Table of Contents
The pergola in this example is 9m (30ft) long x 2.4m (8ft) wide.
The project is broken into sections (pages) which include working plans, construction details, roof details, and materials. Each section contains it’s own instructions and diagrams etc.
The lumber list is at bottom of this page.
Lumber required for the lean-to pergola
| <span”>LUMBER | USED FOR | AMOUNT |
| 100×50 (2×4) suitable for exterior use | rafters 13 @ 2.4m (8ft); purlins and ledger 50m (166ft) | 82m (270ft) |
| 100×100 (4×4) suitable for exterior use | posts 5 @ 3m (10ft) | 15m (50ft) |
| 200×50 (2×8) suitable for exterior use | Beam 2 @ 4.5m (15ft) | 9m (30ft) |
| 150×25 (1×6) fascia bd | front fascia bd and side barge bd. | 18m (60ft) |
The plans
The plans for the lean-to pergola. An example of working plans for a lean-to pergola and roof, 9m (30ft) long x 2.4m (8ft) wide.
Below is an example of working plans for a lean-to pergola and roof, 9m (30ft) long x 2.4m (8ft) wide.
The Site Plan
This plan shows the placement of the pergola in relation to the existing house and boundaries.
The Flat Plan (footprint)
The flat plan is an arial (looking down) view of the pergola addition.
It shows the overall dimensions of the project and information such as footing placements, bearer and rafter placement and spacings between rafters.
The Cross-Section Plan
The cross section plan is a plan taken from a cross section of the flat plan. The cross section shows lumber sizes and footing size.
A detail plan is accompanied to give clearer detail.
A detail plan is a blow up (magnified) part of the plan.
The Elevation Plan
The elevation plan is more like a drawing of the outside of the addition rather than a plan although is still drawn to scale. The elevation plan gives a good perspective of the addition to the untrained eye.
I have generally followed this plan over an existing pergola, with modifications to suit my situation.
This site was the most helpful I have found.
For purlins (nogs) I reused existing 2x2s across the top of the rafters, planning to fix the Suntuf sheets to them directly.
This plan does not address painting, but I would observe that it is a helluva lot easier to paint structural wood components before installation. Most of the structure is the typical outdoor white.
Cut the rafters, angle the ends, and paint them on the ground, to save a lot of work.
After hammering or bolting the steel anchors and truss ties, I hit them with some white spray primer to hide the nail heads and hammer marks.
I am using the smoked gray Suntuf, and I wish I had painted the purlins more of a matching gray color (instead of white) before screwing them down to the rafters. I would prefer the purlins to fade out of view against the polycarb sheets.
The plan and equipment list make no mention of the foam closure strips offered by Suntuf, to match the contour of the sheets across the top of the purlins. I am planning to use them, hopefully to provide some noise damping, and wonder if paint will have any effect on them. They are supplied in bright white, which would upset my gray “camouflage” scheme.
Also, the closure strips are very lightweight and make placing the sheets difficult, especially if you are doing this singlehandedly. A couple little folded pieces of duct tape keep them on the purlin when sliding the sheet into place.