You’ll never regret building a Pergola in sunny Geelong and the process will be rewarding.
Pergolas take an otherwise boring outdoor living area and turn it into something special by providing a vertical architectural feature that perfectly frames a space.
They add a bit of shade and a place for woody vines such as grapes to grow. They also provide a wind break.
Things to consider before building a Pergola
Area coverage: Be sure to measure out the area to be covered. As you’ll see in the photos it’s not always necessary to cover the whole area, you may only need to build over the dining area.
Budget: Your budget will affect how big you plan to build a Pergola as well as what materials you’ll choose.
Materials: Building a Pergola requires you to consider the wide variety of materials available to you, however it’s not just the posts and beams that you’ll need to consider. There’s also the footings, fixtures, fasteners and hardware used to join everything together.
Permits: Don’t forget to check with Geelong council (or Surf Coast/Colac/Golden Plains!) to ensure what you’re building is a legal structure and that you have permission to build it. It’s a costly process to build a Pergola only to pull it back down again!
Best materials for building a Pergola
A Pergola will have to withstand a lot of weather over it’s lifetime. Building with the right materials is the first step in making sure that your Pergola is up to the job.
Although you can build a pergola with steel, we’re going to focus on timber which is generally the preferred choice. When talking timber Pergolas, the choice is essentially between hardwood and treated pine. That then brings us to cost and aesthetics, which play a large role as well.
Hardwood naturally stands up to the weather and comes in a range of aesthetically pleasing textures, grains and colours.
H4 treated pine is a softwood that’s been treated in a way that gives it the hard-wearing properties of a hardwood but at a fraction of the cost. It’s less aesthetically pleasing when left uncoated however when painted it comes up a treat!
If you need help choosing the right materials for your project we’re here to help. Drop in, give us a call on 5278 9464 or contact us via our web form.
Below is a fresh take on the old pergola that we love. If you’ve built a Pergola please send us a photo for our Customer Project Blog. Just send us a photo and short description via the contact us web form.
