the simplest to rough in because it requires no gas line, but it produces smoke that can drift back toward the home and requires wood storage nearby. A gas fire feature requires a dedicated gas line and a specific gas valve, but produces no smoke and can be ignited and extinguished instantly. A gas fireplace with a flue is the most involved structurally, requiring a chimney or chase built into the architectural drawings.

Clearance is the most critical safety planning issue. The International Residential Code and local fire codes specify minimum clearances between fire features and combustible surfaces, overhead structures, and property lines. These clearances must be reflected on the site plan before permits are submitted. Your builder should be familiar with Edmond’s specific requirements and can flag any lot or layout that creates clearance challenges before the design is finalized.

Placement also affects the usability of the surrounding space. A fire feature positioned too close to a dining area fills the table with smoke and heat. One placed too far from the home feels disconnected from the primary living zone. Treat fire features as the anchor of a distinct outdoor “room” with its own seating zone, separate from the dining and kitchen areas.

Drainage: The Detail That Protects Everything Else

Drainage is the least glamorous topic in outdoor living planning and one of the most consequential. Improperly sloped hardscape, inadequate drainage structures, and poor planning around how rainwater moves across a patio can lead to water intrusion at the home’s foundation, pooling that makes the space unusable after rain, and erosion that undermines the hardscape over time.

Every paved outdoor surface needs to be designed with a positive slope away from the home’s foundation. The standard minimum slope for a concrete or paver patio is 1/8 inch of drop per foot of run. That sounds minor, but across a 20-foot patio, it translates to 2.5 inches of elevation change that needs to be built into the design and grading plan.

Outdoor kitchens and covered areas with sinks or refrigerators also need floor drains routed to a proper outlet. If the outdoor living space is adjacent to a pool or pool deck, the drainage design becomes more complex and must account for the interaction between the two systems.

Ask your builder specifically how drainage is handled in the outdoor living areas of homes they have built in communities near yours. The answer to that question tells you a great deal about the depth of their planning process.

Lighting: Design for How the Space Feels After Dark

Outdoor lighting is frequently treated as a final-stage decision when it should be part of the structural and electrical planning from the beginning. Conduit placement, junction boxes, and low-voltage transformer locations all need to be established before concrete is poured and before any finish work is applied to columns or ceiling structures.

A well-lit outdoor living space uses layers, just as interior lighting does. Overhead ambient lighting under the covered patio provides general illumination. Task lighting at the outdoor kitchen provides functional brightness at the counter. Accent lighting on architectural features, landscaping, and the underside of structural elements creates depth and atmosphere. Step lighting on any grade changes provides safety. String lighting or perimeter lighting provides the warm, ambient quality that most people associate with a well-designed outdoor living space at night.

The Illuminating Engineering Society recommends planning outdoor lighting zones that can be controlled independently, allowing the space to shift from bright and functional during cooking to warm and ambient during an evening gathering without changing a single fixture.

Rough in for any lighting you anticipate adding within the first five years. The cost of adding conduit runs during construction is negligible. The cost of retrofitting them into a finished structure is substantial.

Flooring and Hardscape: Choosing Materials That Hold Up

Outdoor flooring selection is different from interior flooring in two important ways: material performance in freeze-thaw cycles and radiant heat absorption. Oklahoma experiences enough winter temperature variation that certain porous materials can crack over time as water infiltrates and freezes. Porcelain pavers are the most durable option for Oklahoma’s climate because they are non-porous and highly resistant to freeze-thaw damage. Concrete is durable but benefits from proper sealing and finishing. Natural stone is beautiful but requires more maintenance and careful material selection. For visual inspiration on hardscape options and patterns, Houzz’s outdoor flooring guides are a useful reference when building a visual direction before your selections appointments.

Radiant heat absorption matters in Oklahoma summers. Dark-colored concrete or stone absorbs significantly more heat than light-colored alternatives. A dark charcoal paver in direct afternoon sun can reach temperatures that make it uncomfortable to walk on barefoot. This is worth factoring into your color palette selection, particularly for areas around a pool or in full sun exposure.

The transition between indoor and outdoor flooring is also worth planning carefully. A clean, level transition from interior tile or hardwood to outdoor paving creates a visual and physical continuity that makes the interior feel larger and the outdoor space feel more intentional.

Pool Planning: If Not Now, Rough In for Later

Not every buyer who wants a pool will build one at the time of initial construction. But if a pool is a possibility within the next five years, there are decisions to make now that will either preserve that option affordably or foreclose it expensively.

If you are planning to add a pool post-construction, discuss the following with your builder during the design phase: equipment pad location, conduit runs from the home’s electrical panel to the anticipated equipment location, gas line stub-out if you plan a heated pool or spa, drainage design that accounts for pool backwash, and fencing requirements that affect the outdoor living layout. Designing the outdoor living space as if the pool exists, even if it will not be built for years, produces a much more cohesive result than retrofitting pool infrastructure around a space that was not designed with it in mind.

Touring completed homes in active communities like The Lakes at Annecy or The Manors at Annecy gives you a realistic reference for how pool-adjacent outdoor living spaces are designed and how different configurations function at the neighborhood scale.

