In recent years, do-it-yourself has become one of the most loved and appreciated hobbies by people. The art of making a profit is useful and allows you to obtain numerous advantages. Do-it-yourself is an operation that is delightful and useful for anyone who wants to try their hand at something, for example those who love jewelry will be able to deal with costume jewelery, those with a green thumb will be able to delight in taking care of plants, those who love engines will be able to take care of their vehicles. But what exactly is DIY? a technique that allows you to carry out any type of work and allows you to do everything independently, without needing to be helped by professionals. Through this art of DIY, you can build the pergola. All gardens generally have a pergola, it is a decorative, elegant element of the garden that protects from the sun’s rays. Generally the pergola is used to cover terraces or to create shaded paths to the connecting avenues between different buildings. The main thing is to try to have the roof wall covered by vegetation, especially for ventilation, which is essential for the plants to enjoy healthiness, thus avoiding stagnation of humidity. The vine is the classic pergola plant, but any other plant that tends to cover and climb and above all to give shade, considered excellent for this structure. In viticulture, the pergola is widely used and the main feature is its use in sunlight during the hot hours of the day, using shading for the conservation of soil moisture, where this is unfortunately lacking. A pergola must not exceed 2.60 meters in height and generally those built with wood are protected with paint, while enamels should be eliminated. The latter are an obstacle to climbing plants. The pergolas that are made of wood or metal require constant maintenance especially when the creepers lose their leaves. Building a pergola can be very simple if you have all the tools of the trade. In the past, pergolas based on structures in the shape of a dome or pavilion, better known as gazebos, were widespread. In some cases these structures were made of cloth, in others of wood or metal.

A very useful structure in a house the pergola, capable of making it alone. The pergola is based on a structure composed of beams, crosspieces and joists. The overlying lattice formed by beams is supported by pillars on which different types of vegetation arise so that the pergola is completely covered. It is not only an elegant and decorative element to embellish gardens, villas, vegetable gardens but also functional because it allows the passage to a point where the plants are in the shade. Generally the roof, which can be flat or rounded, is always closed while the side walls are open. The pergola is almost always found in the garden and its main function is to cover the terraces, give shade to the garden or simply embellish the home. The pergola can be made of wood, metal, masonry. The wooden one can be of three types (teak, Nordic pine and chestnut) and is suitable for any type of environment. It is cheaper than the other two, but more complicated to clean and requires a lot of maintenance. In addition to being the most widespread, teak wood is also the most resistant and has a honey color. For the roofing of pergolas, in addition to the well-known waterproof sheets, there are tarred cardboard to be fixed on the wooden structures. On the other hand, metal and masonry structures do not require particular maintenance, they are very resistant but economically they are very expensive.

Anyone who wants to set up a pergola should know that there are some rules to follow. First of all, if you want to build a pergola in a condominium apartment, you will need to go to the Municipality and ask for authorization. If the pergola is quite small and does not bother the other condominiums, permission will be easily obtained. The second operation to do is to create a design of the pergola that you want to build, paying close attention to the dimensions and measures. If you want to build a pergola with a quadrangular base, you need to foresee four poles. It will be necessary to fix the poles in holes of forty cm which will be fixed with cement mortar. It is necessary to arrange the beams between one pole and the other, using round head bolts. The joists will be placed in the same way transversely to the beams. Based on the type of plant that will be hosted, the distance between one joist and another will be determined. A protective impregnating agent must be applied to the entire structure and then a coat of woodworm anti-worm.

So far we have talked about how to build a do-it-yourself pergola, but not everyone is inclined to build it with their own hands for various reasons. The pergola is on the market and its price changes according to the materials and dimensions with which it is formed. For example, a metal pergola, very resistant to all atmospheric agents, will cost from 1800 to 2500 euros, reaching 3000 euros if very large as 400×400 cm. For those who can afford it, opal polycarbonate sheets that allow the passage of light and impact resistance are also an excellent expense. In any case, we are faced with very simple to install and durable structures. If you want to save money, it is advisable to build them through DIY.