Free standing pergolas

sunset construction

My question to all is with a free standing pergola over patio pavers what would be the best way to secure the post which be covered by stone cast columns. My thoughts are to drill a 1/2" hole in the paver and drive a 24" piece of a number 4 rebar into the hole leaving about 6 inches of the bar exposed in which I would also drill a 1/2" hole in to the bottom of the post where the 6" of rebar would go. Any and all thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks

Termite

Hopefully your pergola posts are going to be sitting on a concrete footing, not just on pavers.

If uplift or overturning isn't an issue, a piece of threaded rod (I prefer that to rebar) can be epoxied into the footing and epoxied into the post. Threaded rod isn't a structural connection, so if that's what you're looking for you need to do something like a Simpson post base that imbeds into the footing.

BuiltByMAC

How's about you move that pesky paver out of the way, dig a hole, pour a proper footing and drop your posts into the concrete at least 2'. That will introduce a point of rot where post leaves concrete but having that 2' of post buried in concrete goes a long way towards stiffening up a free-standing pergola. Proper flashing will help prolong the post life.

Mac

whiskeykid

I used to work for a timber framer, and it always amazed me how many people didn't want a cap to be put on the bottom of an exterior post because it wasn't 'aesthetic'. Like rotten posts are better?

I would cut a piece of torch-on roofing membrane the same size as the post and melt it to the bottom. As far as fastening goes, the rebar idea would work fine as a locator, but probably won't help if the winds get strong enough. For a permanent fixture it's tough to beat a simpson strap cast into a cement footing.

sunset construction

Thank you all for replying, I am hoping they do have concete under their pavers with it being part of the pool deck. I think maybe after reading everyones reply that maybe I should use the Simpsons ABU44 with a threaded rod epoxied to the pavers. Thanks