<p>I have a house that has a large patio cover, some thing like 30’ x 20’. It ran almost the full length of the back of the house. I realize that the plywood subroof of the Patio cover has a lot of dry rot spots and it has to replaced. I am thinking, instead of replacing the roof, why not just take it off and make it a Pergola!</p>
<p>There are two problems, one is the roof of the patio cover is slightly slanted, while the pergola I know of is flat. Two is that the Patio cover roof rafter is on 24" center, I think pergola is lot closer.</p>
<p>Has anyone here done a pergola?</p>
<p>I have not done a pergola, but I’ve researched them extensively. Keep in mind that a pergola is not a roof. It will provided some shade, but only if the sun hits it from the sides. Because our patio is on the south side of the house, and the main boards would have run north/south, we would have only received shade in the morning and the evening. I actually set up boards (16" on center) to track the shade.</p>
<p>If you are not concerned about receiving shade, then a pergola might be the route to go.</p>
<p>Another consideration is if you choose to go the pre-assembled route, keep in mind that they are not built to withstand high winds. Because we occasionally have wind gusts up to 60 MPH, this would not have worked for us. So we would have had to have a custom built pergola, built from wood, which would have required regular maintenance to have it painted. We didn’t want to do that, or pay to have it done.</p>
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<p>What does this mean??</p>
<p>We are considering a pergola for our upcoming patio/deck project, but it would be Stage Two of the project.</p>
<p>It sounds like you are thinking of just removing the roofing and leaving the existing rafters in place to act as a pergola. That might work, but you would need to consider if the rafters and the support structure can tolerate being exposed to the elements. Whoever built it originally was planning on the roof protecting everything below … now you will be changing that. You would also need to consider if the rafters will be rigid enough after the roofing is removed. The plywood roof deck currently limits how the rafters can flex. If the plywood is gone, they’ll be completely on their own.</p>
<p>As far as the 24" spacing is concerned, you’ll just have to decide if you would be happy with that much open space. There is no standard spacing for a pergola. You can find designs with all kinds of different spacing. FlyMeToTheMoon listed some good points to consider on that.</p>
<p>sedluhs</p>
<p>Yes, those are my intent and also my concerns. I am not sure if the rafters are made of treated wood, if so, it is ok to be exposed. I will check it. I know the rafters are pretty strong, I have stand on them. I was going to remove all, but the rafter is attached the house with large bolts, and I have to fix the plaster siding after I remove them. Its a double edged sward.</p>
<p>I believe the house was originally built with a concrete patio, since they left a 3’ flower bed between the house and the patio. The previous owner decided to cover the patio with a patio cover, without even thinking of redo the flower bed. It is very odd with three feet dirt under the patio cover next to the house. I am going to remove the plywood cover and let the rafter exposed as pergola…</p>
<p>I think the rafter can stand high winds because the plywood on top of it catches more wind than the rafter itself.</p>
<p>Oh, be careful with wisteria, it could pull the whole thing down. Try the native version, it is less of a sea monster, the flowers are lightly fragrant (not so overwhelming) and they don’t attract so many bees.</p>
<p>We have a pergola. I believe the rafters (2x8s or 2x10s) are 12 inches on center and the four corner posts are 8x8s set into 18 inch concrete footers. I planted trumpet vine on one corner and climbing hydrangea on the other corner - the vines are now on the verge of meeting in the center to form a leafy canopy. I recently learned a gardener’s saying about vines while on a home & garden tour: “First year, sleep. Second year, creep. Third year, leap.” The vines were planted in fall 2009 and the saying accurately summarizes their growth. </p>
<p>The trumpet vine is fairly aggressive & sends out rhizomes underground - like wisteria, it must be watched carefully. The climbing hydrangea is not invasive & has been an excellent choice, growing as much as a foot a week in early summer. The trumpet vine produces elongated red flowers which attract hummingbirds in July/August while the climbing hydrangea produces a carpet of tiny white flowers (mildly fragrant) on top of the pergola in September. </p>
<p>We love our pergola - it is furnished with a rustic collection of refinished thrift store, Craigslist, and yard sale finds and has become our favorite outdoor “family room” for 3 seasons of the year.</p>
<p>great ideas. Wisteria and Trumpet Vines…Do they have to be watered regularly? and 12 inch center is just fine, I just have to add some more 2x6’s…</p>
<p>Painting is another story… It was painted white… I think I just have to follow through with the same.</p>
<p>About wisteria and trumpet vines: our front yard has two wisteria planted sometime in the foggy past. They aren’t in rational spots for vines. OK. But … they can’t be killed. You can’t dig them out without taking up a huge area with a front loader. They spread. They reach up for dangling trees and need to be cut back 2 or 3 times each year. My suggestion: plant something less aggressive and less determined.</p>
<p>I just googled “less aggressive wisteria”. Apparently there is a native variety that is much less aggressive than the Asian thug.</p>
<p>[Wisteria</a> frutescens (American wisteria) | NPIN](<a href=“http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=WIFR]Wisteria”>Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin)</p>
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