October 6, 2011
Building A Gazebo From Scratch
Do you love building things? Is building a gazebo from the ground down the perfect challenge? There are plenty of gazebo plans available free in libraries and online. There are also blueprints available for fees ranging from $8 to $200. The more expensive gazebo plans are architectural blueprints, which are much more specific and best suited to the experienced contractor. The more affordable ones, though, are better suited to people like you who may be skilled enough to build your very own gazebo at home.
A good free gazebo plan is available from the Build Eazy website. Finding a good design shouldn't be too hard – the site would give you access to five complete gazebo plans that vary in size and design. There plans are free.
There are several things to think about before starting to build a gazebo. Carpentry tools such as the screw gun and especially the level would be necessary. Both the sliding compound miter saw and the basic compound miter saw would make good tools as well. These saws would let you carve the different sections of the gazebo with little effort due to their angular cutting capacities. The sliding compound miter is a great saw for bigger slabs of wood.
When considering the floor of your gazebo, it can either be a wooden floor that is already in place, a concrete slab or a built-in floor. In the latter case, you will need to pour one concrete pier for each post. Some of the data you would need to gather would be the mandated depth of the concrete piers, or any underground cables that must be avoided – you can get this info from your local building department.
Pine, cedar and redwood are the most popular kinds of wood for building a gazebo. The good thing about pine is that it is more malleable than the two others, but it decomposes quickly. Cedar and redwood are harder and more expensive, but age well.
Alternatively, you can build a metal or vinyl gazebo. But you will need heavy machinery for this task and probably have to buy your own gazebo kit. These kits are complete with all of the sections pre-crafted and ready to assemble. A level and a screw gun are usually all that are needed. But when fashioning the roof sections you may have to work on this with another person's assistance.
There are lots of options when it comes to building your own gazebo, and you don't have to be a carpentry star to get really good results. And just think, when you're done building your gazebo, you can sit inside it and just enjoy the shade.
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Filed under Landscape Gardening by Alison Heath