Outdoor Living Planning Checklist: What to Decide Before You Build

How the Indoor-Outdoor Connection Shapes Both Spaces

The relationship between your interior living space and your outdoor living space is one of the most important design decisions in the entire home. It is also one of the most frequently treated as an afterthought.

The door that connects the interior to the exterior has an outsized effect on how both spaces feel and function. A standard 6-foot sliding glass door creates a threshold that psychologically separates inside from outside. A 12- or 16-foot multi-slide door system that folds or stacks open creates a genuine indoor-outdoor continuity where the great room and the patio function as a single space when the door is open. The structural rough-in for these openings must be on the architectural drawings before framing begins.

Sightlines from the kitchen and main living area to the outdoor space matter as well. A parent who wants to supervise children playing outside while cooking needs a clear sightline from the kitchen to the outdoor area. An entertainer who wants to see the outdoor kitchen from the indoor kitchen needs both spaces positioned and sized accordingly. These functional requirements need to be built into the floor plan, not addressed with furniture placement after the home is complete.

Reviewing the available homes at Bill Roberts gives you a firsthand look at how the indoor-outdoor connection is handled across different floor plans and lot orientations before you commit to your own design.

Frequently Asked Questions About Outdoor Living Spaces

What outdoor features add the most value to a custom home?

Covered patios and outdoor kitchens consistently rank among the highest-return outdoor improvements in the residential market. The National Association of Realtors regularly identifies outdoor living additions as strong contributors to perceived home value, particularly in climates that support extended outdoor seasons.

How much does an outdoor kitchen add to the cost of a custom home?

The cost range for outdoor kitchens is wide because the variables are wide. A basic outdoor kitchen with a built-in grill, a small refrigerator, and a concrete counter is a fundamentally different project from a fully equipped outdoor cooking station with a pizza oven, a pellet smoker, a wet bar, a kegerator, and custom cabinetry. At the custom home level in Edmond, budgets for outdoor kitchens commonly range from $20,000 to $80,000 or more depending on size, appliance selection, and finishes. The most important budgeting principle is to plan for the infrastructure correctly the first time. Undersizing the gas line or skipping the drain rough-in to save money initially results in a much higher cost to correct later.

What is the best outdoor living layout for Oklahoma’s climate?

Oklahoma’s climate creates two primary design challenges: intense summer heat and periodic severe weather. The best outdoor living layouts for this climate prioritize deep coverage over the primary seating and dining zones so the space remains usable in afternoon sun. Orient the covered area to minimize direct west sun exposure. Iinclude ceiling fan rough-in for every covered zone, and design the space with a clear path to the interior for quick entry during sudden weather changes. A deep covered patio of 16 feet or more with proper orientation makes far more practical difference to daily usability than expensive outdoor cooling systems added to a shallow, poorly oriented structure.

Should I build a pergola or a covered patio?

The practical answer depends on your priorities. A pergola provides shade and structure but does not keep rain off. A covered patio with a solid roofline keeps the space dry and usable in light rain. In Oklahoma, where afternoon thunderstorms are a regular feature of spring and summer, a solid roof dramatically increases the number of days your outdoor space is usable. A pergola is better suited as a secondary structure or a transitional zone between the covered patio and an uncovered outdoor area than as the primary covered living space. If budget requires a choice, invest in a properly sized and designed covered patio with a solid roof before adding pergola elements as a secondary aesthetic feature.

Can I add outdoor living features after the home is built?

Yes, but at significantly higher cost and with greater constraints. Adding a covered patio after construction requires either modifying the existing roofline, which involves significant structural and waterproofing work, or building a freestanding structure, which limits integration with the home’s architecture. Adding a gas line or electrical circuit after the slab is poured requires cutting concrete or running exposed conduit. The infrastructure that costs a few thousand dollars to rough in during construction can cost ten times that amount to add after the home is complete. The most cost-effective outdoor living spaces are always those planned from the beginning of the architectural process.

How do I choose a builder who understands outdoor living design?

Ask to walk through homes the builder has completed in the last two to three years, specifically to evaluate the outdoor living spaces. Look at how the covered patio connects to the roofline. Look at whether the outdoor kitchen infrastructure appears to have been planned from the beginning or added as an afterthought. Ask how drainage is handled in the patio areas. Ask what their standard rough-in includes for outdoor spaces and what requires an upgrade. A builder who answers these questions with specifics rather than generalities understands outdoor living at the planning level, not just the finish level. You can explore active communities across Edmond and tour completed homes before committing to any builder or community.

Ready to Plan Your Outdoor Living Space in Edmond?

If you are exploring what outdoor living looks like in a new custom home in Edmond, Oklahoma, Bill Roberts Custom Homes has helped buyers plan and build outdoor spaces across communities including Waterstone, The Lakes at Annecy, The Manors at Annecy, Camden Park, Fallbrook, and The Lakes at Cross Timbers for more than 35 years.

Here is where to start:

• Explore the build process to see how outdoor living decisions fit into the full journey from concept to move-in.
• Browse available homes to see completed outdoor living spaces in person before your own design process begins.
• See where we build to explore active communities across Edmond.
• Contact us to schedule a consultation and begin the conversation about your new home.

Find Your Dream Home Today.