The manufacturer added a plastic cap at the top of the 4 posts, but didn't lengthen the bolts. The caps are affixed with nail gun staples and must be removed for the bolts to fit through the width of the post and top crossbeams. Unfortunately you find this out (if you figure it out) right the most critical and dangerous part of the assembly. Normally this would only subtract a couple of stars, but my wife insisted on holding it while I went for a tool and we had a bad crash as she shifted on the ladder. She's okay, but the pergola had a piece broken. Also they had packed before the stain dried and pieces had styrofoam glued to the beam. Taking it off required solvent that removed stain as well.

Happy as a clam with our pergola, got it up in one day with help from a friend. Did my homework on the "Chinese Cedar" (C. Lanceolata) and which settled my concerns about longevity compared to western red cedar. Granted, I wouldn't mind having the wrc but wanted a kit and, quite frankly, those were w-a-y more expensive. And yes, there are cons, but not enough to offset my overall elation with the look. Pros: • Looks great! Absolutely love the color of the stain! • Lightweight pieces, very easy to handle • Installation not too terribly difficult and for 'most part' was hiccup-free • The electrical is rather nifty; not high tech, but nifty nonetheless. Cons: • Not at all a fan of the post bases, not enough meat to make me feel comfortable with anything more than a breeze. Recommend purchasing stronger ones, such as Ozco 54208 Laredo (Amazon) or similar from Simpson. • Very high # of pcs, made pre-sealing a real pain. I get why they do it that way but, still a pain. • Instructions were okay but could have been a little more spelled out. Found a couple of vids online but none showed the level of detail I wanted and omitted some very important aspects. We actually messed up and installed our posts facing wrong direction, but with some crazy ingenious luck, I was able to make it work so you'd never know it. • Yes, a number of the perlins and 1-2 of the beams were bowed but pulled out when fastening, for the most part at least. • The touchup pen was a joke – don't use it, will actually look worse. Instead, ask mfr to send you a small can of matching stain (they'll do for free) right after you purchase and before you get – you're going to need it. Tips/Suggestions: • As much of a pain as it was with the really high number of pieces, I still very much recommend sealing in the comfort of your garage. We put a min of 3 coats on every surface, 4-5 coats on the up-facing pieces. We brushed on Polycrylic satin and are very happy with the results. Sawhorses for finishing, and various 2x4's (or similar) on the concrete for drying. • Take your time during installation and pay attention, as you surely don't want to get that puppy standing only then to find out you did something wrong. Voice of experience ; ) • Purchase decorative, structural post bases as mentioned above. We are also crazy happy with the decorative screens we purchased – they really "made" the whole thing! (Freedom Sprig from Lowes) • See the nifty brace I installed – and stained to match : ) – from which to hang my plug-in outdoor ceiling fan (Lowes). I also put a small piece of plywood atop the center to hopefully prevent melting of the shade cover (purchased elsewhere) due to heat rising from our fire pit table. • Contractor's coming next week to install code-approved electrical since you're not supposed to bury extension cords, nor are you supposed to leave them plugged in for long durations. Am still going to leave what came with the pergola on there for greater flexibility though.

I ordered this online and paid way more. Saw it in my local store for $799 and they had a few in stock. So of course I purchased it. It took my guys about 3.5 hours to put it together (they are professionals) and it looks amazing. Highly recommend and if you can get it in store DO IT! This Pergola is excellent quality and will last! I’m very happy with my purchase!

is awesome! I did have to replace a part and got someone on the line in 60-90 seconds! A real person. They had me send them my receipt to register me and withing an hour the part was shipped. I had it the next day. The instructions are good but I'd revise them. I seal the wood first thing. I used Thompsons Timber Oil in cedar. Next I'd anchor the feet down after step 4. Why wait until you have all of the extra weight on it? If your feet are directly on the concrete I'd opt for shorter concrete screws. Make sure everything is level plumb and square. I believe I could do another in less than 5 hours but I used a cordless screwdriver. I think this is a good value for the money and am happy with my purchase.

