Caring for your Sonoma Pergola

The Sonoma Pergola brings outdoor living to a new, affordable perspective adding permanent value to your home. Since this item brings your friends and family together, you need to make sure it receives the proper care. Securely mounting to pergola will be your first priority. This model will withstand harsh weather as long as you take all the precautions. It comes with an anchoring system made of stainless steel hardware that will never rust. With this system, each column can be firmly secured to your deck, patio or ground. This process can be done by two people in about 2 hours with a single tool which is included.For extra sturdiness you may order the pedestal base. This pedestal base slides over the post and will anchor with either lag bolts for a wood deck, or masonry bolts for a cement surface. You may also want to check with the building code requirements for footings in your area. There is no way to proof them 100% as such weathers can destroy neighbor hoods, but there you can take precaution to prevent damage as much as nature permits. Like in Florida, some towns are required to pass certain criteria’s. In such cases the customer may connect hurricane straps to the pergola. These are bolted to the ground and bolted together and with these straps they should pass the codes. Not all of Florida requires this, but certain cities are very strict in this area. Hurricane straps are relatively simply pieces of galvanized steel which hold the roof of the structure to the walls. According to building code professionals, lack of hurricane straps is the number one mistake that costs homeowners millions of dollars in hurricane damage. Your local area’s building code specifies the areas in which hurricane straps are required for structures.For general preparedness, you should keep the trees surrounding the structure trimmed at all times. If a storm is approaching, it is unsafe to trim trees as the scattered limbs will become dangerous projectiles in the high winds. Also, loose items that surround the structure should be secured. These items include garbage cans, large planters, and anything that might possibly take flight during the storm. Your final maintenance tip would be keeping the look superb. The pergola is constructed with Chinese cedar wood. The stain on the wood contains as many UV inhibitors as possible, which slows down fading and is also dipped in stain to ensure the best coverage. The pergola loses its stain at an average of 10 percent every year. We suggest staining every third year. Stain colors are very compatible and can be found at any paint store. 2.29.08EKW