How to Build a Pergola – Step by Step

Who doesn’t love a Pergola.  Well, get out there and build your own.  The number of plans to build a pergola or trellis, are mind boggling.  You can find many paid plans, but we prefer free.  In fact, The Family Handyman also prefers “free”.  So much so that they offer free pergola plans in their fantastic publication.  If you are not a Family Handyman subscriber already, you should head over to your nearest supermarket, take one of the little subscription cards that falls from the magazine when you pick it up and become a new subscriber.  Or, you could just head over to their web site.  After all, it is only $10 for an entire year.

Enough about my praise of the magazine (I have been a subscriber for more than 10 years) and onto the Pergola project.  As you can see, this pergola is perfect to add shade to a patio or pool area.  Obviously, the layout will allow for you to be pretty flexible with your sizing.

You should be sure to check with your municipality to be sure that you don’t need a permit for for this.  Good luck with your project.  The full plans can be found at the link at the bottom of this article.