Pergola Day 10 & 11 - Posts Are Up & Joists Are Finished

This post combines a couple of days together. We finished routing the posts and installing the wires. First I feed the wire through the back of the post to the front and tie it off.

This photo shows the wiring for the lights running from the base of the post down to where the wire crosses over the center of the post to the frontside where the fixture will be mounted.

Here is a closeup of where the wire turns 90 degrees and goes through the post to the other side. You can see the tiny nails I used to hold the wire in place.

After applying and sanding the wood putty, I repainted the posts. Now the wiring is discretely hidden inside the posts.

Michelle finished painting the joists on Day 11. They are now ready for installation, along with the two posts on the ground to the right.

We were able to finish installing all five posts. It was harder than I thought. I learned the hard way that the best way to install the posts was to place them in the existing brackets, use a level to make sure they were standing up correctly, and then tracing holes where the bolts go prior to installing the post. 

Of course I didn't do this...I thought I would be smart by using the old posts as templates for the new ones and tracing the existing holes onto the new boards. What that doesn't take into consideration is the slight variations that exist between the old 4x6 posts and new 4x6 posts. This led to a lot of minor adjustments on 3 of the 5 posts. They eventually went in though.

This post bolted into the existing brackets correctly the first time. It was the only one of the four to do so.

The top of this post has a bundle of wire that will eventually be used to power the ceiling lights on the pergola.

Here is a close up of one of the posts with the wiring exposed for the light fixtures that will eventually be installed.

Next step? Install the first beam. Hopefully that happens tomorrow!

Pergola Day 9 - Painting and Installing

 So Day 9 started off with a trip to Home Depot. I purchased the hardware needed to bolt our pergola together. Everything I bought was made with galvanized steel which will help the bolts withstand the weather as well as the pressure treated lumber. Its amazing how much a box of bolts can cost.

While I was gone, Michelle got started on applying primer to the joists. Each 2z6 joist is around 10 feet long. Michelle applied two coats on the top side. 

We will apply two coats to the bottom tomorrow, and then two coats of the final color to each side. I have to admit I'm tired of painting wood.

I started drilling holes into the posts so they could be mounted. I also drilled holes for where the light fixtures will be installed. We knew we needed to "hide" the wires to on the two poles that will face the avocado tree so I used the center post along the back as a "prototype". The back posts will have their wires on the outside of the posts (to provide easy access) but the wires will be hidden against the fence. But the center post needs wires run to the top to provide power to the lights that will hang from the top of the pergola. I used the router to carve a groove in the back of the post. From there I ran wire along the grove and backfilled it with wood putty which I will eventually sand flat.

I fell into a good routene for drilling holes. I would start the hole with a 1/4" bit. I would then use a 3/8" extended bit to run the hole through the board. For holes for lights, that was the end of it. But for holes where the mounting hardware would go, I then expanded the hole with a 1/2" extended bit, and then finish it off with a 5/8" bit. The 5/8" bit isn't long enought to go through the 4x6 so I had to drill it from both ends.

I was in middle of drilling a hole with the 3/8" extended bit when the battery on my drill died while the bit was in the wood. I replaced the battery and attempted to keep drilling but the force in the hole sheered the bit leaving the tip in the hole.

I had to use nails, a Dremel, and a couple of pairs of pliers to dig the broken bit out of the wood.

After 45 minutes I was able to dig the bit out.

Lesson learned...if you stop drilling in the middle of a hole, reverse the tool and back it out a little before continuing.

We were able to install one of five posts today. It was nice to see some lumber standing upright for the first time!

The second post is going into an existing hole. I cut out the plants around the hole and treated the end of the cut wood with a treatment that protects the wood and allows it to be surrounded by dirt.

We should have at least two of the other posts installed tomorrow. The remaining two need wood putty and paint. I'm not sure how long that will take so it could be one or two days before they are installed.

Today was another milestone. I finally almost "blew out" the pair of flipflops I purchased the day after I retired. Time to order another pair!

As always, Jack and Diesel were keeping an eye on our homestead. They are always making sure we are safe!

Pergola Day 8ish - Still Painting

We finished the basecoat on the posts and beams yesterday and today we starting painting the final colors. It takes four days to paint. Day 1 is two coats of primer on one side. Day 2 is two coats of primer on the other side. Day 3 is two coats of final color on one side. Day 4 is two coats of the final color on the other side.

The posts match the trim on the house while the beams will match the folding doors on the backside of our house. See below for a progression of work.

NO PAINT

PRIMER APPLIED

FINAL COAT APPLIED

Just for fun I pulled a trashcan of weeds in the front yard...but finding weeds is easy around here.

