How do you build a solar pergola that can withstand Phoenix winds and still get eight panels onto the frame? One DIY builder said the answer was a heavily reinforced base and an unexpectedly simple lifting hack.
The finished setup doubles as shade and a 3.6-kilowatt solar array, but the detail that caught other DIYers’ attention was the tool choice: an $80 drywall lift bought on FB Marketplace to raise the panels into place.
Here’s what to know
Built in Phoenix, the 10-by-14-foot pergola was designed around eight 450-watt panels and reinforced with 6-by-6 posts, substantial concrete footers, epoxy-set anchors, and heavy bolts to handle an area that can sometimes get 120 mph winds.
The OP said, “I overbuilt it so much panels would tear apart before it lifts the thing. Everyone kept telling me pergolas go flying not this one. We do get 120 mph winds once in awhile in Phoenix.”…