Cantilever parasols - ?

[franch]

Can't work out whether the table I want has a hole in the middle, and I want a dining set plus parasol for next weekend. Should I get a cantilever parasol? Are they good, what are the pros and cons and where should I look?

I've just ordered one online for £80, I have high expectations of it!

Keep me updated bosch

PS can you link to the one you ordered?

And how flexible are they in terms of positioning so that you can get the shade where you want it?

It's this one. Looks very similar to the £200 one I was ogling in John Lewis. Sure they swing round for positioning. Also, at 3m wide, should cast a decent shade. Has been despatched, I'm v excited...

be warned. Cantileve parasols look the mutts, but if there is a hint of wind it acts like a sail. For this reason we cant have ours up for long periods at a time and definately could not leave it up day in day out

They do look good, but they aren't the best when it is windy. Our base is also on rollers so that makes it very easy to reposition - no idea how we would ever move it otherwise.

The one we have also has a tilt option as well as going flat, creates good shade... It has been used for 5 years and so far nothing has gone wrong

awayfromhome - where's yours from?

We bought one last year and it kept blowing over. This year we screwed the base into the decking which means apart from positioning the umberella part we cant move it now(but thats not too bad as its where we want it).
It does give a lot of shade but because they are quite high it needs to be further away from where you want the shade than a normal umberella. Also they are so heavy that taking it down and putting it up is a nightmare. We had ours in a sale for 40.00 but if your considering paying a lot for one I wouldnt bother. And dont bother with the weather cover. You need a step ladder to get it over the top of the umberella.

franch - unlikely to be much use here. I'm afraid it was bought when we lived in Hong Kong. I have looked for an indication of who made it and can't find anything.

You know what - I'm going to get a table with a hole in the middle and stick to a bog standard parasol. Thanks v much for helping me decide

I have tried all the parasols under the sun (pardon the pun) none really work unless there is no wind, the one I have now is fab to look at and I thought it was heavy enough but in the first season (last year) it blew right over the hedge and damaged even with tons of big rocks around it! They act like a flippin parachute - fed up with buying them now, going for a pergola and fabric!

oh we HATED ours

now have one that is fixed to the wall