Knowledge base
Does a pergola need to be anchored?
Why the exact manufacturer's installation instructions decide the required anchoring.
Treat anchoring as required unless the instructions for your exact pergola explicitly say otherwise. The base, anchors and assembly together form the installed product; freestanding in a sales description does not mean free-standing without fixings.
Harbour Lifestyle's preparation guide says every PergoSTET pergola must be fixed to the ground and that bolting down is a warranty requirement for those models. Other manufacturers may specify different anchors, foundations or site conditions, so do not copy that detail across brands. Use the manual supplied for the model and size you bought.
Check what lies beneath the visible surface. A paving slab, porcelain tile, composite board or thin screed may be only the finish above the structural material. The manufacturer's guide may require anchors to reach sound concrete or additional support under each post. If the make-up is unknown, a site survey or trial investigation is safer than choosing a bolt from the top surface alone.
Also check exposure. Screens, closed roof panels and canopies change the wind presented to the frame. A published wind rating normally assumes the stated assembly, anchoring and operating position. Opening a roof is not a substitute for the required anchors.
Do not improvise extra holes in a footplate or substitute anchors without written confirmation from the manufacturer or a suitably qualified designer. That can weaken a component or place loads where the product was not designed to carry them.
Sources
- Harbour Lifestyle: pergola ground preparation — accessed 14 November 2026.
- Harbour Lifestyle: assembly and installation guides — accessed 14 November 2026.
Read pergola bases and fixings, pergolas in wind and snow and the glossary entry for anchor bolt.