If your are like most of people you can get overwhelmed by the quantity of information and products that are available to you today.  It seems that no matter what direction you turn there is someone new trying to tell you that they are the one you should believe.  Today, in this article, the facts are going to be given on what to look for when wanting to buy a pergola prefab kit and what to avoid when looking at them.

First of all there are many different type of kits in the market today.  Some of them are wonderful, come with easy to follow instructions, and have a manufacturing company behind them that will help you if you run into a problem.  On the other side, there are discount wood pergola kits that are made in China quickly and without much sense of quality in terms of craftsmanship and fitting all of the elements together.  And for the installation instructions, you can tell they were written by someone out of our country who does not understand very well how to communicate effectively how to put together the new pergola.  As far as the manufacture helping you will a help desk, you might get a local distributor to listen to some of your questions, but they are not the experts.

Materials used in Quality Pergolas

Materials wise for a quality pergola always choose western red cedar as a base material.  Red cedar over the years has been used as the standard for all others to fallow, and for good reason.  Western red cedar wood is naturally resistant to rotting and is a natural insect repellent.  Some other woods like redwood and treated woods are also good for these reasons, but hold some problems you should know about. 

Redwood is gorgeous in its looks and functions beautifully as an outdoor structure construction wood.  The largest reason why this product is not used today is that it is cost ineffective.  Purchasing a new growth redwood pergola will cost you 50% more than a cedar pergola.  While an old growth redwood item is 100% more expensive or more depending on the product you select.  Neither one of these redwood materials are readily available in prefab pergolas at this time.

Pressure treated products are wonderful for a couple reasons, but also have a down side your should consider.  As for longevity, the pressure treated woods will last a long time in the outdoors elements, and have a resistant attribute to both rotting and insects.  but, beware that a chemical is placed into the wood so that it can have their characteristics.  Even though the manufactures say that they are water based and do not hurt anything, it is still a chemical that is placed in the wood to make it the way it is. 

And from an design perspective, the color of the wood after the pressure treating just does not look natural anymore, manufactures say you can stain it for a more natural look if you like.  Again, they are selling you on placing for chemicals on the wood to take away the chemical look that was put there by the pressure treatment.  This is a concern for many people

The Natural Choice is Cedar

We are not all Eco Friendly fanatics, but in this case the best choice for you quality garden pergolas is western red cedar.

Details of Pergola Kit

The small details can make all the difference in the overall beauty and easy of construction of a prefab cedar pergola kit.  Does the kits come with all of the mounting hardware?  How is it shipped to the end location?  How much is it going to cost to ship the outdoor structure kit? Is there a person to talk to if you have problems? These are all great questions you must answer become making a decision on which one to buy.

If you keep in mind these tips on buying a pergola when out looking at and talking with retailers, you will be much more informed on and have a general sense of confidence that you are buying the right item for your backyard or garden.

A great location to find quality information on backyard structures and all off your home decor information needs found at this learning center.  Check them out.



Source by Dave Gallogly