Low Cost, Easy Upkeep Pergola: Aluminum Reinforced Vinyl vs Timber Frame
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We use an innovative massive mortised dovetail joint connection system we call The Dovetail Difference™ throughout our timber construction process, creating very strong rigid joints. On the test pictured above it didn’t give until over 11,000 lbs.!
We are often asked about weathering or maintenance on our timber frame pergola, arbor, gazebo and pavilion kits. People want something that easy and stress-free; which is why some have been attracted to vinyl pergolas advertising as a "low cost", "low maintenance" product. Here I will show the veritable costs and upkeep of an aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola kit compared to a solid wood, timber frame pergola kit, a permanent outdoor shade structure from Western Timber Frame™.
Our timber frame kits we ship out daily, throughout North America range from 2,500 to 11,000 lbs. (and often larger on commercial or large custom projects). We custom build heavy-duty pallets to ship our kits on just to sustain the 1,000’s of pounds of sheer mass and weight of the custom crafter timbers. Our average shipment weighs over 5,500 lbs. The packaged kit will average about 240" in length, 36" in height, & 48" wide. So, you’re often looking at a kit that is about 20′ or more in length or more of solid pre-stained, pre-cut, and pre-fit beams, posts, rafters, etc. When we ship your kit, it is going to come on the back of a semi trailer, instead of 2-3 cardboard boxes, or on a small pallet.
Your average cookie cutter pergola kit from a big box store is going to cost between $800 - $2,000 and will probably weight somewhere around 200 lbs. – 380 lbs., will have spliced beams, be limited in size, etc. Our kits weigh in more than 10 to 30 times that and are completely solid in their construction. This is just one of the reasons we're North America's largest custom pergola and pavilion kit manufacturer.
Of all of the pergolas or pavilions we replace, Vinyl is the #1 most replaced material. Check out the pictures of a "steel reinforced" vinyl pergola we replaced recently. Like many other vinyl pergolas we’ve replaced, this one was steel reinforced, supposed to stand up to wind, etc. This kit cost this customer over $6,500, and the national brand company they purchased it from wouldn’t do anything to help them.
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Broken off post of a wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola blown over by the wind onto the concrete patio.
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Another shattered post of a wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola the wind blew over onto the concrete patio.
Shattered pieces and remnant pilings of a wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola from a national brand company blown over in the wind.
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Full view of an entire wind rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola, from a national brand company, that blew over in a Utah wind.
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Lying underneath the roof of a wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola is the shattered rafters and a post blown down in the wind.
Wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola post, from a national brand company, pinned under the rafters and pergola roof blown down in a Utah wind.
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Roof lies on top of shattered support beams of a wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola destroyed by the wind.
Wind destroyed a national brand wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola.
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Looking down the end of a rafter, you can see the lightweight aluminum reinforcement that was suppose to give this wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola the strength it needed to withstand the wind.
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Paying a High Price for the Cost of Vinyl
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National brand composite decking warped and weathered in the sun.
This is where the remains of this wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola as deposited. It is at a great cost to the environment. The greatest defect of vinyl is that it is so difficult to responsibly dispose of it. It cannot be burned because of its extremely toxic dioxin gases. While an enviro-optimist may think it is okay to modify, change or improve upon natural environments, a eco-pessimist may think that nature knows best and that humans must not meddle or interfere, both seem to need some balance. Nature offers to us her bounty to use responsibly but it is however, difficult to improve upon nature. For example, composite decking regularly advertised as "maintenance free" in times past, has had several break downs, lawsuits and recalls over the last few years, unable to withstand the weathering of mother nature.
Landfill full of vinyl products too toxic to burn.
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Western Timber Frame: Heirloom Architectural Structures
We engineer and design beautiful architecture that your great-great-grand children will enjoy.
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Western Timber Frame DIY pergola kit installed for shade over lawn with outdoor furniture.
A warranty is only as good as the company behind it! Luckily for this client, their home insurance covered the damage and they replaced this kit with one of ours that will stand for decades.
Innovatively Engineered to Last for Generations
Our timber frame kits that are engineered for 120mph winds, and we've never had to replace one that has blown over. They can be engineered for up to 160mph. These are truly made to last for generations with very minimal maintenance.
A warranty is only as good as the manufacturer. We’ve been working with timber for over 30 years, and we’re here to stay. We recently were awarded the Best Small Business for 2015 in Utah’s Best of State awards. We are a solid and stable company and we back up our product as testament to our across the board 5 star reviews on all 3rd party review platforms from Google, to Houzz.
