This is meant to be a temporary set up for a wedding or celebration but I have had mine up for 6 months now. It makes it feel like we have a screened in porch. It has stayed sturdy so long. The holes allow the rain to run through at the edges. I did finally take it down last week because we had a wind storm in Texas and I thought it may finally fly away. I'll put it back up in March for the spring and I expect it will provide us with shade again all summer