Outdoor Living & Lifestyles - pergolas
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bjwny
03-12-04, 05:47 PM
I want to build a pergola in my backyard. I am planning on using limestone screenings with slate on top filled in with pea gravel. I want to use the space for my hammock and am looking for good, simple designs and the best way to anchor the pergola. I rate my building skills between novice and intermediate. Thanks for the help!!:) :)
howiek
03-19-04, 06:44 PM
Hello bjwny and Welcome to DoItYourself.com :)
If I understand what you want to do, you'll probably want at least two posts spaced far enough (or close enough) apart to hang your hammock from.
Depending on how permanent you want it to be, you could sink concrete footings below the frost line (about 48" below grade in our climates) and mount posts on the footings. Using Sonotubes or similar to do the concrete pour into is usually the easiest after you have dug the holes. You can buy brackets designed to hold 4x4's or whatever dimension timber you plan to use and sink them into the concrete while it is still workable. You'd have to use laterals or other timbers as beams across the top of the posts to keep the posts spaced properly when weight is put in the hammock.
Another way that comes to mind is to just bury two posts at least 3' deep and hang your hammock from them when the soil around the posts has compacted enough to prevent any movement.
One more thing that comes to mind would be to use a commercially available frame (usually tubular metal construction) and just put it on the ground under any arbour that you make to provide shade and a place for plants to climb.
Don't know if this helps any :rolleyes:
Hope it has a bit ;)
Howie
If I understand what you want to do, you'll probably want at least two posts spaced far enough (or close enough) apart to hang your hammock from.
Depending on how permanent you want it to be, you could sink concrete footings below the frost line (about 48" below grade in our climates) and mount posts on the footings. Using Sonotubes or similar to do the concrete pour into is usually the easiest after you have dug the holes. You can buy brackets designed to hold 4x4's or whatever dimension timber you plan to use and sink them into the concrete while it is still workable. You'd have to use laterals or other timbers as beams across the top of the posts to keep the posts spaced properly when weight is put in the hammock.
Another way that comes to mind is to just bury two posts at least 3' deep and hang your hammock from them when the soil around the posts has compacted enough to prevent any movement.
One more thing that comes to mind would be to use a commercially available frame (usually tubular metal construction) and just put it on the ground under any arbour that you make to provide shade and a place for plants to climb.
Don't know if this helps any :rolleyes:
Hope it has a bit ;)
Howie