I bought this pergola which looks very nice, but the wood is heavily damaged after AIT WorldWide installation the company that installs these for Backyard Discovery. After several emails, I still have not resolution to who is going to fix the cap that fell off. Both companies are asking me to reach out to the other. A few pictures of the quality and installation attached.

This is a very good value if it is stocked at your local SAM's. The two long, heavy boxes fit into my mini-van with the seats taken out. In Southern California, the climate is very sunny all year around, so I was concerned about the stain finish's long-term durability, even with a protective clear sealer applied, as is recommended. Clear sealers may waterproof the substrate, but will provide very little UV light protection. I wanted this to last for years with easy maintenance, so I painted all the pieces with three coats of high-grade house paint before assembling it. Three coats were required to completely cover the silver color with a pure white. Also, the kit comes with very spaced out wood strips across the top, so there is almost no shade provided with the standard kit. I was able to place two additional strips between each pair - so now it is like a patio cover with noticeable shade. With the added strips being painted too, three gallons of paint were needed in total.

We love it!

We are very happy with this pergola. Although it was a little tricky to do over a pond, we got it done. We had no problems putting together, instructions were clear as well as numbered pieces. We did have a problem with a side board peeling, but called CS and another is being sent out.

For starters, if you can find it in the club grab it. Our clubs were out of stock and I did not want to wait until September before I could enjoy my Pergola so I bit the bullet and paid the extra $500 (GULP)! My Husband and myself did the majority of the building and fortunately our adult son showed up as we were ready to attach the two sides. If your not afraid of the possibility of a small wind blowing your treasured Pergola down, have 3 people at this juncture as this is the most critical stage. The Pergola is absolutely fantastic. All parts were there and all pre drilled holes were in the wood where they were supposed to be. None of our parts were bowed as some of the other reviewers mentioned. We followed the BILT app as shown below. It was better then rifling through 20 pages of instructions. I would highly recommend this method. To the reviewer who mentioned both he and his wife are in their 60's and assembled this without issue, I have to wonder if both of you are offspring of the Incredible Hulk or Hercules as this was not only difficult and challenging but very heavy at times. Hats off to you! I guess I need to hit the gym more often. My husband loves it, my son loves it.. even my dog loves it - make sure you pick up a 6 pack at Sam's and have it handy. Trust me you will need it after you have completed the job. Ibuprofen isle 7...

I purchased this product from Samsclub.com on 5/13/2022 after seeing it in my local store. What the advertising DOES NOT MENTION are the facts that one must waterproof the product in order to maintain its warranty and it can only be mounted on a concrete patio or on concrete footers at one's own expense. Due to the pergola size and the number of individual wooden pieces, waterproofing this bulky and large product is a major task (or nightmare). If I had known that it wasn't waterproofed by the manufacturer, I would have never bought this product. It's only stained. Additionally, I have a paver patio that the company told me over the telephone that they didn't recommend mounting on pavers. I would have to install concrete footers bought at my local hardware store. The recommended BILT phone app that alleges to be simple, is merely an animated video that is totally unrealistic in most cases. For example, it shows the pergola moving around like a flying carpet when putting the posts into the base for permanent locational measurements and marking purposes. It took 3 adults to move this BEAST at best. 4 adults would have been better. The app states words to the effect, "With the assistance of another adult", blah, blah, blah. No way in heck unless the 2 adults are 6'5" or above and are power lifters. Another serious matter is the alignment of pilot holes, or in some cases, the lack thereof. Due to slight warping, purvin and joist holes don't even come close to alignment. More drilling and aligning that I didn't need. The last joke on me was that the installation instructions state that the product can be assembled in 7 hours. When working by oneself at times, it takes about 7 hours to install the joists alone... another 6-7 hours to align and secure the purvins on top. So, whoever rated this product as "Highly Rated", must be Sam's Club paid advertisers. So, after intermittent rain showers and other work stoppages, I completed this project on June 6, 2022. It looks nice, but so much for the 7-hour completion promotion, even with 2 people. Oh, and did I mention that the seller offers installation assistance for a fee? I was afraid to ask for the cost but I had to wonder if there was some sort of "planned difficulty" in the design build of this product in order to promote business with a partner to assist the customer with the installation? Maybe it was just a "supply chain" issue due to the pandemic... LOL