We also have several patent-pending methods of fabrication and construction that make our timber kits a breeze to install, drastically reduce maintenance, and give them an extremely long life (which is why we back up all of our oversize kits with a 25 year warranty).
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Backyard Retreat: In as little as one AFTERNOON!
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"We researched quite a few sites and talked to many people before investing in a Western Timber Frame pergola. What sold us was the dove tails! The ordering process was quite simple. It arrived in a nice bundle. We were able to put up our Western Timber Frame pergola with only 3 of us. It was amazingly simple." --Teri Mullins Walker
Quick Installation
Despite their massive size, more often than not, they are actually easier and quicker to assemble than a kit that is 10-30 times smaller in weight. We utilize a patent-pending dovetail joint method for our beam and post connections. Everything is pre-cut, pre-finished, and ready to assemble. The main "downside" is the weight of the posts and beams. You'll need to invite over a friend or two to lift each end of the beams in place, but once the beams are set in place that weight locks everything into position with our dovetail joint system. Our customers assemble their kits in as little as one afternoon.
Simple Maintenance
When it comes to maintenance: many timber kits require painting or staining yearly and all materials have some upkeep and maintenance.. However, with our kits, they only require a touch up stain every 3-5 years with our proprietary water based UV resistant solid stain. You simply add some of our stain to a spray bottle, mist any needed areas and roller over them and you’re good for another 3-5 years and your kit looks brand new again.
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Easy Drop-in Rafters & Post-to-Beam Assembly
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"We couldn’t believe our beautiful pergola was completely assembled and installed in just a few hours. It’s beautiful, very sturdy and just as impressive as the displays at the Home Show. Friday evening we were able to sit under our new pergola and admire it. Wow! That kind of service and craftsmanship is very unusual today. You won’t be sorry if you choose Western Timber Frame. We are so impressed that we would be happy to give a personal reference to anyone who would like to call us. We may even install a second one in our yard next year. Thanks again to the guys at Western Timber Frame. "— Rick & Nancy Bowen, Holladay, UT
We have had many clients tell us that their kit went together like a set of "Legos" or "Lincoln Logs". They do go together easily, with everything pre-cut, pre-tested and pre-stained, drop-in rafters and post-to-beam application it makes a fast and enjoyable installation that in most cases easier to assemble than a hardware store kit.
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Timber Frame: The Most Comfortable Shade in the World
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The main purpose of an arbor, pergola, pavilion or gazebo is to provide shade and some more comfortable protection from the elements in the outdoors. For strength, genuine timber is still of the finest, most dependable material known to man with its long lasting benefits and positive influences upon our environment over man made synthetic alternatives. Timber is also always welcoming as it rejuvenates and stimulates our senses with its warmth, smell, texture and variations of colors. Timber has other remarkable characteristics as well, bacteria will not reproduce itself on timber; it is earth friendly and given the right conditions it contains immortal-like properties that can last indefinitely. For outdoor shade structures timber is the best shade with a natural ability to regulate itself against the heat or cold. Timber is a poor conductor of heat and yet it is never cold to the touch, constantly keeping a natural human-friendly balance of temperature.
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Why Vinyl Cannot Protect You From The Sun
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Disintegrating Vinyl
Vinyl is a plastic product, polyvinyl chloride and commonly abbreviated as PVC. All plastics degrade, albeit sometimes slowly, and sometimes rapidly in all environmental settings. Many manufacturers of vinyl products do not warranty or provide protection against failure or defect caused from distortion or melting of vinyl products due to various heat sources which includes barbecue grills, fire pits, excessive sky, door or window reflections. Some even recommend landscaping to alleviate reflections. This is due to the instability of vinyl, which will break down in the direct sunlight.
The U.S. Department of Energy affirms that vinyl can crack at very low temperatures and can warp at high temperatures and over time vinyl can turn yellowish, losing its color and degrade. When the temperature reaches 140° C it starts to decompose, at 160° C it will melt. UV light stabilizers are added to reduce inevitable weakening and degradation caused from heat and to increase the longevity of vinyl. Vinyl manufacturers use larger components such as metal stiffeners and wood additives in order to offset the problem vinyl has having a tendency to bend. Vinyl does not carry the strength or thermal properties of timber to protect and shield from the strong winds and harsh elements required in a sound pergola.
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In Defense of Vinyl: Vinyl does have better insulating and thermal properties than aluminum.
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Aluminum retains heat well but is not a good material for a cooling shade structure.
