Decks with Pergolas
You may have seen them but weren't exactly sure what they were called.
"Think of a pergola as a cousin to the gazebo," explains Mose from Decks R Us.
"The difference is, A pergola doesn't have the full roof like a gazebo, And you can't really enclose it with screens, It's just for partial shade or the looks of it.
Pergolas are sometimes called arbors or trellises
John,
Just wanted to drop a quick note and thank you for the beautiful decks your men installed; I couldn't be happier!
The entire process, from you helping me to refine my design ideas and Ray's flexibility in scheduling the work, to, and I think most importantly, the excellent installation and professionalism by Joe and his crew, went extremely well. Top to bottom you guys seem to do everything right!
Although I can travel quite frequently at times, if you need a reference or someone would like to see firsthand an example of you work, I'd be glad to help.
Good luck and thank you again.
Dave P.
Chesterbrook, PA
(We didn't list their full names here on the site, but let us know if you want to talk to these folks or any of our other past customers.)
Give Your Deck a Real Focal Point
Designer Will Hapeman "A pergola may not give you the function of a gazebo, but then again it really makes a stronger statement.
I've recommended pergolas to clients who were looking for a quite outdoor space, not real far from the house or when there isn't that much yard.
Because it gives some shade, you can easily place some outdoor furniture underneath there and make it a spot for some top quality chilling.
I also like pergolas on a deck because it can give a strong architectural structure to an outdoor deck, patio deck, and yard. Many yards, especially in newer developments don't have any super mature trees yet, and won't for some time, so your back yard is really pretty boring. A pergola can be that focal point-both from the inside and outside- that so many homes need.
I usually coach people when making outdoor improvements to consider what the project will look like from the outside and from the inside of your house. A pergola can actually be a perfect picture frame to outline a specific part of your yard you want to highlight.
In design, we know that the eye is normally drawn to the highest part of a feature, so a pergola on a deck can be an excellent way to draw attention to an entrance/exit onto the deck and really emphasize it.
And softening up a pergola is a really easy landscaping task. Some easy to grow vines like whysteria or bougainvillea can make a stark looking pergola a lot softer and more inviting.
I had a client who planted morning glories and moonflowers. The morning glories looked great during the day and the moonflowers really popped at night!
Here again, the level of attention paid to your deck can make or break it. Decks R Us Mose: "I've seen some pergolas that stand out in a bad way. And I feel bad for those homeowners because I can tell they spent a lot of money on it and the only real choice they would have is to tear it down and start all over. We try really hard to integrate the look of the deck railings with the support beams of your pergola, so it looks as if they truly belong together and were designed to complement each other from the start.
Hi John,
The two guys who were here working on the deck went above and beyond, they were super nice and did a great job. We are SO pleased with the result.
Moses was wonderful to work with and we have highly recommended you to both our neighbors who are interested in extending their decks (they are now jealous of how big ours is!).
Thank you and have a wonderful weekend.
Kacey(We didn't list their full names here on the site, but let us know if you want to talk these folks or any of our other past customers.)
A More Grand Unique Deck
"Unlike a gazebo, there isn't as much practicality with a pergola, but man do they look good, "says Mose.
"It does provide some benefit though- depending on how the sun moves across your deck, it can give a few needed hours of shade each day to retreat from if you've been out there working on your tan."
And you can determine how much shade you want. Because we customize our pergolas for each customer, we can build it so it gives more shade or less shade.
We can work with you find out how many cross pieces (or lattice) you want on top of your pergola. The more cross pieces you have, the more shade is provided.
Already have a deck but just want a pergola?
Contact Decks R Us and we can give you a free estimate on just a pergola
If you have a hot tub on your deck now,or will be adding one in the near future, a pergola could be a good way to complement it. Where as a privacy wall will obstruct the views from the sides, a pergola can create an unobtrusive overhead barrier.
"Its really a way of making your house a real home by putting something truly unique like a pergola on your deck." A mild warning: Pergolas are much more of a permanent structure than they appear. Although it doesn't look like too much went into the construction, it really is securely built so it's not that easy to take down or change once it's constructed. And sometimes they do require a separate permit or zoning approval. But rest assured; by going with Decks R Us, all of those headaches are taken care of as part of our Hassle Free Guarantee.
Consider if your family will be on your deck during peak sun times.
Sam of Decks R Us says, "It probably would be well worth your time to track the amount of sunlight the area you are considering gets- throughout the year, remembering to lessen the time during the winter months. And if you think you'll be using your deck during the brighter-and hotter times of the day- a pergola can give some shade and keep you out of the direct sunlight
Construction of Your Pergola
Our pergolas can be made of wood or vinyl. And when we're asked our preference, almost the entire crews votes for vinyl.
