Round boards @ Home Depot

I solved this problem by buying round boards from Home Depot.  There is a problem with leaving the wood outside.  Moisture accumulates after it rains and mold forms.  That required the purchase of a sander to remove the mold and Thompson’s Water Seal to keep the moisture out of the wood.  They don’t carry Thompson’s Water Seal at Home Depot so I tried what they had, which is Olympic Waterguard.

Olympic Waterguard is very different.  While Thomson’s would soak right into the wood, Olympic coated the surface.  It took 2 coats of Thompson’s to get a good water resistant surface.  After one coat of Olympic the 2nd coat was beading on the surface.

After adding 8 round boards my umbrella is higher than the patio walls and heat is venting away from the top of the umbrella again.

The venting plus the recent addition of aluminum shade cloth to the top of the umbrella is keeping my patio temperature close to the air temperature in the area.

Some temperature readings at different elevations:
10ft high where the sunshields are 80-89F
6ft high where the outdoor thermometer hangs off the umbrella 76F
0ft at the base of the umbrella 73F
wunderground.com weather for my zip code 74F

In conclusion, elevating my umbrella above the patio walls allowing heat to vent away from my patio is keeping my patio cooler.  Also adding the aluminum shade cloth over the umbrella and having sunshields underneath the umbrella fabric are very effective in keeping my patio cooler.

4255 Genesee Ave
San Diego, CA 92117