Article Number 889


Click here for a printable version
How to create a custom pergola

The information in this article applies to:
All Home Designer programs, version 8 and newer*
*not all tools available in all versions


QUESTION
I want to add a pergola, arbor, or trellis to my plan.  How can I build my own custom pergola?

ANSWER

Before starting the task of manually creating each of the members of your custom pergola structure, you may want to look at the Pergola symbol included in the Library Browser under Fixtures(Exterior)> Landscape Fixtures> Arbors & Arches to see if the pergola symbol located here will work for the purposes of your design.  It can be resized and have a different material applied to it.

If, however, you want to create you own custom pergola piece by piece, then the steps outlined in this article can assist you with creating this.



 

Creating a pergola in Home Designer is easy using the Soffit tool and Corbel symbols from the Millwork section of the Library Browser.  To create a pergola similar to the one above:

  1. First, launch your Home Designer software program and open the plan in which you want to create your pergola.


  2. Select Build> Cabinet> Soffit  and click in your 2D Floor Plan view to place this rectangular object.

    Landscaping and Deck Designer users can use a Closed Box from the Geometric Shapes section of the Library Browser to accomplish the same effect.


  3. Using the Select Objects  tool, click on the soffit to select it, and select the Open Object  edit tool to display the Soffit Specification dialog.


  4. On the General tab, set the dimensions of the soffit, including its Height, Width, and Depth.


  5. Next, set the distance from the floor that you want this object to be.


    If you are unsure as to the dimensions that you want, or the distance from the floor that you need these first horizontal soffits to be, you may find it helpful to take a Cross Section/Elevation  or Camera  view and adjust the soffit's dimensions and distance from the ground in 3D.


  6. Go to the Materials tab and select the Soffit to change its material.

    Wood materials can be located in the Select Library Object dialog by clicking on the plus + sign next to Materials.


  7. Once you have finished making changes to your first soffit, click the OK button to apply the changes and close the Soffit Specification dialog.


  8. To quickly create copies of the first initial soffit, use the Select Objects  tool to select the soffit, then click on the Copy/Paste  edit tool.


  9. Click on the Sticky Mode  edit tool so that your copied object will remained copied, then simply click in your plan to place copies of the original soffit until you have the number of copies that you want for this section of your pergola.

    *Sticky mode available to Home Designer version 8.0 and later users only, prior version users will need to Copy and then Paste individually


  10. Once you have placed your copies, select each one and move it in to place.

    You may find it helpful to create a Manual Dimension line across them to help position them equally apart.


  11. Now you are ready to place a new, vertical Soffit .


  12. Use the same procedure as above for setting the appropriately Height, Width, Depth, the Floor to Bottom distance and the object's material.

    Remember that you want these vertical beams to sit on top of the soffits that you just created, so their Distance from Floor should be the value used for the horizontal soffits added to their Height value.


  13. You can take a Cross Section/Elevation  view, or 3D Camera  view, to double check the appearance of the soffit.


  14. Use the same Copy/Paste  and Sticky Mode  procedure outline above to create the necessary copies of these vertical beams and then maneuver them in to place.


  15. If you are creating a stand-alone pergola, or one attached to the house that will be held up by columns, these can be located in the Library Browser  under Millwork> Columns.


  16. Also in the Millwork category are Corbels, which can be resized and placed at the ends of your soffits for the effect created in the image above.


  17. Lattice symbols, such as in the screenshot at the beginning of this article that was placed on top of a railing, can be located in the Library under Fixtures(Exterior)> Landscape Fixtures> Lattice.


  18. To create the deck beneath this pergola, we used a combination of Deck Railings , where we wanted the railing to display and Straight Deck Edges  where we did not require a railing.


MORE INFORMATION

Article Number 748: How to create a screen porch

Article Number 790: How to create a deck

Last updated on: 09-16-2009