What each gives you on a Central Florida lot, what it costs, how long it takes and why both are engineered for wind. Updated October 2026.
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Choose a screen enclosure when the goal is keeping bugs and leaves out of the pool or patio at the lower cost: our planning range is $8,000 – $25,000. Choose a covered lanai, a roofed outdoor room, when you want shade and rain protection you can furnish: $15,000 – $50,000. Many homes combine them, with a solid roof near the house and screen beyond. Both are engineered for wind load and permitted.
| Screen enclosure / pool cage | Covered lanai / outdoor room | |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | A screened frame over the pool or patio: bugs and leaves out, sun and rain in | A solid roof tied to the house, often screened or partly enclosed: shade and rain protection |
| Our planning range | $8,000 – $25,000 (size, height, wind rating) | $15,000 – $50,000 (roof structure, screening, finishes) |
| Time on site | a couple of weeks on site for a screen enclosure once its engineering and permit review are done; a covered lanai takes longer | Longer than an enclosure |
| Engineering | Engineered for wind load | Roof structure and its connection to the house engineered |
| Permit | Yes | Yes |
| Furniture and fans | Outdoor furniture that can take rain | Ceiling fans, lighting and furniture under cover |
Planning ranges (updated October 2026), not quotes. See screen enclosures and pool cages and pools and outdoor living.
A screen enclosure, or pool cage, is an aluminum frame with screen panels over a pool or patio. It keeps out insects, leaves and most debris while letting in sun and breeze, which is why it is the standard over Central Florida pools. It is the quicker and lower-cost of the two: $8,000 – $25,000, with size, height and the wind rating moving the price.
Many Central Florida communities review enclosures for height, color and screen type, and some planned communities have an architectural review board, so the design starts with the HOA's standards.
A covered lanai adds a solid roof, usually extending the house's roofline or attached to it, over a patio or part of the pool deck. You get shade in summer and a dry place to sit in the afternoon rain, with room for a ceiling fan, lighting, an outdoor kitchen and furniture that would not survive under screen alone.
It costs more because it is a roofed structure tied into the house: $15,000 – $50,000. The connection to the existing roof and wall and the roof's own engineering are what the permit reviews most closely. An outdoor kitchen under the lanai runs $8,000 – $30,000 on top.
Both are engineered for wind load and permitted. Seminole, Orange and Osceola counties are outside the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, which in the Florida Building Code covers only Broward and Miami-Dade, but each site still has a design wind speed set under the code, and the enclosure or lanai is engineered to it.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. For an enclosure, the frame, its anchors and the screen panels are part of the engineering; for a lanai, the roof's connections to the house are the critical detail. Both are drawn by engineers and inspected.
It can be, if it meets Florida's residential pool barrier rules (F.S. 515.29): at least 4 feet high on the outside, no gaps or footholds a young child could use, and doors or gates that open outward away from the pool and are self-closing and self-latching, with the release on the pool side out of a child's reach. Many enclosures are designed to serve as the barrier, which affects the door hardware and the kick panels. We confirm the requirements with the building department for your address.
Yes, and many homes do: a covered lanai next to the house for shade and furniture, with a screen enclosure continuing over the pool. Planned together, the roof, the screen frame and the gutters meet cleanly and the engineering covers both. Built in stages, the enclosure can be added after the lanai, or the lanai later under part of an existing cage, if the first part is designed with the second in mind.
Sources (primary sources, checked 2026-10-16): F.S. 515.29 · hurricane season · High-Velocity Hurricane Zone. This page explains rules in general terms; it is not legal advice, and the building department for your address has the final word.
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