Vinyl does have better insulating and thermal properties than aluminum. Aluminum does not decompose like vinyl and is much easier to recycle than vinyl but for shade and cooling off under a pergola, aluminum is the poorest of all choices. Metal cooking pots are often made from aluminum. This is because aluminum is an excellent conductor of heat and transfers the heat energy from the stove to the food so rapidly, whereas the handles of cooking pots are made from wood or plastic. This works well for cooking but not as well for pergolas where a comfortable shade is needed. Like vinyl, aluminum also does not carry the same security and strength of timber for a pergola. Below is another sample of an aluminum pergola kit that the wind blew over that had to be hauled to the dump.
Two views of an aluminum pergola kits the wind blew over. These homeowners were very grateful it didn't break out a window.
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"Aluminum Reinforced" Vinyl
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Family enjoying a fireplace beneath a Western Timber Frame pergola.
Wind is not the only opposition that nature imposes. With the natural occurrences of seasonal freezing and thawing, powerful winds, heavy snowfalls and seismic shifting it is essential to have a thorough understanding of load paths and design properties to remaining steadfast under continual exposure that nature will bring.
Some people use radiant heaters, fireplaces or fire pits to enjoy their outdoor pergola year-round. An outdoor shade structure must be able to stand under the weight of years of heavy mountainous snows.
Engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl does not have the strength to hold up long-term under the heaviness of snow. Larger structures using inelastic load bearing materials such as concrete, steel or aluminum beams are required by architectural engineers to compensate for the rigidness against inevitable seismic movement by installing kinematic mechanisms and plates. These artificial mechanisms are also to help guard against spalling, vapor bubble and plate impacts subjected to localized low-pressure. When a beam yields a little at its highest point without losing its resistance; the joints and weight maintain its bearing resistance; the resonant frequency will dampen out and they will hold full strength.
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Western Timber Frame Kits: Engineered to Withstand Heavy Mountainous Snows & Seismic Loads
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Western Timber Frame pergola after heavy snowfall.
The natural air pockets within timber adds to its structural stability and is less affected by temperature extremes or prone to condensation as aluminum, metal or vinyl is. The marvel of timber is that it does not require or need any artificial mechanisms to dampen out resonate frequencies to maintain its integrity.
This integrity is shown in timber framing dating back hundreds of years that have allowed for wide-open spaces, cathedral ceilings, commercial construction, great rooms, ancient bridges, waterworks and more.
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Snow collapsed aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola.
Here is one of the engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergolas that we replaced having collapsed under some snow.
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This reinforced vinyl pergola was not engineered to endure heavy mountainous snows.
Aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola collapses under the weight of snow. Snow can weigh quite a lot.
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This is an aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola that collapsed under the weight of snow.
Collapsed under the weight of snow is an aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola.
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Wind-Rated Aluminum Reinforced Vinyl Pergola
Broken off bottom of wind rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola blown down in a Utah wind.
Wind-Rated Western Timber Frame Pergola
Inserting a knife plate into a solid wood timber pergola post from Western Timber Frame.
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A wind-rated engineered aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola kit cannot compare to a timber frame pergola kit, however it is difficult to truly see in pictures how extremely massive these timber frame structures really are and pound for pound they cost less than an engineered wind-rated aluminum reinforced vinyl pergola kit. They are in not way like vinyl which is more like a lightweight canopy. You are adding on a room to a house or another building.
Although, timber frame is an ancient architecture it is still the modern choice of architectures for strength and durability. Western Timber Frame™ has perfected old world craftsmanship with state of the art technology with their revolutionary "The Dovetail Difference™" design which makes the easiest and strongest DIY pergola kits on the market to install and the easiest to maintenance.
We offer a 25 year warranty on our Oversize heavy rough-sawn timber frame kits and a 15 year warranty on all of our Fullsize heavy rough-sawn timber frame kits . You can view the differences between our Fullsize and our Oversize heavy timber kits on our website.
Below is a view of a Fullsize pergola kit before installation and a timber frame gazebo, pergola and pavilion kit pictured after being fully installed. Patterned after old world craftsmanship, without the use of nails or glue, these structures are built to last and we take care of you long after we have finished your project!
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120 mph Wind Rated Timber Frame Shade Structure Kits from Western Timber Frame
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Western Timber Frame™ DIY pergola kit before installation.
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A Western Timber Frame™ DIY gazebo kit installed over patio for shade with outdoor cabinetry and furniture.
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Above photo of a Western Timber Frame™ pavilion kit installed in a backyard retreat is courtesy of Alderwood Landscape Spokane Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers.
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A Western Timber Frame™ DIY pergola kit installed over patio for outdoor entertaining.
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