Read This Report and Become a “Gazebo Insider”
In Just a Few Minutes
You’ve been looking at lots of pictures and started thinking about buying a gazebo and are starting to have more detailed questions about the best way to move forward. Following is a list of subjects and questions that most gazebo buyers encounter somewhere along the way.
1. Cost. It’s up to you to decide what quality you want. Then, the trick is to compare price on an “apples to apples” basis. While inexpensive warehouse style gazebos are available for less, durable and better built wood gazebos start around $2000 including a deck/floor and cupola. The most popular 12′ octagon size starts at $3,800 for a great quality wood model including stain, a deck/floor and a cupola. Keep your eye out if advertised specials are stripped down versions. Some gazebo kit builders have been known to feature skimpy versions with no floor, cupola, and skimpy everything. You can get a much nicer gazebo for just a few hundred dollars more. Most of the time you get what you pay for, but not always. You can pay A LOT more for the same gazebo and not get anything more. One builder, according to their 2010 price list, charges $6,140 for a 12 foot wood stained gazebo with a deck. That’s nearly the same gazebo you can get from Amish Designers for $3,800. That’s a $2,340 difference or 61.5%!?
2. Quality. This subject can be very confusing since relatively few builders use the best materials and practices, and some of them charge a substantial premium. Many builders skimp by using less and lower grade materials throughout their gazebos. Amish Designers uses the best materials and building practices for reasonable prices. You can learn about our construction on our website and in your catalog. The bottom line is that we skimp on nothing and don’t charge you an arm and a leg.
3. Installation Options. This is discussed in depth on a separate page. We will help you come up with a solution to get your gazebo in place that works best for you. We can assemble your gazebo in our plant, deliver a gazebo kit to you for you or a builder to assemble yourselves, or build it for you on-site. You can count on us to be upfront and honest in helping you decide if building yourself is right for you. Some builders down-play the preparation and work involved and try to make it sound easier than it is. It’s not that you shouldn’t do it. We have lots of customers that have enjoyed building their gazebo kit themselves. But it’s not for everyone. And it takes a good couple of days usually.
4. Shipping. Everyone loves the word “FREE”, but we all know that nothing ever truly is. We are in Pennsylvania, but we deliver everywhere. Watch out for slick marketing offering “FREE” shipping and make sure that the overall cost is reasonable. We won’t be the best choice for everyone, but you have nothing to lose from getting a quote.
5. Shape. The traditional gazebo is 8-sided, but not necessarily so. Rectangles are less gazebo like but have more space and work better for hot tubs. We are now doing more 6-sided hexagonal gazebos than ever. We just completed a 20′ hexagon at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. We also do 12-sided gazebos.
6. Size. It’s important to consider both the space you have to place the gazebo and also how much space you want on the inside. Keep in mind that there is a railing, the inside of which is going to be about 6″ from the outside. So that means that a 12′ octagon gazebo is going to have about 11 feet of interior space from post to post.
7. Vinyl, Wood or Highwood. Gazebos are beautiful, no matter what they’re made of but everyone has their own tastes and preferences. If up front cost is your primary concern, wood will be by far the best option. Even including stain, a 12 foot wood gazebo will be about $1000 less costly than vinyl when you buy it. Keep in mind that in 10 years, the wood gazebo will probably need to be stained twice so the cost difference over time is not nearly as great. The wood we use has a lifetime warranty, so durability will not be a difference compared to the vinyl. Highwood material is a new polysterene building material that allows darker colors in a low maintenance gazebo. You can choose redwood or cedar color with an embedded wood grain. It’s about 20% more expensive than the vinyl, but if the look of wood is important to you and you don’t want have to accept the maintenance of real wood, Highwood could be for you.
8. Base. While we include a deck/floor as standard in our base pricing, many homeowners are building their gazebos on paver patios, wood decks, or concrete foundations. Pool decks is another popular application for gazebos. You have the choice of ordering the standard gazebo that includes the deck/floor or you can order you gazebo without it. Naturally, we will include a deduction in your proposal.
9. Finish. For convenience and protection, we strongly encourage customers have their wood gazebos finished in our shop and offer this for a very reasonable charge of 8% for stain and 13% for white paint. The wood will not deteriorate physically if it isn’t finished but it will turn a natural grey.
10. Decorative options. Don’t base your decision on the prices you see on gazebo competitors price pages. Turned balusters, victorian, scalloped and fan braces, high roof, bell roof, curved roof are all available for a very reasonable up-charge.
11. Functional options. Screens, electrical package, and 4-track vinyl windows are all popular options.
12. Site prep. Requirements vary by municipality. Our engineers recommend at a minimum a 4″ to 6″ tamped stone base. Our gazebos are available with 5 4″ x 4″ skids that provide substantial stability in addition to the double 2″ x 6″ joist system. If your municipality requires piers, we will email you the dimensions of your gazebo for pier location. If you’re mounting the posts directly to a deck or foundation, the kit includes custom engineered stainless steel brackets that will secure your gazebo.