Next step, we will apply paint to the other side of the beams and posts tomorrow. On Wednesday I'll move the beams and posts to the patio to make space for six joists and one more post that will need to be painted and primed. From there, all the wood should be ready for install.

Pergola Day 7 - Lumber Arrives & Changes Made

 So our J&W Lumber order arrived today. Cesar used the forklift to drop the lumber on the curb by our house.

Yes those are 20 foot pieces of lumber. The beams and lattice need to be 19 feet long so we had to go big.

The next step was to move the lumber to the backyard. I used our wagon to carry the lattice down the side walkway to the back gate. Once there, I carried the lattice into the backyard two boards at a time. The 4x6 posts and 2x6 joists were carried one at a time. Michelle helped me stack the wood along the fence.

Carrying heavy wood gives you time to think...and the first thought that crossed my mind was whether or not the existing posts could hold the load. I didn't have an appreciation for the weight of wood until I carried the last board in. I immediately walked over to the two remaining original posts. I dug down and realized the bottoms of them were dry rotted.

I want to build a pergola that lasts for 20+ years so I decided to play it safe and replace them. Michelle and I drove over to Home Depot and purchase two additional 10 foot 4x6 posts. We also picked up a sample can of paint that we plan to use on the beams and joists. We based the color off of the existing color used for the posts and the trim on our house. The post/trim color is below.

The color is a dark brown/black. See below for some renderings of what the pergola may look like when we are finished.

Michelle and I prepped the two beams and four posts for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will primer the wood in preparation for the final coat of paint. This will give us an opportunity to test our "beam" color out and see if we like how it looks.

Pergola Day 6 - Post Painting

Today we started applying the final paint to the posts we already have on site. The color matches the trim of our house.

Tomorrow we'll apply one more coat before doing the install of the main post on Friday. We also plan to go to the paint store to buy buy a second color that is slightly darker and will be used to accent the horizontal beams on the pergola.

Pergola Day 5 - Lumber Order

 Last night I updated our pergola design in Sketchup to contain the elbow braces required to support the roof overhang.

I put together a lumber order for J&W. We included the related hardware for framing the box on top. We are hoping to have the wood here by the weekend so we can continue construction.

We also ordered some paint to match the trim of the house. I plan on stopping by the paint store tomorrow to pick it up.

Pergola Day 4 - Post Prep

 Michelle and I started off the day by visiting J&W Lumber in El Cajon. The staff at J&W helped us with a lot of questions during our front porch project so we decided to work with them again on the pergola. 

I had a quick conversation with the sales manager about my design. I confirmed I could get the beams in the lengths I need and we had a really good discussion about how much overhang I could have on one corner without running into issues. I think we will use a couple of knee braces to help support the overhang. I'll post an image from Sketch Up showing our latest design.

My next steps is to create a materials list for the items we will buy from J&W. They have a flat delivery fee so I might as well order everything at once. I plan on putting together an order tomorrow.

Once we returned home, I finished some sanding and painting. Our pergola design uses the existing four posts, and requires one more. Yesterday I cut the new post to the length we need. Today I drilled the holes required to mount the post in the bracket, wire a light on the face of it, and bolt the beam to it once we get to that point in the project. I put two coats of primer paint on the wood. The primer paint is extra thick and will fill in all the little holes that were the result of the pressure treating. 

I'll probably put one or two more coats on tomorrow. 

The next step involved sanding and prepping the existing posts. I removed the remaining screws and bolts and patched the holes with wood putty.

One of the posts had a cosmetic crack in the wood on top. I used some wood glue and clamps to put it back together.

Everything was going well until I examined the two existing posts on the east side of the patio. After some poking around with a screwdriver, I determined the tops were rotted out.

My neighbors say the old pergola was installed back in the late 80's or early 90's. I want the new pergola to last at least that long. There is no point in cutting corners so I'm putting the project on hold until I can purchase two new posts. I'll just add the posts to the J&W Lumber order.

Every project always has unexpected additions. This is the first :)

Pergola Day 3 - Installing A Post

 Today I prepped for installing a third post along the east side of the patio. The third post will help support the expanded size of the pergola. The original pergola was designed to cover the jacuzzi. The new pergola will cover the entire patio.

I removed the plants along the fence, dug a hole, and used a concrete form to shape the footing prior to pouring in the concrete and installing the bracket that will hold the post. The pipe next to the footing is the existing wiring conduit that powers the lights and electrical outlet on the patio.

This photo shows the hole in relation to the existing post to the right of it.

The new post will line up with the two original posts along the fenceline. The next step is to visit Home Depot to buy some lumber.