"It's really because of the maintenance" explains crew leader Amos. "Just like a deck constructed of wood that requires upkeep and on going maintenance, a wood pergola will need the same thing. I can see being willing to clean and restain a deck, but all those different parts of a pergola? No way! There are just too many small, hard to reach pieces that would need this yearly or bi yearly attention. Can you imagine staining all those 2x2 strips or the crisscross lattice?
Our vinyl pergolas are just as sturdy because we put pressure treated wood inside the vinyl to give it long lasting strength that won't sag.
Wherever possible, we try to attach the pergola directly to one side for you house. Usually our pergolas are a full 8 feet off the deck base but we've done some that were as tall as 9 1/2 feet tall. In this case, our customer wanted to install a ceiling fan from the top of the pergola and wanted plenty of overhead room.
Depending on the layout of the deck, pergola and house, we have to put the braces at the end of the pergola from the post to the beam for added support.
"If we are able to attach the pergola to the house in the back, and a little on the side, that will really help it be secure. But we really must see your home in person before we can give a firm recommendation."
Sizes of Pergolas
Pergolas can come from as small as 8 feet by 8 feet all the way to 16 feet by 30 feet.
The average pergola we build is around 12 feet by 16 feet.
Choices with our Pergolas
When matching a pergola to a deck, there are only 3 basic choices.
Your choices for a pergola are either (1)in a pressure treated wood
or (2) in a white vinyl or (3) an almond vinyl
"Believe me, I really would like to offer my customers more than 2 basic choices for a vinyl pergola, but after a lot of asking around, visting Deck expos and talking to manufacturers, I have not found anything decent other than these 2 choices.
You see, there are so many small parts that go into a pergola, The pergola ends, stringers, smaller support beams, lattice, end caps, house brackets the list gose on..... White and almond are the most popular colors, and as of yet there are not enough people who want the other choices to make it worth the manufacturers' time.
Some Really Neat Trends with Pergolas
One of the things Ray does when he's not busy getting the permits for our customers is to notice what's hot with decks.
And when it comes to pergolas, Raymond has one word.
Canopies.
"We are seeing canopies for pergolas showing up in some of our trade magazines. Although we've only had a few peole ask, I think this is really going to take off as the next big thing in decks.
"It's basically a track that mounts on the underside of your pergola where you manually pull the canopy in and out.Since it's usually made from a really durable canvas, you can pull and it in and out over and over again and not have to worry about tearing. The material is actually something like a high-end umbrella that you put over a table out on your deck.
The Next Big Thing: Canopies Under Pergolas
If you're torn between a pergola or an awning, maybe consider a pergola combined with an canopy underneath. Because the canopy is on tracks, you can sit under the pergola and easily cover it with the canvas. So you can have it completely open allowing the sun and air to flow in,and still have a pergalo look, Or completely close it for full shade from the light and the sun.
You can get a canopy to match nearly any size pergola you have, covering both the width and the length. And you can choose from over 20 different fabric styles for the perfect compliment to your deck and home.
A Real Life Story from one of our Customers
Over in New Freedom we working with a customer who wanted a pergola, only he didn't' really know it.
He knew he wanted something to give he and his family some shade, but didn't want to block out the sun entirely and since the deck was going to be facing south, he wanted a little something just to cool the deck down. He wasn't looking for something as big as a gazebo so we told him about pergolas.
"Oh….I've seen those things but never knew what they were called."
We pointed out that a pergola would allow some shade from the summer sun and a place to drink an iced tea while he read his magazines and eat outdoors a few evenings a week but he was still a little unsure.
As we often do with our customers, we asked one of our past customers who got a pergola if he could come by and check it out.
And the minute he saw it, he knew that he wanted one too.
The Cost of Adding a Pergola
Much of the cost of a pergola is tied up in the material.
It can make a real difference, for example, how many cross pieces you selected (see above for our discussion on shade). The more cross pieces you selected, the more shade you'll have but the more expensive it will be. Less cross pieces means less labor,material, lower cost but less shade.
Pressure treated pergolas are almost half the price of a vinyl one but like Amos said above, do you really want to stain an entire pergola every year? Not to mention you'd be painting upside down.
Owner John explains, "A Pergola will run anywhere between $18 and $25 a square foot. So if you are looking at a 12 by 12 pergola, that's 144 sqaure feet so that's a range between $2500 and $3600. That's in vinyl. You could get the same size pergola in wood between $1250 and $1800.
